Responding to Ofsted's announcement that in future HMI inspectors or inspectors with recent HMI experience will lead school inspections - and that in most cases inspection teams will always include someone with experience of the phase of school they are inspecting, Paul Whiteman, general secretary at school leaders’ union NAHT, said:

“We welcome this sensible, long-overdue move. NAHT has long called for all inspections to be led by experienced HMIs with the right level of experience and we have also highlighted the importance of inspectors having experience of the type of school they inspect.

“It goes without saying that these changes will only be effective if the underlying inspection system is reliable and fit for purpose.

“The profession has been united opposing the inspectorate’s plans to judge schools on even more areas and to now try and spring a revised version of these proposals upon schools with less than a term’s notice - with no guarantee these concerns will be addressed.

“We urge Ofsted to work with us to rethink these ill-conceived plans, which have been roundly rejected by the profession, and will ultimately impact the ability of school leaders and teachers to deliver the education children deserve."