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A discussion on how inspection reports from the UK Office of Standards in Education can have an effect on teachers' morale is presented. The case of the Edward Redhead school where 9 teachers and the headteacher chose to resign after receiving what they felt was an unfair inspection report.

A survey report that reveals an increasing number of secondary schoolheads earning more than pounds sterling 100,000 with lesser workloads is presented.

Netherhall school and sixth-form college on the southern fringes of Cambridge that serves an apparently affluent area is praised twice in the chief inspector's annual report. Although Netherhall seems to be in a comfortable position, headteacher David Smart states that there is no right way to prepare, go through and recover from an inspection. A debate regarding the severity of the inspection conducted by Ofsted at various schools is presented that provides common threads, ideas and solutions.

The UK's chief inspector of schools, David Bell proposed in 2004 that schools would only receive a couple of days' warning for an inspection and hence give governors little time to think on presentation details. Authorities assume that the inspector's first job would be to judge the accuracy of the school's self-evaluation that would include parents' views at the highest priority.

The majority of schools have been praised by Christine Gilbert, chief inspector of Ofsted, in her first annual report, but she is concerned that as the good schools move ahead, the bad schools are falling further behind. Over 90 percent of state schools inspected in 2006 were satisfactort and almost 60 percent were good or outstanding.

UK primary schools improved standards of teaching dramatically from 1994-5 to 1999/2000 according to a report from the new chief inspector of schools Mike Tomlinson.

British school governors' annual reports to parents were reviewed by The Times Educational Supplement and McDonald's to reward governors who were clearly involved in their schools and who presented the schools goals and advances to parents. Some reports were well written but only revealed how little the governors really did while others were stylistically weak but contained valuable information and revealed that the governors were truly active participants in the schools even where hard decisions, such as for redundancies, were concerned.

Schools are encouraged to challenge perceived unfair inspection reports by Ofsted, as the complaints procedure provides a chance of their vindication.

PricewaterhouseCoopers will present its findings of its review of school leadership to the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) before Christmas 2006. The review will suggest that non-teachers will be useful for managing school clusters and federations that share heads.

West Down primary school in Ilfracombe has been ranked as outstanding by Ofsted for the third time in a row and part of the success story is due to regular trips to the beach. Sandra Clement, headteacher, says she aims to offer hands-on education to pupils whenever possible.

Almost one third of teachers could escape having lessons observed by Ofsted inspectors under an expansion of Ofsted's ultra-light touch programme. Christine Gilbert, head of Ofsted, has said that 30 percent of schools would qualify for the new programme from April.

Federations of schools couldsolve the problem of headteacher shortages., according to the National College for School Leadership. A system of federations would require fewer headteachers and keep existing headteachers in their jobs by offering new incentives and challenges.

Ofsted, schools watchdog, introduced post-inspection, pupil-friendly letters in September 2005. However, it has been revealed that the letters are inadvertently identifying individual teachers.

By 2010, all schools must offer extended services, the core of which must be childcare from 8 am to 6 pm, various activities, speedy reference to specialist services, parenting support and wider community access. The National Remodelling Team is providing a guidance document to school governors to help set up these services.

Education watchdog Ofsted is to issue a report in which it will argue that few headteachers are afforded regular time away from the day-to-day management of the school so that they can focus on vital planning and strategic work. Despite efforts to improve the work-life balance of teachers, the report found that senior managers and headteachers still have to shoulder a heavy burden and do not have the chance to get away from their regular routine to examine the bigger picture.

Successful school leadership depends on leaders having good connections with everybody in the school and using those connections effectively, according to research into school leadership conducted by the Hay Group. The research contends that the best leaders use persuasion and personality in order to achieve results, rather than dictat and decree.

According to a report by Ofsted, schools watchdog, a significant proportion of pupils, especially at primary level, were loyal to their school in pupil questionnaires, even if inspectors judged the school ineffective. The report comes after union warnings that pupils would use the questionnaires to attack their own school.

According to David Bell, chief inspector of schools, weak teaching in primary schools is hindering pupils' progress in subjects other than English, maths and science. His report states that the number of primaries in which teaching was good or better fell in 2005.

According to David Bell, chief inspector of schools, schools have improved steadily during the past decade, despite 2004' sharp increase in the number of failed schools. However, according to his report, one in ten schools is not progressing quickly enough.

According to David Bell, chief inspector of schools, over 1,000 schools judged to be making insufficient progress will have annual visits by inspectors until they improve. Bell's report also says that 10% of schools do enough to pass inspections, but not don't make enough effort to tackle weaknesses.

The majority of teachers believe that government reforms which were meant to free them from excess paperwork have not had any real impact on their workload, according to a report produced by the Office for Standards in Education. The report also found that headteachers believed that demands on them had increased due to the workload agreement, which gives teachers free time for lesson preparation and marking by allowing classroom assistants to take classes.

Schools in England are facing a crisis of leadership as new research conducted by the National College for School Leadership revealed that 45% of the 25,000 headteachers in England are aged over 50 and are due to retire by 2014. The college argues that teachers should learn to shoulder more responsibility in preparation for becoming the heads of tomorrow.

The Institute for Volunteering Research has produced a report which highlights the need for a more diverse range of individuals to be recruited to school governing bodies. The report shows that the general perception of a school governor is a white, middle-aged and middle-class person. The report also shows that people from ethnic minorities, single parents, young people, business people, disabled people and people on low incomes are all under-represented on school governing bodies.

Telford and Wrekin Council in the UK's west Midlands has been praised by the Office for Standards in Education (OFSTED), which spoke of its strong political leadership. OFSTED also praised Shropshire and Croydon.

Inspector David Moore from the Office for Standards in Education has produced a report criticising the manner in which black students are treated in schools. The underachievement of black pupils is discussed.

The contents of the Commons education select committee report on school governors has been supported by governors' representatives as it points out governors have a very important role to play yet are not fully appreciated. They welcome support for the governors' training schemes. Some observers have suggested the report is uninteresting. There is some concern the committee and the ministers failed to support setting aside funds for governors' expenses. Some observers point out the role and influence of governors varies greatly in different schools.

The latest annual report from the chief inspector of schools highlights some areas for concern regarding the standards of management in the UK's primary, secondary and special schools. In primary schools, one in seven head teachers fails to provide clear educational direction. In secondary schools, one in 10 head teachers is not effective, while in special schools one-third of head teachers fail to give adequate central direction to curriculum development. However, day-to-day administration is good in most schools.

There are 900,000 surplus school places in England alone, with one in six schools being less than three-quarters full, according to a recent report from the Audit Commission. However, one school in three is operating at above its official capacity, and overcrowding has become common. The report indicates that savings of 100 million pounds sterling a year could be made if 40% of the surplus school places were eliminated. Central and local government are both guilty of wasteful admissions arrangements.

Pupil improvement may actually be held back by the government's focus on the value of external inspections of schools, according to research by an independent team, on Kirklees. Kirklees lost an estimated 500,000 pounds sterling after cash from authorities was removed to support the work of OFSTED. OFSTED will follow up inspections investigating weaknesses that were identified, and helping schools to remedy thoses, and consolidate the strengths.

Her Majesty's Chief Inspector for Schools Chris Woodhead's pamphlet, 'A Question of Standards: Finding the Balance,' is based on his opinion rather than on facts and follows the philosophy of the Conservative Party. Since the booklet is not based on facts, it cannot be accepted as a contribution to the debate on education and its Conservative philosophy undercuts the independence of the inspector's position for which Woodhead's predecessors had fought.

A survey of English secondary schools shows that MOFSTED inspection plays an important role in the development of schools. More than half of the schools feel that the inspection helps to improve their own development plans. Most schools report progress in education programmes, financial and managerial activities, and health and safety, following implementation of the post-inspection action plan. Some schools feel there is an improvement even in the academic standards, scheduling problems, students' related issues such as attendance, punctuality and independence.

Tilbury seems, at first glance, to be the pub name, 'World's End,' made concrete. The schools were once dubbed by Her Majesty's inspectors 'Duncetown' back in 1993. Stung, the teachers and the community moved to action. They reminded Essex that it had an inner city and that it needed educational funding. Essex responded. The money helped, but it was the people who counted. After all, they did all the work. And they are still working at it. That is why they are on their way.

It has been learned that two grant-maintained schools in trouble had been receiving first aid from the government. Financial irregularities have been found at The Gilberd School, Colchester, by consultants Touche Ross. The Ross report also recommended appointment of two more governors, a move that Sec. of Education and Employment Gillian Shepard has already made. Meanwhile, Stratford School, which failed an Office for Standards in Education inspection in 1993, faces a fourth inspection at the end of 1995. The last inspection by Her Majesty's Inspectors found weaknesses in some leadership curricula.

The analysis of 35 Office for Standards in Education (OFSTED) inspection results has moved the National Confederation of Parent Teacher Assn. (NCPTA) to ask for separate inspections of schools sixth forms. The analysis has shown that the inspections, at best, were perfunctory; at worst, just adjuncts to the complete report. Margaret Morrisey, spokesperson of the NCPTA, is backed by John Sutton, Gen. Sec. of Secondary Heads Assn. However, he also pointed out that a separate inspection system would probably be costly.

School inspection is essential to regulate national education standards. The British Office for Standards in Education (OFSTED) does a good job of fulfilling the national requirement from schools. Although some inspections have been only cursory, regulations have been tightened to ensure a more rigid inspection system. Central agencies such as the OFSTED are the means to establish a national standard of education.

The staff of the Crook primary, County Durham, England, were coerced to reconsider almost every aspect of their work. The school was declared as the first 'failing' primary school by the report of the HM Inspectors and publicly humiliated. The governor's action plan was drafted immediately and it based itself on the recommendations of the report. Taking the report as the starting block, the school management focused on curriculum, behavior management and teaching. Two years of concentrated efforts has brought marked improvements in the school. However, there are areas which need further attention.

A school governor's efforts to participate in decision-making and management at a UK primary school were rebuffed by the school's director and teachers. The governor had attempted to attend school seminars, events and training courses, and to establish a regular meeting period between governors and teachers, but could not gain support from the head. Governors were also prevented from interacting with parents at meetings, since these functions were occupied by the school head and the chairman of governors.

A chairman of governors in the Home Counties, UK, feels that the Office of Standards in Education's inspection report that the headteachers had a greater role than the governors in the partnership between the two will harm the partnership. Although she decided to overlook the statement and feel satisfied that the partnership was effective, other governors considered it an attack on their importance.

The annual report by Her Majesty's chief inspector of schools, Professor Stewart Sutherland, for the year 1992-93 evaluates the standard of education in England. Several secondary schools do not teach for the required number of hours. Many schools keep a lot of money in reserve, despite lack of equipment and books in their schools. Grant-maintained schools are doing better than the local authority schools.