Brief
Education Secretary Lucy Powell to order overhaul of Ofsted inspections
Powell urges reforms to the new report‑card framework amid concerns it harms teacher mental health.
By Felo News Desk · Published
Education Secretary Lucy Powell announced plans to direct Ofsted to rethink how it evaluates inclusion in schools, saying the current inspection regime needs a stronger focus on context and wellbeing, according to The Independent on 3 October 2026.
What happened
Powell made the remarks at a fringe event of the Labour Party conference, calling for reforms to the report‑card system introduced in November that replaced single‑headline grades. She argued the framework, which grades schools from “exceptional” to “urgent improvement” on metrics such as attendance, achievement and inclusion, has become a “box‑ticking exercise” that can endanger staff.
What the reports add
The article notes that the system was launched after the 2023 suicide of Caversham Primary School headteacher Ruth Perry, whose death an inquest linked to a downgrade in safeguarding. A source quoted by The Guardian told the paper that Powell wants Ofsted to “go back to the drawing board” on measuring inclusion.
What was said
"I want to see a much stronger emphasis in the current inspection regime on context, much stronger than it is at the moment, and on what is really happening in schools… what progress is really being made, rather than a sort of box‑ticking exercise," Powell said, The Independent reported.
"Accountability and inspection should operate in a way that supports and advances school improvement rather than feels like it’s punishing," she added.
NAHT general secretary Paul Whiteman warned that the new framework is “even more stressful than the one that preceded it” and poses a “real and present danger to the well‑being and mental health of school leaders and teachers, possibly even a risk to life.”
Key facts
- Lucy Powell will ask Ofsted to reconsider how it measures inclusion. (independent.co.uk)
- The report‑card system replaced single‑headline grades in November 2025. (independent.co.uk)
- NAHT surveyed over 5,000 school leaders, with nearly three‑quarters saying inspections have worsened. (independent.co.uk)
- Ruth Perry’s 2023 suicide was linked by an inquest to an Ofsted downgrade. (independent.co.uk)
Sources
- [1] independent.co.uk — originally reported as “Ofsted school inspections face major overhaul amid teacher wellbeing fears”
