Ofsted and Governance

1. Ofsted and Governance Iain Veitch

2. Types of Inspection • Section 8 • Section 5

3. Ofsted • New HMCI – research facility opened • New short inspection arrangements - Section 5 - Two types of Grade 2 - Section 5 not a certainty if you are already Good • New Inspection Framework in September 2019.

4. Ofsted Replacement of Data Dashboard with IDSR Changes • No strengths and weaknesses highlighted, just areas to investigate • Will show if you below or ‘coasting’ • Gives school context at front • Still operates on ability bands but Disadvantaged less flagged up and SEND reduced to one item on scatter graphs • Interest in ‘outliers’ IMPLICATIONS Training issue for governors

5. Ofsted: Timings • Short inspections for good schools will now usually take place up to four years from the previous inspection (was three years previously). • The window for schools judged requires improvement and academies judged inadequate (but not re-brokered) to receive their Section 5 re-inspection has been extended to 30 months. Please note that these timings are at the discretion of Ofsted’s regional director, so these timings are a guide. Also, don’t forget that schools can request an earlier inspection, which will also be considered at the discretion of the regional director.

6. What does HMCI see as core function of governors? The governing body has three core functions for the school: • setting the strategic direction • holding the headteacher to account for improving the school • ensuring financial health, probity and value for money. To meet these expectations, the governing body needs to agree some broad principles about the way it works and to be led effectively by its Chair.

8. There is no separate judgement for Governance • Leaders set high expectations of pupils and staff. They lead by example to create a culture of respect and tolerance. The positive relationships between leaders, staff and pupils support the progress of all pupils at the school. • Leaders and governors are ambitious for all pupils and promote improvement effectively. The school’s actions secure improvement in disadvantaged pupils’ progress, which is rising, including in English and mathematics. • Leaders and governors have an accurate and comprehensive understanding of the quality of education at the school. This helps them plan, monitor and refine actions to improve all key aspects of the school’s work. • Leaders and governors use professional development effectively to improve teaching. They use accurate monitoring to identify and spread good practice across the school. • Teachers value the continuing professional development provided by the school. It is having a positive impact on their teaching and pupils’ learning. Teaching is consistently strong across the school or, where it is not, it is improving rapidly. • Governors hold senior leaders stringently to account for all aspects of the school’s performance, including the use of pupil premium, the primary PE and sport premium, Year 7 literacy and numeracy catch-up premium and special educational needs funding, ensuring that the skilful deployment of staff and resources delivers good or improving outcomes for pupils. • The broad and balanced curriculum provides a wide range of opportunities for pupils to learn. The range of subjects and courses helps pupils acquire knowledge, understanding and skills in all aspects of their education, including the humanities and linguistic, mathematical, scientific, technical, social, physical and artistic learning. This supports pupils’ good progress. The curriculum also contributes well to pupils’ behaviour and welfare, including their physical, mental and personal well-being, safety and spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. • Leaders consistently promote fundamental British values and pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. • Leaders promote equality of opportunity and diversity, resulting in a positive school culture. Staff and pupils work together to prevent any form of direct or indirect discriminatory behaviour. Leaders, staff and pupils do not tolerate prejudiced behaviour. • Safeguarding is effective. Leaders and staff take appropriate action to identify pupils who may be at risk of neglect, abuse or sexual exploitation, reporting concerns and supporting the needs of those pupils. • Leaders protect pupils from radicalisation and extremism. Staff are trained and are increasingly vigilant, confident and competent to encourage open discussion with pupils

9. Inspectors will consider whether governors: • work effectively with leaders to communicate the vision, ethos and strategic direction of the school and develop a culture of ambition • provide a balance of challenge and support to leaders, understanding the strengths and areas needing improvement at the school • provide support for an effective headteacher or are hindering school improvement because of a lack of understanding of the issues facing the school • understand how the school makes decisions about teachers’ salary progression and performance • performance manage the headteacher rigorously • understand the impact of teaching, learning and assessment on the progress of pupils currently in the school • ensure that assessment information from leaders provides governors with sufficient and accurate information to ask probing questions about outcomes for pupils • ensure that the school’s finances are properly managed and can evaluate how the school is using the pupil premium, Year 7 literacy and numeracy catch-up premium, primary PE and sport premium, and special educational needs funding • are transparent and accountable, including in recruitment of staff, governance structures, attendance at meetings and contact with parents.

10. What will Ofsted specifically look for from Chair of Governors? Inspection history 1. What were the key findings of the last Ofsted report? What were the strengths? 2. Which were the areas identified for further development? 3. What progress has been made against these? 4. How has the school changed since the last inspection?

11. The focus upon impact The key question to always ask: So what?

12. Attainment and Progress • How does the school track attainment and progress? • How does the school intervene if data shows that students will not achieve what they should? • What is the picture in terms of attainment in the school across all year groups? Have there been any concerns in the last three years? How have these been addressed? • What is the picture in terms of progress in all year groups? Have there been any concerns in the last three years? How have these been addressed? • How does the school’s performance compare to national data? • What percentage of students performed in line with national expectations in the Core subjects? What percentage exceeded this? What percentage fell short? Were they of a certain ability or social status? 7. Are there subjects lagging behind? What is being done to address this? 8. How do the Disadvantaged progress and attain? What is being done to accelerate their progress and what is the impact?

13. Pupil Premium Funding • Is your school meeting statutory regulations re advertising how the Pupil Premium is spent? 2. Are you aware of how much funding the school receives as part of the pupil premium grant? • How is this funding spent and how is the impact of that spending evaluated? 4. How does the progress of ‘Disadvantaged’ pupils compare with non-Disadvantaged pupils nationally? Why has the school failed to narrow this gap?

14. Sources of information for Chairs of Governors Legacy results • IDSR (Inspection Data Summary Report) Contemporaneous data • Headteacher Report • Subject specific links Is the school aspirational in setting targets?

15. Quality of Teaching (‘Teaching over Time’) • What is the current quality of teaching in your school? How do you know? Is it on an upward trend? • How do the SLT monitor this and what interventions are in place to drive the quality up? • Are you involved in the process? How? • What appraisal procedures are in place? How robust are these? What percentage of teachers were given standard pay progression / extra pay progression / no pay progression last year?

16. Personal development, behaviour and welfare Personal Development: focus upon self-confidence and self-awareness and understanding of how to be successful learners. Behaviour: emphasis on readiness to learn/behaviours which show respect for self and others/conduct and self-discipline Welfare: physical and emotional well-being/staying safe online/safe from all forms of bullying

17. Other factors Attendance • What does data tell you? Any groups? • How compare to national? • What is attendance figure currently? • What has been the impact of the work to improve? Exclusions • How many pupils have repeat fixed term exclusions?

18. Questions for Chairs of Governors • Do pupils enjoy learning? • Can they talk knowledgeably about what they need to do next to improve? • Are they articulate and confident about their learning? • Do pupils have high aspirations? • How does the school celebrate pupils’ in a variety of variety of different ways beyond academic achievement?

19. Questions for Governors • Are pupils well behaved and polite? • Do you know how any poor behaviour is addressed? Are you familiar with the Behaviour policy? • Do you know about the measures the school has in place to improve attendance and punctuality and whether these are having impact? • Are learners taught in a healthy and safe environment? • Do you know the designated governor and staff member for safeguarding? How do they report back to the governing body? • Are you aware of any safeguarding concerns? • How far will Senior Leaders go to protect children and ensure their safety?

20. Safegaurding • ‘Culture is more important than checklists’; Practice is more important than compliance’ Key Questions • Are staff responsive and timely in acting where there are concerns and how well do they work with other agencies? • How do governors and leaders manage their statutory responsibilities? Inspect through: • Exploring with staff and parents how rigorously absence is followed up • Discussion with staff at all levels about how they identify safeguarding concerns and then what happens • Are staff alert to aspects that could indicate potential concerns of eg abuse? • Are staff alert to specific risks in their locality eg CSE • How well trained are governors • Recruitment checks-2 references and phone checks of references • Qualifying complaints as part of inspection activity • How well do staff respond to pupils’ concerns? • How well is multi-agency work established? • The key is timeliness and impact of response

21. Safeguarding Gathering evidence of effectiveness – not just statutory. • Is it embedded in the culture of the school? • Have governors evidence that staff have read at least part one of ‘Keeping Children Safe in Education’? • How far will SLT go to ensure that pupils are safe (including on-line)? • How is the Prevent agenda being implemented in school and how effective is this? • How are FGM and CSE issues being addressed in school and what impact is this having? • Do Governors fulfil their statutory responsibilities? Are all required policies in place and monitored by Governing Body? Have Governing Body had appropriate training?

22. Other looming areas of focus • Off-rolling • Exclusions – particularly in North East • Alternative Education • Adoption of the new National Careers Framework

23. Leadership and Management • How do you act as a critical friend to the school and specifically, the head teacher? • How do you support the Head in his/her leadership role? How effective are you in this? • How are leaders grown and supported in the school? • How are new staff, including NQTs, inducted and supported? • How are support staff led and managed and how do they contribute to improving outcomes for pupils? • Do you understand the narrative of the school’s curriculum? How has it been designed to both ensure a wide breadth of skills and knowledge and to ensure progress and attainment for all?

24. Ofsted and Curriculum • HMCI: ‘Curriculum should be the engine to allow students to achieve what they can and be the engine of social mobility.’ • HMCI: ‘The interests of schools and the interests of the students do not always align.’ • Tim Oates: ‘The curriculum should be the vehicle for equity and attainment for all.’ • Sir Kevin Collins: ‘Do you behave in the way that you think you should morally or in the way that you believe the system wants you to?’ • Sir Kevin Collins:‘How do you know what your students’ achievements and ambitions when they join you and how do you alter your curriculum to meet these?’ • ‘No Prefered Model’ but ‘Wide ranging’ and the problems of the KS2 and KS3 Curriculum

25. Knowledge and the Curriculum • ‘Progress means learning more and remembering more’ - Ofsted definition • ‘Learning is defined as an alteration in long-term memory. If nothing has altered in long-term memory, nothing has been learned.’ • ‘Learning cannot be observed in the here and now. The only way to see if something has been retained and transferred to a new context is to look at what students can do later and elsewhere.’ • Knowledge makes learning easier • Subject specific knowledge of vocab is crucial

26. ‘Background knowledge is important as comprehension depends upon making correct inferences. People with more general knowledge have deeper associations among concepts in their memory and thus are better readers as they can make inferences and can quickly make connections.’ (Daniel Willingham)

27. Schemes • Does the curriculum narrow more for the least able and the Disadvantaged? • Are schools explicit in their schemes about the key concepts which they wish students to understand in increasing depth?  Eg How has the curriculum been mapped in eg history to build understanding over time of eg republics? This is defined as ‘vertical progression’ by Ofsted and they see it as a valid question to ask the teacher and subject leader. • They are also interested to see if there is synergy of ideas across the curriculum eg is the notion of republic discussed elsewhere? -They call this ‘horizontal progression’ and see it as a valid question to ask Senior Leaders.

28. Can you tell the story of your curriculum? • The three I’s – INTENTION, IMPLEMENTATION and IMPACT • If Primary, what are the key concepts which you are looking to develop across your curriculum and how is this being done? Eg What would a Year 2 student know about ‘poetry’ and how would this have developed by Year 6? • If Secondary, same principle, but within subject areas and across the curriculum

29. History Key Concept: Dynasty

30. Governance • Are you familiar with the values and vision of the school? • Are you familiar with the School Improvement Plan and the school’s priorities? How do you contribute to this? • Can you explain your role as a governing body? • How do you utilise your skills to best effect? • Does the governing body have the right skills set? • How have you developed as a governing body? What training have you accessed? • How do you think you could improve as a governing body? • Are governors linked specifically to areas of the curriculum or phases? How does this help you know more about the school? What is the impact of your involvement? • Are you aware of how the school manages its finances? • Are you aware of the Headteacher’s Performance Management targets and how they relate to whole school priorities and the Performance Management targets of staff?

31. What does this necessitate? • An active governing body which works effectively in sub-committees and as a whole and which can produce the information which Chairs need. • A relationship of trust between the Governing Body and the SLT of the school/The Chair and the headteacher. • An evidence trail that governors are fully involved in the school and challenge the SLT

32. What does HMCI see as core function of governors? The governing body has three core functions for the school: • setting the strategic direction • holding the headteacher to account for improving the school • ensuring financial health, probity and value for money. To meet these expectations, the governing body needs to agree some broad principles about the way it works and to be led effectively by its Chair.