One-word Ofsted school ratings deemed 'inhumane' to be replaced by 'report cards'
The Education Secretary has hailed the scrapping as a move to "drive high and rising standards"
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One-word Ofsted school ratings have been scrapped across the UK state sector with "immediate effect", Labour has announced.
As of September next year, parents will no longer be told whether the schools to which they're sending their own children are "outstanding", "good", "requiring improvement" or "inadequate" by the ratings body - with the one- or two-word ratings axed in favour of so-called "report cards".
Teaching unions had given the single-word Ofsted ratings their own single-word descriptors, slamming them as "simplistic, reductive, unreliable and inhumane" - and the Government's apparent bowing to their demands has been met with condemnation by Conservatives.
Shadow Education Secretary Damian Hinds said the Ofsted labels were "vital" performance indicators for parents - and claimed canning the words would lead to a reduction in accountability and educational standards for schools.
Parents won't be able to see their childrens' schools' ratings at a glance under Phillipson's new rules
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The move is seen as a reaction to the death of Ruth Perry, a headteacher whose suicide had been linked to an Ofsted investigation by an inquest.
Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson - who has met with Perry's family - said: "Single headline grades are low-information for parents, and high-stakes for schools.
"Parents deserve a much clearer, much broader picture of how schools are performing - that's what our report cards will provide."
Pushed on why the Government was focused on the grading system instead of other issues plaguing Britain's state education sector like absenteeism or staff recruitment, Phillipson told Times Radio she believed the Ofsted change was an "important reform".
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Phillipson hailed the change as an "important reform"
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She said: "There are a range of areas where we need to take action, and that is precisely what we have been getting on and doing.
"In terms of the announcements that I have made since becoming Education Secretary, I do believe this is an important reform.
"It is one that has wide support and will be an important part of how we drive up standards in our schools."
The announcement coincides with today's start of the school year - and means that until next September, the inspection system will be left in hybrid form.
Ruth Perry's sister, Professor Julia Waters, said Ofsted needed to show it had the capacity to change its "culture"
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Instead of the existing one-word categories, schools will be given four individual gradings on quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, and leadership and management.
An independent review of Ofsted's response to Ruth Perry's death is set to be published tomorrow - alongside further details of how inspections might change in future.
Perry's sister, Professor Julia Waters, said Ofsted needed to show it had the capacity to change its "culture".
She said: "It really shouldn't have been like this - it shouldn't take a bereaved family member to push for change for such a long time - but yes it's a relief that no other headteacher will have to go through what Ruth went through."