Ofsted has announced a new way of recruiting “groups” of school and college leaders to work as part-time inspectors, in a bid to make inspections “more collaborative than ever before”.
School and college inspections are currently carried out by full-time his majesty’s inspectors (HMI) and contracted Ofsted inspectors (OIs), who are typically serving leaders.
OIs typically join Ofsted “as individuals”, but the inspectorate says this “can restrict chances for two-way professional reflection and shared learning”.
Under a pilot announced this morning, Ofsted is trialling recruiting OIs as “groups of peers drawn from professional organisations and networks they’re already part of”.
This includes multi-academy trusts, local authorities, dioceses and local school networks.
But inspectors will not be paid directly, with payments instead going to their employers.
The scheme is already underway, says Ofsted, and is hoped to encourage OIs to “form a professional community with each other and with HMI”.
Schools and trusts will be paid for leaders’ time
For Ofsted inspectors who work full-time in a school or trust that releases them for inspection work, the watchdog pays their employer for their time.
Those who inspect in their own time, for example those who are part-time in school leadership or semi-retired, are paid directly.
Under the new pilot, “there is no separate inspection fee”. Instead, Ofsted will contribute to employers’ costs so that staff can become an OI “as part of their professional development pathway”, said an Ofsted press release.
Ofsted confirmed contributions will continue to be paid to their employers once they are fully trained.
The inspectorate added that it is developing “additional learning and development opportunities to complement inspection training and make sure becoming an OI offers clear professional value for participants and their employers.”
Ofsted said the OIs will have regular opportunities to share feedback with each other and reflect on what they’re seeing and learning. These experiences “will then feed directly into how Ofsted continuously improves inspection”.
Announcing the pilot at ASCL‘s annual conference in Liverpool, chief inspector Martyn Oliver said he is “really excited” about it, adding: “It means we can bring in current sector insight in a more systemic way.
“It means more people in the sector, inspecting the sector. Even more colleagues who understand what it means to lead a school through challenges, to make the difficult calls you all make every day.”
Join us as an inspector, Oliver tells leaders
Oliver said he wants to “bring in as many people in from the sector as possible”, to give leaders chance to lend their expertise and “shape how inspection works”.
“I believe this should be part of every leader’s journey,” he said. “So join us.
“I want to make inspection more collaborative than ever before. We should work together to challenge each other in the interests of children and learners and to keep raising standards.”
Oliver stressed OIs recruited through the pilot will be trained “to the same high standards as existing OIs” and will carry out the same inspection work.
The first participants in the pilot began inspector training in January and now currently taking part in shadow inspections, said Ofsted.
They are expected to be ready to take part in live inspections later this term, and further cohorts will begin training later in the year.
The pilot will continue throughout 2026 and feedback will be gathered, to help inform how Ofsted recruit OIs.
Ofsted said it is also exploring whether a similar approach can be adopted across early years and social care inspection.
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