Martyn Oliver's speech at the 2025 Association of Colleges Annual Conference - Nov 19

Sir Martyn Oliver, Ofsted's Chief Inspector, spoke at the Association of Colleges Annual Conference in Birmingham.

"Hello; it's a pleasure to be here at the Association of Colleges Annual Conference. Thank you for having me today. And a big thank you to Hajira for that introduction! Hajira really is a star and certainly a shining example of how to say ‘yes' to opportunities – something that's made so much easier when you're supported by brilliant professionals like all of you in the room today.

What inspection is fundamentally about

As Hajira said, I'll be talking about our changes to education inspection today. Let me start with what matters most.

At its heart, inspection is about one thing: better standards for learners and apprentices.

It is about helping to ensure that young people and adults develop the skillset and employability they need for their futures. It's about giving them the foundations to thrive – not just to pass exams, but to build fulfilling lives and successful careers.

And while of course this is about individual learners – about life chances, about opening doors – it's also about something even bigger.

It's about the country at large. Our economy and our capacity for innovation depend on young people and adults entering the world of work backed by the right education. Further education plays a critical role in this mission – one that all of you are striving towards every single day. So, massive thanks to all of you.

These reforms are designed to support you in the excellent work you're already doing. They're about recognising quality and driving improvement where it's needed most. And they're about fulfilling our legal and moral duty to call out poor practice and to highlight the exceptional – all with the aim of raising standards across the country.

The exceptional work of further education

Because you already do exceptional work with post-16 learners.

You work with young carers. With adults returning to education after years away. With those who have additional needs that require specialist support. You work with people at different starting points, with different challenges, and you help them reach their potential.

Association of Colleges members are among the most inclusive institutions in our entire education system. That is a very, very special thing. Despite the fact that there is no set definition of disadvantage at post-16, you all find ways to make education work for everyone who comes through your doors.

This, alongside recognising inclusion in our refreshed approach to inspection, is a chance for your sector to shine. It's an opportunity to have your excellent work – work that's been happening for some time, often without due recognition – properly acknowledged and celebrated.

We, Ofsted, want to support you to continue to be inclusive while driving achievement. I believe these refreshed inspections should feel like recognition of that. Because what this is – what we want this to feel like – is us working with you. In dialogue and in partnership, raising standards together.

And as part of that commitment to working together, we've made changes based on what we heard directly from you.

From ‘best fit' to ‘secure fit'

I heard directly from you about inconsistency in how judgements were being made under the previous approach.

The definition of ‘best fit' was creating confusion and, frankly, frustration. The feedback was clear: it felt like different inspectors were interpreting the framework differently.

What one inspector viewed as meeting the criteria, another might not. That's not fair, and it's not conducive to improvement. ‘Secure fit' brings a more robust, consistent approach to making judgements.

It means clearer criteria that everyone can understand and work towards. It means greater consistency across inspections, which leads to fairer outcomes and a more predictable inspection experience. You'll know what's expected – and when inspectors arrive, there'll be a shared understanding of the standards being assessed.

It's more rigorous – and I make no apologies for that. But, crucially, it's also clearer, fairer and more human.

A new grading system with higher expectations

Although inspections have only just begun, we're already hearing some misunderstanding about the new grading system. It's so important to emphasise that when I say ‘new', it is new. There is no read across from the old judgements to the new grades. We are starting over.

And where we start is with the ‘expected standard'. I want to say now: the expected standard is a high bar.

It is based on the expectations placed upon you as leaders and your institutions by government. We're being clearer about what the expected standard looks like and, in doing so, reducing, I hope, unnecessary stress and confusion. And if you achieve the expected standard, you can reflect on a job well done.

We're helping everyone understand what those changes mean – not just your staff, but parents and learners too.

We're communicating with parents, learners and the wider public to help them fully understand our new approach to grading and to truly see the rigour behind the ‘expected standard' grade, with simple reassurances like green colour coding – to indicate clearly that hitting ‘expected standard' means you are good to go – there are no causes of concern.

And if you achieve above expected standard, then you really are flying. Strong standard marks out excellent practice and we anticipate seeing this more frequently. Anything graded ‘exceptional' is exactly that – truly among the very best nationally and worthy of sharing with your peers.

So, there is no direct mapping from the old grades to the new. There is no more ‘good' or ‘outstanding' or ‘inadequate'. ‘Needs attention' is not the same as ‘requires improvement' under the old system.

Let's pause on ‘needs attention'. This is another one of the grades that we do anticipate seeing more frequently. And I want to frame this grade as an opportunity, a catalyst, for improvement.

It is not a fail – that's important – but it is an indication that there is work to be done

This grade is about catching things before they become bigger problems, identified for ‘urgent improvement'. That's the purpose of the ‘needs attention' grade – early identification; timely support.

And for engaged, high-performing leaders, this grade should never come as a surprise. We shouldn't be shining a light on anything you haven't already identified yourselves, or anything you're not already making improvements to.

Under our revised monitoring arrangements, we can also quickly re-grade institutions. If you address the areas that need attention, we can recognise that improvement promptly – and turn the amber to green.

Working together for better outcomes

Your feedback has shaped these changes. Your experience, your insights, your frustrations with the previous system – all of this has informed what we're implementing.

We share a common cause: better inspection means better education. Better education means better futures for young people and better outcomes for our country.

The work you do every day in general further education and sixth form colleges across England is vital. You're changing lives. You're building futures. You're giving people chances they maybe didn't get earlier in their education journey.

These inspection reforms are designed to recognise your work more effectively, to support you in doing it even better, and to ensure that every learner in further education receives the quality of education they deserve.

Massive thanks for the work you do every day in support of this mission. Thank you for your time today. And thank you for your continued partnership as we implement these important changes together."