More than half of school leaders say they may quit their role after going through an inspection under the controversial new Ofsted framework.

Amid serious concerns about the harm the new framework is posing to leaders’ safety and wellbeing, 52% of respondents to a new post-inspection survey said they are considering leaving their post sooner than planned. 

School leaders’ union NAHT, which is running the rolling survey, has released the first tranche of results to coincide with the one-year anniversary of the now widely discredited revised inspection system. The framework was rolled out from 10 November 2025.

It was supposed to address longstanding fears over the harmful impact of inspections on leaders’ wellbeing and mental health.

But instead, NAHT’s survey shows that the increased intensity of the new Ofsted inspections is having a worse impact on well-being now than before - making some leaders seriously contemplate leaving the profession they have dedicated their lives to.

Nearly nine in 10 (86%) respondents who had all recently been inspected said the new inspections had negatively impacted their mental health and well-being during the time inspectors were on site

Of these, more than a third (35%) said there was a disproportionate or excessively high impact, while almost a quarter (22%) said there was a severe impact with a lasting or harmful effect.

More than eight in ten (83%) school leaders said that inspections were more intense than previously – nearly two thirds (64%) of whom said the experience was ‘much more’ intense.

One primary head said in their survey response: ‘Not sure my physical or mental health could cope with another inspection like this framework. Have been a head for 15 years across three schools and have never felt less able to do my job than I did during the inspection.’

Another said: ‘I have made the difficult decision to retire at Christmas. I waited for our summer data to prove we were not the school written about in the report and did not want the community to think I’d resigned because I was doing a bad job.’

A third primary head said: ‘I do not want to physically and mentally go through the whole run up and the inspection itself again. The freedom I feel in my head knowing I won’t have to impacts my life and mental health every day. My husband was very concerned about me and doesn’t want to see me go through that again.’

Meanwhile, a deputy head at an ‘all-through’ school, said: ‘I previously had aspirations for headship. I will now never go for headship. The stress and anxiety of the inspection has ended that dream. I am an extremely experienced deputy headteacher… this is the most challenging Ofsted I have ever completed in a career of over 20 years with 11 of them across schools where I have been brought in specifically to raise standards - leaving every setting I have worked in with an outstanding Ofsted grade in my areas.’

NAHT’s general secretary, Paul Whiteman, said: “These findings represent the unmitigated failure of an unaccountable and out of control inspectorate. 

“Ofsted’s actions are driving experienced leaders from the profession and deterring talented people from stepping into leadership and headship roles. That inevitably impacts the direction of a school, and the education it provides, and it is children who end up paying the price.

“Rather than engage and collaborate with the profession to devise a fair and proportionate accountability system, Ofsted has doubled down, remaining defensive, aloof and unaccountable.

“The education secretary has indicated that she is looking at further changes with Ofsted, but another belated rearranging of the deckchairs which sidelines the profession is wholly insufficient. 

“The inspectorate has proved itself incapable of reform. It is clear that political will and government intervention is needed to achieve the fundamental reform that is so desperately needed.”

Before the new framework came into effect, NAHT raised concerns that replacing an overall single-word grade with several sub-grades would not ease the dangerous pressure on leaders. It warned that the changes would also perpetuate the risk of unreliable judgements which mislead parents and result in unfair interventions in schools.

In September NAHT called for graded inspections to be halted to allow for a complete rethink of the system.

ENDS

Additional quotes from survey responses of leaders who say they are considering leaving their role sooner than planned

‘I will not do another inspection as head- I will leave before the next one- it made too much of an impact on my personal life - I didn’t see my children for months on the run up to going into window.’  Secondary special school head teacher.

‘I’m very tired of the high stakes, the stress, the worry that comes from the whole process. It’s on a different level. It’s essentially a constant in your day, year, every day action.’

Primary school chief executive officer.

‘I do not have long term goals to stay in the education industry as a result of this inspection.  Ofsted rocked my moral compass with the handling of the first inspection and the monitoring thereafter.’

Secondary school deputy head teacher.

‘I want to ensure I have left the profession before I have to go through another Ofsted.’

Primary school head teacher.

‘My middle leaders were left so impacted by the inspection that they have now no ambition for senior leadership.’

Primary school head teacher.

‘I am considering leaving my role at the end of this year. I am only 49.’

Primary school head teacher.

Additional survey data

More than two-thirds (68%) of leaders described the period when a ‘school is in the window’ as either very stressful (37%) or extremely stressful (31%).

Leaders said all stages of the inspection process negatively impacted their mental health and well-being:

• More than eight in ten (85%) said the period waiting for inspection had a negative impact:

• More than four in ten (42%) said there was a disproportionate or excessive high impact
• More than one in ten (12%) said there was a severe impact with a lasting or harmful effect.

• More than three-quarters of leaders (76%) described the notification and planning call with inspectors as having a negative impact:
• A third (33%) said there was a disproportionate or excessive high impact and 4% said there was a severe impact with a lasting or harmful effect.
•  
• Almost six in ten (57%) said waiting to receive their school’s report card had a negative impact
• More than one in five (22%) said there was a disproportionate or excessive high impact
• More than one in ten (11%) said there was a severe impact with a lasting or harmful effect.
•  

Notes to editors:

• NAHT invites our members who are serving school leaders to complete a survey about their experience of inspection following the publication of the inspection report for the school in which they are employed.  All responses relate to leaders’ experience of the new inspection system only. This data is drawn from 242 survey responses received between 16 June and 27 October 2026.