Building a fairer and safer inspection system
February 2026 update: significant new measures agreed to protect school leaders’ well‑being
NAHT has secured a new package of measures with Ofsted and the Department for Education (DfE) following six weeks of intensive talks focused specifically on the well‑being of school leaders. These developments follow the instruction you gave us at Annual Conference 2025 to explore every option (political, legal and industrial) to challenge the new inspection framework.
What has been agreed:
- An independent advisory group, chaired by Sinéad Mc Brearty, will monitor the well‑being impact of the new framework.
Ofsted and the DfE will be permanent members.
- A new, independent and anonymous post‑inspection survey will gather uncontested evidence about the impact of inspection on school leaders’ well‑being.
- Ofsted will work with NAHT to review the complaints process, focusing on quality and independence.
- Ofsted will engage directly with NAHT members as it develops the post‑inspection survey issued to all schools.
- Ofsted has confirmed that all aspects of implementation of the renewed inspection framework will remain under review and that it will work collaboratively with trade unions.
NAHT has already raised concerns about the ‘secure fit’ methodology.
- The DfE will work with NAHT on an independent evaluation of the new RISE teams and how school leaders experience them.
- The DfE will consider recommendations from the Mc Brearty well‑being impact assessment relating to school leaders, including increases to personal support following a poor inspection outcome.
- The government will restate to governing bodies that a leader losing their job after a poor inspection is, in most cases, a sign of poor collective leadership practice, not grounds for individual performance management.
These commitments represent a meaningful step forward in how Ofsted receives scrutiny and feedback from school leaders.
However, we are clear that this does not resolve members’ wider concerns with the inspection system, nor does it change NAHT’s policy that fundamental reform is essential.
National Executive decision
On 3 February 2026, the National Executive determined that these measures represent sufficient progress not to launch an industrial action campaign at this stage. NAHT will now work in good faith under these arrangements, with strategy continuously reviewed through our democratic structures.
Protecting members awaiting inspection
These improvements will not come soon enough for everyone scheduled for inspection. NAHT will continue to:
- challenge unacceptable inspector behaviour,
- challenge inaccurate or unreasonable conclusions,
- provide direct support and representation, including initial free legal advice via Browne Jacobson.
Useful links:
History of the campaign
The independent well-being impact assessment has made it clear that the revised Ofsted framework continues to pose a risk to the safety and well-being of school staff.
Since the launch of Ofsted’s consultation last February, NAHT has robustly challenged the proposals and called out the risks to our members. We have done this publicly and privately.
Last year’s legal action challenged Ofsted’s failure to take meaningful action to address the negative impact of inspection on the mental health of school staff was regrettably not granted permission to proceed by the High Court, notwithstanding our appeal against that decision.
Nevertheless, we continued to engage in intensive discussions with government, urging them to intervene.
We knew our members were keen to take action too. As a first step, we called on our members to write to their employer to highlight the risks this revised framework posed and demanded they take action to protect school leaders’ well-being.
We have called on Ofsted not to proceed with its revised framework and to rethink its approach in light of widespread warnings from both school leaders and an independent risk assessment that their plans would damage school leader mental health and well-being.
Latest updates
Over 2,000 school leaders meet with NAHT's general secretary and back campaign actions
On 16 September 2025, more than 2,000 school leaders met with NAHT's general secretary Paul Whiteman, as well as our head of policy Ian Hartwright and NAHT's president Angi Gibson. The outcome of the online meeting was that our members overwhelmingly support a campaign to oppose Ofsted's revised framework.
Nearly nine in 10 (89%) school leaders on the call were in favour of exploring industrial action options, 89% said they were willing to write to their MP to voice their concerns and 80% would write to their employer. Three-quarters (75%) were prepared to attend a demonstration outside Ofsted's headquarters, and 73% would feel better supported by the presence of a union health and safety representative during inspections of their school.
Read the full story here
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91% of school leaders oppose Ofsted's revised framework
On 10 September 2025, we published the outcome of a snap poll of school leaders conducted in the first 24 hours after Ofsted announced its plans. Over nine out of 10 (91%) school leaders opposed the revised framework and the same proportion (91%) said it would negatively affect their mental health and well-being.
The poll, which received more than 1,400 responses overnight, also collected more than 800 free-text comments from school leaders, many of which called for a more collaborative, supportive model focused on school improvement rather than judgement, similar to the systems already operating successfully in Wales and Northern Ireland.
Read the full story here
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Ofsted publishes outcome of consultation
On 9 September 2025, Ofsted published its consultation response, the contents of which clearly showed that its new approach to inspection would continue to pose direct risks to the health and well-being of school leaders.
Ofsted confirmed it would press ahead with its proposals for a graded system, despite repeated warnings from school leaders that such a model is overly punitive and ineffective at maintaining and improving school standards.
It also ignored many of the areas touched on by an independent well-being impact assessment, including suggestions to slow down the rollout of the framework and reconsider the exemplary standard. Furthermore, Ofsted's proposals do not go far enough to provide school leaders with confidence that any complaints they have about their inspection will be handled independently and impartially.
The conclusion drawn by the independent well-being impact assessment was that the revised framework 'does not reduce the pressure on leaders to achieve a desirable outcome'.
Although NAHT achieved a number of hard-won concessions, including a reduction in the number of separate areas being graded and a limit to the number of hours for which an inspector can be in school, we do not believe these proposals should go ahead in their current state.
Read our full response
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NAHT’s legal challenge
NAHT initiated legal action against Ofsted over the potential impact of its inspection proposals on the mental health and well-being of head teachers and school staff. We issued a claim for judicial review on Friday 2 May 2025, ahead of our Annual Conference in Harrogate. On Saturday 3 May, delegates debated and carried a motion calling for all ‘legal and industrial options’ to be explored to protect the mental and physical health of school leaders in the face of Ofsted’s new report card proposals.
Our claim argued that adequate consultation had not been conducted regarding the plan for a new five-point scale to grade schools, as this element of the proposals was presented as final during Ofsted’s report card consultation that closed on 28 April 2025, while any other possible options were rejected with no reference to well-being – despite Ofsted recognising that well-being is an important instigator for the changes it is making.
We note with regret that in November 2025, our legal action was not granted permission to proceed by the High Court, notwithstanding our appeal against the decision.
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Our reports
Resetting the relationship: Ofsted reform
In our January 2025 report Resetting the Relationship: Ofsted reform, over nine in 10 (93%) school leaders told us they do not have confidence in Ofsted to design an effective new inspection framework; more than three quarters (76%) believed a completely new framework and inspection methodology is needed, rejecting Ofsted’s plans to simply ‘evolve’ the current inspection system; and three quarters (75%) said the retention of graded ‘key sub-judgements’ would be the wrong course of action.
Rethinking school inspection
Rethinking school inspection sets out the interim and longer term changes needed to create a fair, proportionate and humane inspection system.
Please also see NAHT’s response to Ofsted’s Big Listen consultation (June 2024), where we pressed the inspectorate for immediate removal of single-phrase judgements ahead of full system reform.
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NAHT’s Ofsted inspection risk assessment framework
Employers have a legal obligation to identify and manage risks to the health, safety and well-being of employees. This includes foreseeable stressors, such as the impact of an Ofsted inspection.
NAHT provides the follow framework as a starting point, but it does not replace a school-specific assessment.
Download our risk assessment framework
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Write a letter to your employer
We are now asking our members to write to their employer, requesting that they explain what they will do to protect and support school leaders and their teams in light of the recently published independent well-being impact assessment.
We’ve also prepared a detailed FAQs document to clarify what is meant by 'employer'.
If you want to get more involved in NAHT, please email organising@naht.org.uk.
Heard back from your employer?
If you have heard back from your employer, please forward their response to organising@naht.org.uk.
We have also prepared a template letter that you can use to acknowledge your employer's response and urge them to write to the Secretary of State for Education with their concerns
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Campaign wins
In September 2024, government announced it would scrap single-word Ofsted judgements – a measure NAHT has repeatedly called for as a first step towards more fundamental reform.
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If you are an NAHT official
The resources below are available to support you when communicating your concerns regarding inspection with employers and colleagues in your branch or region.
JCNC letter
We are asking that local officials who attend employer JCNC (Joint Consultation and Negotiating Committees) on members' behalf put this letter on the agenda and ask the employer to respond.
This will ensure the issue, and the danger to members' health and well-being, is given a high profile at these meetings.
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Campaign slide deck
Raise awareness of our campaign with colleagues in your branch or region using this slide deck.
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