Our CEO, Dr Kate Chhatwal OBE, writes:
Challenge Partners welcomes the commitment and urgency new Ministers have brought to working with the sector to drive improvements in children’s life chances, with a focus on those from poorer backgrounds and with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities. These aims align closely with our own aims, mission and values.
We have a wealth of expertise to share from our 13 years of delivering school and trust evaluation and improvement programmes, and experiential leadership development. Our vibrant and diverse nationwide partnership of schools and trusts can provide rich insights and a sounding board as policies are developed.
We look forward to continuing constructive dialogue with Ministers, DfE and Ofsted so we can keep bringing Challenge Partners’ expertise to bear.
Consistent with our value of #CourageousLeadership - which describes our ambition to use our collective wisdom to shape policy and practice for the benefit of all - we have been proactive in engaging particularly in the following areas:
- Curriculum and assessment review - Senior Partners Cassie Buchanan OBE, and Dr Vanessa Ogden CBE from our Education Advisory Group are on the review panel. We have also offered to use our convening powers and insights from our QA Reviews to support the panel’s work
- Regional Improvement Teams - where our track-record in school-led and area-based improvement provide useful models
- Excellence in Leadership programme - sharing lessons from the Getting Ahead London programme we ran on behalf of the GLA between 2016 and 2022
Inspection and accountability
At the start of term DfE and Ofsted announced some immediate changes and further proposals they will consult on. We have considered the implications for CP activities and where our expertise can add value.
Immediate changes
- No overall grade - as we rely on grades to determine eligibility for Growing the Top and Extending Leading Practice, we will need an alternative for 2025/26 and beyond and work has already started on this
- Changes to the delivery of inspections (notification of inspection on Mondays; inspections take place Tuesdays and Wednesdays; lead inspector training on Fridays) these changes seem beneficial to our operations, suggesting less disruption to QARs and events
- Ofsted Academy / focus on quality and consistency of inspections - rigorous processes to maintain quality and consistency is a virtue of our QA Review programme and we shared our approach with HMCI in the summer term
- Regional Improvement Teams to provide support for underperforming schools - sharing our expertise in area-based and school-led improvement
Later reforms
- New report cards - to be piloted in the summer term including:
- New ‘criterion’ (sub judgement) to “evaluate whether schools are providing high-quality support for disadvantaged and vulnerable children” - something we introduced to QA Reviews in 2019, so we’re well ahead of the curve here and have insight to share
- Inclusion focus will also highlight attendance and schools could be downgraded if they turn away SEND pupils - our pioneering SEND Developmental Peer Review programme improves provision and outcomes for pupils with SEND in mainstream settings
- New phase-appropriate frameworks - this welcome proposal is something our schools have been calling for and we look forward to contributing to framework design
- Changes to how inspections are conducted, which brings them further into line with the approach of our QA Reviews:
- Inspections to be more collaborative and supportive
- Tell schools what to improve, not how
- Take context into account
We are pleased to have already shared lessons from our approach with Ofsted before the summer and welcome ongoing dialogue. Sir Martyn Oliver (HMCI) and senior colleagues will observe a QA Review in November.
For the #CourageousLeaders in our partnership
We invite you to contribute your insights and expertise by emailing me and/or joining events throughout the year where we will be inviting your input.
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