ASCL comment on reappointment of Amanda Spielman

Commenting on the reappointment of Amanda Spielman as Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills for a new term of two years, Geoff Barton, General Secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, said:

“We welcome the reappointment of Amanda Spielman. Before the pandemic struck, she introduced a new approach to school and college inspections which was more focused on the quality of the curriculum and less on arcane performance data.

“It was a move in the right direction, but there wasn’t a great deal of time for this to bed in before the disruption caused by Covid. She has unfinished business in seeing through this new approach and we’re here to support where we can, and push back when we think things are not going well.

“We know the immediate aim is to resume routine inspections from September, and we do have some concerns about this plan. Schools and colleges will be very busy supporting children to catch-up with lost learning, and we don’t yet know whether there will still be Covid safety measures in place, and, if so, to what extent. So, this does need to be kept under review and Ofsted’s planning will need to be flexible.”