New Ofsted inspections of multi-academy trusts (MATs) should not be graded, the sector body for trusts has said.
The government has pledged to introduce Ofsted inspections at MATs during this Parliament.
A new report launched by the Confederation of School Trusts (CST) today laid out its vision for the inspections.
“A graded system is unlikely to be valid or reliable and would add pressure without clear benefits,” it argued.
It said the inspection outcomes should instead be “written reports that identify key patterns in school quality within the group, and the effectiveness of the group’s response to weaknesses.”
CST argued this would help ensure accountability of MATs “without unnecessary burden”. It said this approach would avoid “distorting behaviour through high-stakes grading”.
The organisation said the inspections should be carried out by “a slim team of specialist HMI, supported by well-trained practitioners” who hold leadership positions within trusts and other groups that run multiple schools, with “clearly defined processes for managing potential conflicts of interest.
The report, which was released as CST holds its annual conference in Birmingham, also warned against “inspection for inspection’s sake”, and said government “must demonstrate clearly how this policy will add value to the system and ultimately to children”.
MATs not only groups running multiple schools
CST also argued the inspections should be framed as “group inspection” rather than “trust inspections”, as “trusts are not the only type of responsible body operating multiple schools”.
It argued that MATs “already face robust public accountability through external audit, oversight from regions group, and every time one of their schools is inspected”.
“If group inspection applies only to trusts, government should explain what parallel accountability arrangements exist for other groups”.
CST described the decision for Ofsted to begin inspecting trusts as “a significant policy shift” and said the education secretary “must play a central role” to ensure its “genuinely strengthens the system rather than only adding burden”.
Currently, Ofsted provides summary evaluation of trusts (MATSEs), which sees it batch-inspect a number of schools within a trust, but it does not inspect the way their central teams work.
Ofsted has recently advertised for a policy lead to help shape the new inspections, signalling work to develop them is soon to begin.
But the DfE must formally consult on the policy and legislate before MAT inspections can be implemented, and no specific timeframe has yet been given.
DfE and Ofsted said they would be working with the sector as government formulates its approach.
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