In February 2025, Ofsted launched one of its most significant consultation exercises in years regarding its New Framework proposal. At its heart was a bold proposal: scrap the single-word judgments (Outstanding, Good, Requires Improvement, Inadequate) and replace them with multi-category report cards.
For parents, this sounded like a breath of fresh air. For many educators, it felt like another layer of bureaucracy. As the dust settles and we await Ofsted’s official response in September, one question looms large from the Ofsted consultation feedback: Can a new Ofsted framework give parents the clarity they want without overloading teachers further?
Ofsted new Framework 2025 – What’s Changing?
The proposed changes are sweeping. From November 2025, Ofsted intends to:
- Replace the single headline grade with a colour-coded, five-point scale across multiple categories, ranging from causing concern to exemplary.
- Expand evaluation to around 10 separate areas—including curriculum quality, behaviour, safeguarding, inclusion, attendance, and personal development.
- Introduce phase-specific toolkits outlining detailed inspection criteria for early years, schools, FE providers, and more.
The idea is to move towards a more nuanced, transparent picture of school performance, a move away from “one word to sum it all up” towards a fuller snapshot of strengths and weaknesses.
Recent reports have suggested that following the consultation, Ofsted are already looking at changing the wording of the five-point scale and reducing the amount of separate areas to be evaluated.
Ofsted Consultation Feedback Summary – What do Parents Think?
Feedback from parents in the consultation was largely positive:
- 70% preferred the new Ofsted report card format to single grades.
- Nearly 90% said it was easier to understand.
- The multi-category report card layout offers a more balanced picture—parents can see if, for example, a school excels in personal development but needs improvement in attendance.
For years, families and campaigners have argued that single grades oversimplify complex realities.
This new approach feels like a step towards the transparency they’ve been asking for.
Remarkably though an independent survey from The Alternative Big Consultation found that the proposed report cards were dismissed as largely unfit for purpose by 88 per cent of respondents. It is not clear however what percentage of the more than 700 respondents were parents.
Why Educators Are Wary: Ofsted Toolkit Workload Concerns and Framework Complexity for Teachers
The main concern for educators is the unhealthy stress that Ofsted inspections place on schools
It is therefore not surprising that the Ofsted consultation feedback summary for school leaders and teachers is very different:
- Complexity overload – The Ofsted toolkits run to dozens of pages, filled with criteria that some feel are vague or open to inconsistent interpretation.
- Workload concerns – More categories mean more evidence to gather, more reports to prepare, and more inspection time.
- Rushed rollout – With implementation set for November 2025, many feel there hasn’t been enough time to test and refine the model.
- Well-being fears – Unions warn that the changes could increase stress, not reduce it, despite Ofsted’s stated aim to learn from tragedies such as the death of Headteacher Ruth Perry.
The Alternative Big Consultation found that only 10% of respondents believed the reforms were an improvement, while 62% said they were worse than the current system.
The Core Tension From the Ofsted Consultation Feedback: Balancing Ofsted Report Card Clarity for Parents with Inspection Complexity for Schools
Here lies the challenge.
- Parents want something that is simple, accessible, and digestible at a glance.
- Educators want an inspection model that is fair, consistent, and realistically manageable.
The more detail Ofsted adds for parents’ benefit, the more preparation and documentation schools have to produce. It’s a tug-of-war between two opposing needs, Ofsted report card clarity for parents and manageability for educators, which are proving hard to reconcile.
What’s Next from the Ofsted Consultation Feedback: Timeline and Possible Changes
Ofsted has acknowledged the mixed consultation feedback and promised to:
- Simplify some of the language in the toolkits.
- Re-examine the number of evaluation areas.
- Commission an independent review of the potential impact on staff well-being.
The Guardian reports that various wording will be changed so that grading ranges from “urgent improvement” to “exceptional” as well as plans to cut the number of evaluation areas from nine to seven
The formal response to the consultation will be published in September 2025, with full implementation still scheduled for November 2025, although mounting pressure from unions, campaigners, and even legal challenges could delay that timeline.
Final Thoughts from the Ofsted Consultation Feedback : Can Ofsted Deliver Clarity Without Complexity?
There’s no doubt that the single-word judgment system had serious flaws. Parents need more context, and a well-designed report card could provide it. But for the new framework to succeed, Ofsted will have to prove it can deliver clarity without exacerbating workload for schools.
If it can’t strike that balance, we risk ending up with a system that pleases neither parents nor educators. An outcome that helps no one, least of all the pupils at the heart of it all.
