Jessica O'ConnorIn a move designed to strengthen the quality and consistency of school and further education inspections, Ofsted has announced a significant restructuring of its inspection teams.
The changes, published on 26th June, follow feedback from last year’s Big Listen and a recent consultation on inspection reform.
The reform, which comes into effect from November 2025 alongside Ofsted’s renewed education inspection framework, will see all inspections led by current His Majesty’s Inspectors (HMI) or Ofsted Inspectors (OIs) with recent HMI experience.
Ofsted aims to leverage the in-depth expertise and training of these inspectors to lead more reliable and consistent inspections across England.
The shake-up also redefines the role of contracted OIs, many of whom are current practitioners in schools and colleges.
They will now act as team inspectors, deployed more strategically to match their expertise with the specific type of education provision under inspection.
This pairing of HMI oversight with current sector experience is designed to enhance the depth and relevance of inspections.
During the Big Listen, stakeholders raised concerns about inspectors lacking direct experience in the types of schools or colleges they were assessing, such as special schools, primary settings or apprenticeship providers.
Responding to these concerns, Ofsted confirmed that from November, most inspections will include at least one inspector with relevant experience in the same type of provision.
Ofsted’s chief inspector, Sir Martyn Oliver, emphasised the importance of using staff expertise to deliver fairer inspections.
He said: “We want to make sure our inspections are as consistent as possible, from Cornwall to Northumberland.
“We have already put stronger quality assurance measures in place, and utilising the expertise of our workforce as effectively as we can is another significant step forward.
“All inspection teams will have the right blend of inspection expertise and current sector insight. This will help us better understand the context of the schools and colleges we inspect, to provide a fair and accurate report for parents.”
The Confederation of School Trusts welcomed the announcement.
Steve Rollett, deputy chief executive officer of CST, said: “It is welcome that Ofsted are taking the issue of consistency seriously.
“Having the most experienced inspectors lead inspections should support consistency, which would be a positive step.
“We know Ofsted has also committed to making improvements to its proposed toolkits and methodology, and we hope these changes will provide further reassurance on consistency.”
