AntwisCollaborative

Aaaaah! September!!  The month when school leaders feel energised, excited, organised, in control and hopeful for the year ahead.  Yes – I felt all of these at the start of the academic year in 23/24, but I also had a deep dread in the pit of my stomach.  Of the 15 schools I support, many were in the Ofsted window following the COVID backlog.  It was going to be a busy year!!

In fact, I was part of 11 Ofsted inspections last year.  At one point in the year, they were happening every fortnight.  In fact, I think we covered every possible inspection type from short ungraded inspections to new school inspections, to monitoring visits, to full graded inspections. We also covered every possible outcome from inadequate to outstanding.

Yes – it was busy.

Yes – it was tiring.

Yes – it was tough.

Yes – it was emotionally exhausting.

But it was also….

• Stimulating
• Intellectually challenging
• Thought provoking
• Powerful
• Affirming

And ultimately a learning experience.  As I have reflected on the academic year 23/24, I have come to liken it to the movie Ocean’s Eleven.  Although I admit it was a bit less Ocean’s Eleven and more Ofsted Eleven!!

Ocean’s Eleven is a 2001 American heist film.  A professional thief, Danny Ocean (George Clooney), with his long time friend Rusty Ryan (Brad Pitt) undertake a multi-million dollar heist of three Las Vegas casinos.

So ….. here is some advice after 11 Ofsteds!!

Like all good heists …..

It is essential that there are clear roles for all stakeholders.

In Ocean’s 11, Danny gathers together a crack team of experts including his partner in crime, a gifted mechanic, an electronics expert, an explosives expert, a surveillance expert, an acrobat, a con man, a casino owner, a pickpocket and a mechanical expert.  Each member has a clearly defined role in the plan and utilises their specific skills and knowledge to benefit the team.

In our schools, during an inspection, we need to have clear roles and responsibilities, be able to delegate, trust others and fully utilise their skills and knowledge.  As a headteacher you have an expert side kick – your school improvement partner.  Contact them as soon as you get the Ofsted call.  They can join the inspection call in person or online – just use speakerphone.  They will be able to walk alongside you throughout the inspection.  They will be your guide, advisor, confidant, problem solver and tea maker.  They will be your safe person to help you rehearse for meetings with the inspectors, prepare any paperwork, support teachers, practice with governors and sooo much more.

In a trust or local authority there are also many experts including; CEO, Chair of Trust, HR, Estates, IT, governance.  They will have much experience to bring to the party and are essential in securing judgements for safeguarding and leadership.  Ensure you contact them as soon as possible and share any briefing notes.  Make sure you keep in contact with this group throughout the inspection and share with them any emerging themes. In our Trust we shared a briefing note which outlined a brief history of the school, the brutal facts (priorities), the relentless optimism (priorities and actions), data and our Trust evaluation of the school. 

Most importantly, this is a time to rely on your wonderful school team.  They will already have clearly defined roles within school and be well prepared for lesson visits, deep dives, SCR check and all the standard inspection activity.  But you must ensure that there are also clearly defined roles and responsibilities during the inspection process.  For our schools and Trust SLT, we had prepared “An Inspector Calls” document.  This outlined all the possible inspection activities for all stakeholders and showed who was responsible.  It was a live document and edited and tracked throughout the inspection.

Clearly defining roles and responsibilities supports and facilitates strong cooperation, minimises disruption, promotes transparency, ensures accountability and facilitates timely feedback.

Like all good heists …..

There must be a clear plan.

In Ocean’s 11, Danny and Rusty have a clear and very detailed plan of action which is based on a deep understanding of the casinos and how they work.

As a headteacher it is essential to ensure your key stakeholders know and understand the Inspection Framework, especially SLT and Chair of Governors.  In our Trust, we facilitated training on the framework and provided frequent updates and learning from inspections.

I cannot stress enough the importance of the Ofsted phone call from the inspector.  It is their first insight into the quality of your leadership.  Be prepared.  Be confident.  Be open and honest.  Our schools prepared an Ofsted phone call script.  This had all the relevant information at a glance – NOR, demographic, most recent validated data, attendance, progress from previous inspection, current priorities, curriculum development, summary of quality of education.

And of course, it is essential that your school self evaluation and school development plan are accurate and up to date.  Our schools kept these essential documents in an Ofsted folder on the school shared drive or created a specific padlet.  They routinely updated these termly and they were shared with key stakeholders.

Ensure you have a clear school development plan based on accurate self evaluation.  This can be summarised in an Ofsted script ready for the inspection phone call.

Like all good heists …..

Careful groundwork is key.

In Ocean’s 11, Danny completes precise and careful preparation with his team.  This includes detailed, specific surveillance and gathering collective intelligence completed; all completed by experts in the field.

The inspection will only last 1 or 2 days but the prep work takes years.  High quality school improvement must be firmly based on your school vision and values.  These must be known and understood by all stakeholders, whilst also underpinning every aspect of your school. This is what establishes your school culture.  Remember … the standard you walk past is the standard you accept. 

You, your SLT and your chair must know your school well.  You all need to be able to tell the story of the school with confidence, clarity and honesty.  You need to know your hot and cold spots (your strengths and areas for development) and what you have done and are doing to address them.  This can only be achieved if accurate school self evaluation is based on robust monitoring and impactful professional learning is provided.  Remember… to keep the main thing, the main thing.

The inspection will pass in a whirlwind of activity, the inspectors are incredibly busy gathering evidence at pace.  We found that inspectors were incredibly grateful for an A4 summary!!  Encourage middle leaders to take their folder/laptop along to a deep dive meeting but also to leave the inspector with an A4 summary of their subject or area.  This can provide an outline of their intent, implementation and impact.

A clear, compelling vision, well-defined core values, and a positive school culture are essential for driving sustainable school improvement.

Robust monitoring and evaluation processes are also essential for school leaders to measure impact, drive continuous improvement, enhance accountability, and prepare for inspection.

Like all good heists …..

Back-up is essential.

In Ocean’s 11, Danny and Rusty have a back-up plan.  Rusty (Brad Pitt) tricks Benedict (Andy Garcia) into handing over half the cash.

During an inspection, the inspectors can only evaluate what they see on the day.  They can’t future gaze.  They are looking for typicality.  So, if a lesson visit or a deep dive discussion does not go well for a class teacher – take a breath, talk to your SIP, talk to your SLT – and now gather some evidence to prove that is not typical.  This is where your routine monitoring and evaluation notes are critical.  These can also be backed up by trust or LA school reviews and visit notes.  In a number of our inspections school review notes effectively shut down lines of enquiry. 

External validation is useful and purposeful for school leaders at all times.  It supports school improvement, enhances the quality of teaching and learning, leading to improved outcomes for all pupils.  In an inspection, external validation will support your own school self evaluation, provide strong evidence and illustrate the levels of support the school has received.

Like all good heists (and movies about heists) …..

There is always an element of jeopardy.

In Ocean’s 11, like in very good heist movie, there is the obligatory moment of jeopardy.  Viewers believe the heist hasn’t worked, the plan has failed and THEN realise the SWAT team are the plan!

Please be aware the biorhythms of an inspection.  An inspection will never go smoothly.  There will always be bumps in the road – a question you can’t answer, some evidence you can’t find, a dysregulated pupil, an upset staff member.  This is your time to remember T-CUP. Think Clearly Under Pressure.  Take a moment.  Listen to what the inspector is saying, write it down – tell them you will get back to them.  Now, gather your people.  Work together with your powerful, collective hive mind and solve the problem, find the answer, gather the evidence.  Then, smile and take it back to the inspector.  That was your moment of jeopardy but your careful planning over the years will support you.

Remember … T-CUP

Like all good heists …..

The ending always comes with a big reveal.

In Ocean’s 11, as dawn breaks, the remaining team contemplate their victory before going their separate ways.

In an inspection the big reveal comes in two forms; long final feedback and short final feedback.  The long feedback is with the inspection team and the headteacher/SLT.  This is very detailed feedback.  Make sure you have someone who can take comprehensive notes.  The inspectors will share comprehensive evidence and their judgements.  This will support you in amending or re-writing your SDP.  The final feedback is with staff, governors, trust/LA.  This is less detailed but outlines the main judgements and evidence gathered.  And then the inspectors leave – quickly!

As the inspectors leave and in the coming days, weeks it is the time for your school to contemplate, celebrate and co-create future plans.

Finally…..

I have taken some time over the summer break to reflect on the power of 11 Ofsted inspections.

In numerology, 11 is considered a “master number,” associated with intuition, spiritual insight, and enlightenment. It is often seen as a symbol of higher consciousness and spiritual awakening.   Indeed, seeing 11:11 on a clock is a sign of good luck.

The power of 11 Ofsted inspections has been a deep insight into the process, building relationships with the south west team of inspectors, sharing insight across our Trust, taking new learning from every inspection, being privileged to walk alongside headteachers during the inspections, supporting colleagues and now sharing that learning with others.