The UK’s school system is facing a pivotal moment. For over a decade, reform has been driven by top-down control, rigid accountability, league tables, and intense inspection regimes. According to a new report by the IPPR, this “command and control” model has reached its limits. Rather than driving improvement, it is undermining the very people meant to deliver it: teachers.
The Problem: High-Stakes, Low Trust
Under New Public Management (NPM), schools have been subject to a narrow vision of success. Ofsted inspections and performance metrics dominate, creating a culture of fear rather than support. While these measures were intended to raise standards, evidence shows they’ve led to stress, reduced morale, and limited innovation in the classroom. Teachers are burning out, and school improvement has stalled.
A New Vision: Improvement through Empowerment
IPPR argues for a radical shift—away from control and toward empowerment. Instead of dictating how schools should improve, the system should support them to improve themselves. That means giving teachers more professional freedom, creating space for collaboration, and trusting schools to lead change based on their unique needs.
The report draws inspiration from healthcare, where collaborative, peer-led improvement strategies have outperformed punitive oversight. Applied to education, this would mean replacing top-down targets with investment in professional development, networks of schools learning from one another, and a reinvention of Ofsted as a more constructive, supportive body.
Key Proposals:
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Reform Ofsted to focus on developmental feedback, not punishment.
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Create a national strategy for teacher development and retention.
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Foster collaboration through local school improvement networks.
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Increase funding to allow for innovation and workload reduction.
Conclusion: Trust Teachers
Empowering schools isn’t about abandoning standards—it’s about achieving them through trust, professionalism, and shared learning. This new approach puts teachers at the heart of reform, not under its thumb. If we want long-term improvement, the system must support the people within it, not micromanage them.
Read the full article here:
🔗 Improvement through Empowerment – IPPR