Inside the Ofsted Framework 2025: Lived Experiences and Evidence That Stands Up

Navigating the 2025/2026 Framework

Early reflections from Stuart Gardner, CEO at Thinking Schools Academy Trust, suggest that the “Expected Standard” now sits somewhere in the upper reaches of the old “Good” range. With inspectors sticking rigidly to the handbook, there is “no wriggle room.”

For school leaders, this creates a dual pressure. There is the emotional toll of the wait described by one headteacher as a feeling that “eats away at you” and the strategic pressure to evidence impact against a higher, more exacting standard.

However, the move to Report Cards also offers an opportunity. The focus has shifted to impact and inclusion. By gathering feedback on your own terms, you can move from reacting to an inspection to proactively leading your school’s narrative.

Here is how Edurio’s Preparing for Ofsted Survey Package helps you meet this higher bar with confidence.

1. Evidence “typicality,” not just activity

One of the key questions inspectors are asking under the new framework is: “Is this typical?”

It is no longer enough to show a policy or a plan. Inspectors are looking to validate your Self Evaluation Form (SEF) by testing if the day-to-day experience of pupils matches your intent.

A snapshot survey conducted during the inspection week cannot prove typicality. It only proves what is happening now.

2. Prepare for forensic case sampling

Feedback from early inspections highlights that inclusion is central from the very first phone call.

Inspectors are using “case sampling” to dig into the experiences of specific cohorts, such as pupils with SEND, EAL, or those accessing refuge support. They are looking to see if the provision in the classroom matches the provision map. As recent reports suggest, if you don’t guide inspectors towards these narratives, they will find their own.

You can instantly see if the experience of your SEND pupils differs from their peers. This allows you to identify gaps early and, more importantly, articulate to inspectors exactly how you are supporting your most vulnerable cohorts.

3. Contextualise your performance

There is a growing concern that national averages may become a “sticking point” for schools serving deprived or lower-attaining cohorts. Leaders are asking: How much is our specific context really being taken into account?

If the “Expected Standard” is a high bar, schools need a way to demonstrate progress that might not be visible in raw academic data alone.

4. Turn the inspection into a collaborative conversation

The goal of the new framework is to move away from high-stakes judgment towards meaningful school improvement. But that shift can only happen if leaders feel confident enough to be transparent.

When you rely on guesswork, inspections feel like a test. When you have robust data, they become, as one headteacher recently described, a “collaborative conversation” where there is no need to “bullshit.”

Take the next step

The bar has been raised, but so has the opportunity to tell a more nuanced story about your school. Don’t wait for an inspection to find out what your stakeholders are thinking.

When Adam received “the call” from Ofsted in early 2025, he didn’t scramble for ad-hoc anecdotes or hurriedly email parents for last-minute testimonials.

• He simply opened the Edurio platform, and in minutes, he could show:
• How parents rated their child’s safety on site,
• How staff felt about workload and wellbeing,
• What pupils said about behaviour expectations, and

Crucially, how leadership had acted on that feedback. Click to read the full story.

That is one of the reasons why we have updated our Preparing for Ofsted Survey Package.

Designed to align specifically with the 2025/2026 framework, these templates allow you to capture the authentic voices of your three key stakeholder groups, Staff, Pupils, and Parents, before the inspectors do.

Whether it is validating your inclusion strategy or checking the pulse on staff wellbeing, these surveys allow you to:

• Run them at any time: Deploy in whichever schools need them most, starting with those closest to inspection.
• Centralise your evidence: Gather staff, pupil, and parent insight in one place to build a holistic view of the school.
• Spot risks early: Get trust-wide visibility of strengths and “early warnings” of potential pressure points.
• Contextualise your results: Use National Benchmarking to know exactly where you stand against the sector.
• Prove impact: Demonstrate improvement over time, offering inspectors a history of evidence rather than a one-off snapshot.

Turn insight into confidence. With the bar for the “Expected Standard” rising, relying on anecdotal evidence is no longer enough. You need data that is as rigorous as the inspection itself.

By embedding these surveys into your regular cycle, you move from reacting to a phone call to proactive leadership. You ensure that when an inspector asks, “Is this typical?”, you have the longitudinal evidence to prove it, turning a high-stakes judgment into a validation of your hard work.

See the updated Ofsted surveys in action

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