Munira Wilson<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\nMunira Wilson, the Liberal Democrats’ education spokesperson, said it was “simply unacceptable that this crucial statutory guidance hasn’t been updated since the scrapping of headline grades.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“We cannot allow vulnerable children in care to be denied the high-quality education they are entitled to \u2014 simply because the government is failing to keep up with its own policy changes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“The schools minister must give urgent clarity to make sure children in care get the best possible education – and aren\u2019t hamstrung by bureaucratic failures.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Guidance states that virtual school heads, the council officials responsible for promoting the educational achievements of looked-after children, are \u201cresponsible for supporting social workers to ensure timely provision of a suitable education placement for looked-after children\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Decisions ‘not solely based on overall grade’<\/h3>\n\n\n\n A spokesperson for the National Association of Virtual School Heads (NAVSH) said: \u201cIn practice, local authorities and virtual school heads continue to make placement decisions based on the spirit of the guidance \u2013 ensuring that every child in care attends a school that can best meet their needs.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
While Ofsted judgements \u201chave always been an important factor, placement decisions have never been based solely on the overall grade\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The association said it continued to \u201cwork closely\u201d with the Department for Education to \u201cshape future guidance\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But councils also called for clarity. Some said they were relying on historic headline grades, while others are adapting their approaches and using their judgment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Hampshire said it had adapted by \u201creviewing full Ofsted inspection reports, focusing on subcategory ratings and narrative detail to assess school suitability\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It also avoided \u201cplacements in schools with serious concerns, even if no overall \u2018inadequate\u2019 grade is issued\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Kent said the \u201ccore principle\u201d that looked-after children should not be placed in failing schools \u201cremains unchanged\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhere schools have been inspected under the new framework, KCC professionals will interrogate the full Ofsted reports to identify schools that are less likely to provide a high-quality education for looked-after children,\u201d it said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Upcoming reforms will confuse matters further<\/h3>\n\n\n\n To complicate matters further, from November schools are due to be judged across up to eight inspection areas under new report card reforms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Norfolk said that under the new framework, where judgments indicate something \u2018needs attention\u2019 or \u2018urgent improvement\u2019, \u201cwe will apply further scrutiny to ensure the setting can meet the child\u2019s needs\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Lancashire said it already used an \u201call-encompassing, holistic approach to placing looked-after children in schools.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThis includes consideration to Ofsted reports, a school’s capacity, the views of the learner and carers where appropriate, as well as availability of SEND places and feedback from consultations.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Staffordshire said its policy was \u201ccurrently under review\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Virtual heads welcome Ofsted changes<\/h3>\n\n\n\n Ofsted recently confirmed the reformed inspection framework that will come into effect next month. New inspection areas include inclusion, achievement and attendance and behaviour.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
NAVSH said it welcomed \u201cimprovements Ofsted has made to its inspection framework, particularly the greater emphasis on inclusion and the experiences of all learners\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
They were \u201cespecially pleased that the new framework explicitly references a school\u2019s support for looked-after children and children with a social worker\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It added: \u201cNAVSH has long advocated for this change, as regulatory acknowledgement of these cohorts can positively influence practice and refocus school priorities on the children and young people we are tasked to support.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOur shared priority remains ensuring that children in care access the highest quality education and stability in their schooling.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The DfE said it intended to publish updated statutory guidance for virtual school heads \u201cin due course and will update [it] to reflect Ofsted\u2019s updated education inspection framework.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the meantime, the DfE it had \u201cinstructed them that following Ofsted\u2019s removal of single headline grades, virtual school heads should continue to work in partnership with social workers and others, where appropriate, to secure timely school placements for looked-after children.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIn all instances, including those where the single headline grade has been removed, we would expect virtual school heads to use full Ofsted inspection reports to help make informed decisions about the suitability of an education setting.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
‘Crucial’ government guidance still refers to headline grades, despite them being scrapped over a year ago<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":70,"featured_media":236158,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[25],"post-theme":[2378],"class_list":["post-236244","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-ofsted","post-theme-ofsted"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t
![\"Munira](\"https:\/\/schoolsweek.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/Munira-Wilson-profile-main-800px.jpg\")