This policy briefing is intended to inform
discussion on how Ofsted inspections might
best resume at an appropriate time, given
the extensive disruption COVID has brought
and continues to bring to English primary
schools. The briefing draws on findings from
a series of research projects based at the IOE,
UCL’s Faculty of Education and Society and
conducted between May 2020 and September
2021, using surveys, systematic literature
reviews and case study methods.
The research projects have highlighted just
how much schools’ experiences have varied.
They also show just how resourceful and
resilient schools and their communities have
been in navigating a way through the many
difficult dilemmas the pandemic has raised,
even when there have been no obvious
roadmaps to follow.
The research evidence we present and the
recommendations that follow are intended
to inform conversations in the field about
the best ways forward in education. They
build on the knowledge and experience that
primary schools have acquired from dealing
with the pandemic first hand