Sir Martyn Oliver's speech at the Sixth Form Colleges Association - Feb 4

Martyn Oliver, Ofsted's Chief Inspector, spoke at the Sixth Form Colleges Association (SFCA) 2026 Winter Conference/AGM in London.

"Well hello everyone. It's really great to be with you again today.

And I'm here, just to make sure I introduce people, with Denise Olander, the Acting Deputy Director for post-16 education and training. And I'm also delighted to welcome Jonathan Childs who is going to take up the role and try to fill Denise's fantastic shoes. So a big welcome to Jonathan. And Saul Pope, who is a specialist advisor on further education and skills within Ofsted in the policy team.

I spoke with you all almost exactly one year ago today here. And at that point, Ofsted had just launched our Big Listen consultation. We were asking fundamental questions about what education inspection in this country should look like, what it should achieve, and how it should feel for those being inspected.

Now, 2 years into my role as Chief Inspector, I can stand here and say with confidence that we are seeing the fruits of change. Real, tangible change. And crucially, that change has been shaped by your input – by the voices of leaders, teachers, and practitioners across the post-16 sector who took the time to talk to us about what was working and what wasn't.

So before I go any further, I want to thank each and every single one of you. Your engagement with that process has helped us change things for the better – I shall talk about that in a few minutes more.

New report cards

That journey of reform took us through a fundamental review of our inspection framework. We listened. We consulted. We conducted pilot visits to understand how our renewed framework would operate in practice. We took on feedback, and we made, I think, positive changes.

And now, the first new report cards have been published.

And that is of course a significant moment. These report cards represent a different approach to how we communicate the findings of inspection.

They offer a much more detailed picture and fuller narratives for learners, parents and education professionals alike. No longer, as I said last year, a single headline judgement that, however well-intentioned, could never really capture the complexity of any education provider.

We now look at, and give individual grades for, areas like leadership and governance, curriculum and teaching, and how well learners achieve.

It adds up to a rounded account that allows students and learners – and their parents and carers – to understand where a sixth form college truly excels and where there might be areas needing attention.

And for you, as leaders of sixth form colleges, report cards are a chance to showcase your strengths. To have your varied and brilliant work recognised and celebrated, not flattened.

And I want to address something that I know matters in this room.

When we developed these toolkits, we were very conscious of the need for parity between school sixth forms and sixth form colleges.

Ofsted's schools and post-16 policy teams have worked more closely than ever to build that parity into the expectations set out in the new toolkits.

And this is thanks, in part, to the SFCA. And I'm really grateful to Bill and to his entire team for the ongoing dialogue and professional challenge they've provided to us and to our thinking. And if you don't mind me saying so, I think Bill champions you and this sector really well. So, thank you Bill for all that you do.

With this renewed approach, school sixth forms and sixth form colleges alike may perform better in some areas than others.

This is normal.

In fact, I would go further: this is expected. And it is precisely the point.

The old system, with its single overall judgement, it could obscure as much as it revealed. Your inclusion offer may be truly transformative but it may be obscured by challenges elsewhere. Or you might have strong leadership but a curriculum that needs improvement. The single grade could never tell that full story truly.

And our new scale is designed to shine a light on those nuances – to validate the improvements, to celebrate the successes, and yes, to highlight the areas that need attention.

Now, let me walk you through what the 5 grades mean.

At one end of the scale, we have ‘urgent improvement' – areas where we believe immediate action is required to safeguard the interests of learners.

Then ‘needs attention'. This is precisely what it says: an area where we expect leaders to focus their attention. It is not a ‘fail', but it is an early warning to improve something before it becomes a much bigger issue.

The ‘expected standard' sits at the centre. And I will return to this grade, because I think it is the most important one to understand properly.

‘Strong standard' recognises work that is consistently implemented and well-embedded in practice, across subject areas, for all groups of students – work that is notably and sustainably effective.

And then there's finally, ‘exceptional'.

Expectations of the new grades

I want to dwell on that grade: exceptional.

It is by its very definition, exceptional is by exception. Not everyone can be exceptional. If everyone were, the word would lose all meaning.

Under the previous framework, 96% of sixth form colleges were graded as ‘good' or ‘outstanding' at their most recent inspection. And that figure is 97% ‘good' or ‘outstanding' for 16-19 academies.

The new toolkits, and the new grading, are a fresh chance for us to look at your incredibly high-performing sector and to reward the hard work it takes to meet the expected standard, the consistent vision and dedication required to meet the strong standard, and the system-leading practice that is truly exceptional.

The ‘exceptional' grade is where learners go beyond grasping, retaining and applying knowledge to truly mastering it.

‘Exceptional' is where leaders' actions have a transformational impact on preparing all learners for what comes next – whether that is university, apprenticeships, employment, or further training.

‘Exceptional' is where brilliant standards of inclusion have been sustained over time, not just achieved in a single snapshot, so that all learners – especially those who are disadvantaged – have highly positive outcomes and experiences.

Those who achieve ‘exceptional' must act as a beacon of excellent practice. They must genuinely stand out as the very best in the sector. And to be the best in this sector would, I argue, mean being some of the best in the world. And crucially, they must share this practice with others so that together we can drive a self-improving system.

That is a very high bar. And it is meant to be.

As I said before, it is perfectly normal to achieve more highly in some areas than in others. It is hard work to be an exceptional example of curriculum, of inclusion, of achievement, of leadership – all at once. We know that. We do not expect to see the ‘exceptional' grade frequently.

It is a deliberate choice. It is one of many reasons why there is no read-across from the old grades to the new. There is no ‘new good'. There is no ‘new outstanding'.

This is a reset.

And a reset is a chance to reframe.

So I want everyone in this room, if you take away just one thing from today, to take away this assurance: the ‘expected standard', that grade at the centre of the scale, is an exacting standard.

It means meeting all of your obligations. It means providing education that serves your learners well. It means doing the job properly.

‘Expected standard' is a mark of a sixth form college that is doing right by its learners.

I understand that that represents a shift in thinking. For years, the system has conditioned us to see anything less than ‘outstanding' as somehow disappointing. That was never healthy, and I don't think it was ever fair.

We have to be able to differentiate. We have to be able to shine a light on the very best practice and to call out things that are equally not acceptable. We have to do right by those that we all serve – the young people whose futures depend on the quality of education and training they receive.

And to do that, we need to find the very best and learn from them.

Not everyone will receive the grades that they always hope for across every evaluation area. But frankly, I am comfortable with that.

Because I know that if Ofsted does not do its job with rigour, then we fail in our duty to the next generation.

The consequences of getting it wrong are simply too great.

Feedback so far

Now, I am pleased to say that those we are inspecting are recognising this approach for what it is.

Feedback has been coming in – both public and privately – and it paints an encouraging picture of a process that is, in the words of those who have experienced it, ‘not softer, not easier, but fairer'.

I've spoken about this phrasing before – it's really stuck with me. Not softer. Not easier. But fairer.

Across the feedback we are receiving from providers, we hear a great deal about the tone of inspections now being more positive. Inspections that seek to understand what you offer, not to catch you out. Professional conversations conducted with mutual respect.

We hear of a more collaborative approach and a process involving inspectors who are flexible, open to discussion, and respectful of the challenges you face as leaders.

We hear about the opportunity to reflect calmly together. To reduce the pressure. The removal of the cliff edge that was the grading meeting at the end of 2 days. There is now space for genuine dialogue and transparent conversations throughout the inspection about the indicative grading that inspectors are working towards.

And at the heart of it all, we're hearing that there's a clearer focus on the learner. That is what this is all about. Everything else flows from that central question: are all learners getting the brilliant education they need and deserve?

A high-performing sector

Because there are things that this sector is doing brilliantly – things that you've been doing brilliantly for a long time, perhaps without nuanced recognition.

We know that you work with a very large range of learners who all come from different backgrounds and starting points. You offer A levels, you offer vocational training courses to support those who already have a specific career pathway in mind. And some of you offer apprenticeships. And in these instances, you give learners and apprentices the input that they need from employers, from industry experts and from higher education professionals, so that they are prepared for their next steps.

You support learners who retake GCSE mathematics or English courses, so they have the knowledge that they will need in the future, no matter what is in store for them.

And you also look out for the most vulnerable, with examples like courses that help unaccompanied child refugees to study and to adapt to life in this country.

And this brings me, of course, to inclusion.

Inclusion is a real chance for you, this sector, to shine. An opportunity to recognise and celebrate work that you are already doing brilliantly.

We have never before had a universal definition of inclusion in our inspection framework of inclusion. Now we do. And we will be looking carefully at how well you know your learners and how effectively you support them.

Inclusion still means, and it will always mean, learners with SEND and those who face economic disadvantage. But now we're also explicitly talking about those known or previously known to children's social care, those who've had experience of the youth justice system, and those who previously weren't in education, employment or training, or indeed even young carers. All the factors that can make learners vulnerable or disadvantaged.

For some of you, this may represent a new challenge. But it is an important one. Inclusion is not a nice-to-have. It is a fundamental part of the mission of education – ensuring that every learner, regardless of background or circumstance, has the opportunity to thrive.

I know that everyone in this room believes in inclusion.

And I know that many of you have been championing brilliant inclusive practice for years. This framework, as I said, gives us the tools to see that work, to celebrate it, and to share it – and I look forward to seeing those results.

Tell your story

Now I want to end with a request.

When you receive your report cards, talk about them.

Do not let them sit in a drawer or bury them in a hard-to-find section of your website. Engage with them. Discuss them with your teams.

Speak to learners and to parents. Tell the full story – the areas of strength and, with honesty, the areas for development, and what you plan to do next.

Be open about the journey you are on. Learners benefit when leaders are honest and reflective about their practice.

And if you are awarded ‘exceptional' in any area – then please, please, share your brilliant practice. Help others. Contribute to the self-improving system that we all want to see, and that learners deserve.

This is a new chapter for inspection. It is a new chapter for learners and sixth form colleges alike. And I believe it is a better chapter.

So thank you very much for listening. And I am really happy to take any of your questions."