A significant number of children are experiencing “unorthodox” education since the pandemic, with part-time timetables and flexi-schooling on the rise, the chief inspector of Ofsted has warned.
Sir Martyn Oliver said education has become “fractured and fragmented for too many children”, while attendance remains a “stubborn and damaging issue” after Covid-19 lockdowns.
In his first annual report as chief inspector of England’s education watchdog, Sir Martyn said Ofsted is “concerned” about the growing number of children “whose pattern of education is disjointed”.
Pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (Send) and behaviour needs are “increasingly” receiving a mixture of online and in-person lessons.
Sir Martyn said he was “worried” about the rise of flexi-schooling – where parents home-educate their children for part of the week – across England.
Schools can currently record flexi-schooling as an authorised absence which makes it difficult for the watchdog to track how many children are being partially educated at home, Ofsted’s report said.
Speaking to the media on Thursday, Sir Martyn said he has raised his concerns with the Department for Education (DfE) as he believes “greater safeguarding” is needed around the practice to ensure children receive a good education.
Ofsted’s annual report – which reflects on the state of education and children’s social care in England in the 2023/24 academic year – also estimated that 34,000 children are on part-time timetables, where pupils attend school for part of the week and the rest of the time they are at home.
Sir Martyn said the use of part-time timetables for pupils as a long-term solution was “unacceptable”.
The Ofsted boss told the media that schools are using part-time timetables as “an intervention for behaviour” or because a child’s needs cannot be met.
Sir Martyn said: “They are not a long-term solution. Having children who are missing education – and it’s sanctioned by the headteacher and with no end in sight – is not good and that’s something that we would want to call out and say is unacceptable practice. I am really concerned.”
Along with children who are home educated – and an unknown number attending unregistered schools – there is a “very significant number” experiencing unorthodox patterns of education, the report concluded.
Sir Martyn said he was “very concerned” that many young people are “not getting the regular oversight” by care or education professionals.
The watchdog’s annual report said attendance issues have “deepened” since the pandemic.
Nearly a fifth (19.2%) of pupils in England were “persistently absent” – missing at least 10% of school sessions – in autumn and spring 2023/24, latest Government figures show.
This is higher than the pre-pandemic rate in the autumn and spring terms of 2018/19 (10.5%).
Sir Martyn said there had been “a shift in attitudes” since the pandemic lockdowns and expectations of school attendance are “viewed more casually”.
He said: “With working from home now firmly established for many parents, the old family routines have been loosened. It’s perhaps unsurprising that the absentee rates for Fridays outstrip the other days of the week.”
In a media briefing, Sir Martyn said some parents are now happy to keep their children off school while they work from home.
He said: “As an experienced headteacher, I used to see when parents used to work at home they were desperate for their child to be in school.
“Something seems to have changed since the pandemic where it now doesn’t seem to be such a desire to send a child to school if you’re working from home, and quite often we do see parents are at home working and children are at home as well around them.”
Ofsted’s report also warned that outcomes for young people with Send are “poor”, and added there is a “fundamental mismatch” between demand and resources.
Sir Martyn told the media: “We know that there’s been a 140% rise in the request for education, health and care (EHC) plans. There is no silver bullet because there’s simply not enough silver to go around.”
The Ofsted boss also warned that education and early years providers are “struggling to recruit and retain skilled staff” which he suggested is affecting children’s learning and wellbeing.
Sir Martyn took over as Ofsted’s chief inspector in January when the watchdog faced criticism after the death of headteacher Ruth Perry.
Mrs Perry took her own life after an Ofsted report downgraded her Caversham Primary School in Reading from the highest to the lowest rating over safeguarding concerns.
A coroner concluded the Ofsted inspection in November 2022 had contributed to her death.
In September, the Labour Government announced that single-phrase headline Ofsted grades for state schools in England would be scrapped.
Ofsted announced reforms after its major Big Listen public consultation earlier this year – including plans to introduce report cards to provide more detail and nuance about institutions.
Julie McCulloch, director of policy at the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL), said: “Schools are striving to maximise the education their pupils receive, even in very difficult circumstances.
“Where hybrid models are being adopted, this is often in cases where children have not been attending school at all and forms part of a pathway back to full-time education.
“As we move forwards towards a different system of inspection, it’s vital the new model does a better job of accounting for contextual factors and provides a more rounded picture of a school’s performance.”
A DfE spokesperson said: “Giving every child the best start in life is crucial to our mission to break the unfair link between background and success.
“As the report highlights, education is fundamental to the future success of this country – that’s why we are putting it back at the forefront of national life once again.
“We are continuing to work with Ofsted to introduce school report cards, which will give parents a more complete picture of school performance and will support us in our drive for high and rising school standards.”
