Enhancing teacher education: our feedback on Ofsted's new ITE inspection toolkits

Earlier this year Ofsted announced a significant transformation of the way it approaches inspections.

The proposed reform of moving away from the single-word overall effectiveness grade has been broadly welcomed by the sector, and a 12-week consultation took place from February to April 2025 to gather views on the full range of reforms.

One of the central proposals is the introduction of education inspection toolkits, a tool to show providers and inspectors the evaluation areas that inspections will focus on, and give guidance on how Ofsted will assess and grade providers.

The National Institute of Teaching has now published its response (summarised below), which centres on the draft proposal for an initial teacher education (ITE) inspection toolkit.

Our response to Ofsted's ITE inspection toolkits

In response to Ofsted's proposals for the ITE Inspection Toolkits, we have carefully reviewed and provided our feedback to ensure the development of effective, inclusive, and well-prepared teachers of the future. Our submission highlights several areas and suggestions aimed at improving the inspection process and outcomes.

Evaluation areas and scales

We appreciate the direction Ofsted is taking towards improved curricula, mentoring, and consistency across the teacher development pipeline. The proposed evaluation areas will enable providers to showcase various aspects of training that contribute to teacher development. However, we suggest broadening the 'achievement' evaluation area to include 'attainment and progress', for example, by incorporating additional criteria linked to innovation in research, curriculum design, and trainee wellbeing.

Regarding the proposed 5-point scale for reporting inspection findings, we have concerns about the clarity and subjectivity of the 'secure' and 'strong' criteria. The language used must be distinctive to allow for non-subjective judgements and demonstrate clear progression.

Exemplary practice

While we support the idea of gathering and sharing exemplary practice, we do not believe it should form a separate judgement. Including an 'exemplary' judgement may incentivise providers to focus on case studies rather than core aspects of their provision.

Alternative evaluation scales

We considered various alternative evaluation scales, including binary, 3-point, 4-point, and 7-point scales. A binary scale would be the most objective and consistent, but it may not stimulate ambition for exemplary quality. Given previous inspection insights in ITE, a 3-point scale could cover all areas with causing concern, attention needed and secure. This would limit the potential subjectivity between the ‘secure’ and ‘strong’ criteria. However, we acknowledge that this approach would not support Ofsted’s focus as a ‘force for improvement’ especially in encouraging and demonstrating the very best practice.

Data inclusion

Including data alongside report cards (such as retention and achievement data) poses challenges due to the variability in placements and the potential for identifying individual trainees (where trainee numbers are low). It is crucial that inspection takes account of local circumstances and contexts, reflecting contextual challenges. If data was to be included, it should reflect provider-specific challenges and strengths in managing placements, school partnerships, and mentor development.

Inspection methodology

We welcome greater autonomy in the areas selected for inspection but emphasise the need for a set methodology to ensure consistency. Removing focussed reviews could lead to greater flexibility in the inspection approach, so a consultative and structured methodology is essential.

Workload and wellbeing

We are concerned that the proposals could increase workload, particularly for ITE leaders and inspectors, with some subjective language in the framework leading to potential errors in reports and less time for gathering evidence. It is important to consider the wellbeing of leaders during the process and ensure a collaborative approach. Inspectors have demonstrated this well in thematic monitoring visits. This should be a continued focus of the training provided to inspection teams.

Final thoughts

Our submission aims to provide constructive feedback to enhance the ITE inspection toolkits. We believe that with the suggested changes, the toolkits can effectively support the development of high-quality initial teacher education programmes.