Ofsted inspectors have been forced to “make up” evidence because the computer system they use to record inspections sometimes crashes, wiping all the data, an Observer investigation has found.
Since 2018, inspectors have made live notes on laptops or tablets as they interview staff and observe lessons after Ofsted invested in a new electronic evidence gathering (EEG) digital platform. However, our investigation has discovered the technology has had serious issues from the beginning, sometimes crashing unexpectedly and losing all notes from interviews, or even whole days of evidence, so that inspectors have to replace those notes from memory without telling the school.
The Observer spoke to several current or recent inspectors on condition of anonymity who said such problems had been “common” for years, and that senior leaders within Ofsted were aware of this, but “there has been a lot of covering up”.
After this story was initially published a spokesperson for Ofsted told The Observer that chief inspector Sir Martyn Oliver “is initiating a rapid review to satisfy himself that the EEG and the guidance to inspectors is robust”. The spokesperson added that if schools or inspectors have concerns “we would want to hear about them directly, so we can respond appropriately”.