Martyn Oliver's keynote speech at the Festival of Education

Martyn Oliver's keynote speech at the Festival of Education
Ofsted’s Chief Inspector, Sir Martyn Oliver, spoke at the 2026 Festival of Education in Berkshire.
Introduction
Hello everyone.
It’s fantastic to be back here at the Festival of Education. Thank you for having me and I hope you’re all enjoying things so far.
It’s a delight to be here alongside so many impressive and inspirational speakers and authors and researchers. And, of course, to be at an event that is a celebration of all education.
At Ofsted, our remit – my remit – spans from the earliest years of education and care, supporting children to get the very best start in life, to their journey through primary and secondary school, all the way up to degree level apprenticeships and teacher training and all the social care in between.
I want to reflect that whole education journey by talking about the journey we’ve been on over the last few months, as we’ve taken our renewed approach to inspection out into the world.
I also want to report back on some of what we’ve seen – areas that we’ve heard are going well and some statistics that absolutely back that up.
And in the festival spirit, I also want to take some time to celebrate the importance of quality teaching and ensuring that teachers, too, get a chance to develop their skills.
Overview of what we’re seeing
So far, I am pleased to say, we are hearing many good things as part of the feedback on our renewed inspections.
Now, change is difficult and we can never expect a universally positive response. We will keep listening to what you tell us, so we can reflect and improve.
But there is a sense that our published toolkits give more transparency around inspections, helping everyone to understand exactly what inspectors will be looking at and how you will be held to account.
We have made it very clear what is required for each grade in each evaluation area and all the training materials our inspectors use are also available online.
Our improved methodology makes room for reflective practice and increased dialogue. That’s the one thing we’re definitely hearing. You’re telling us that inspection feels more collaborative, more like a productive conversation than something that is done to you.
That’s mirrored in the planning call, where we have a chance to build rapport at the start of the inspection and for us to listen and make sure we really understand your context before we arrive.
The nominee role is also relieving some of the pressure on leadership, especially in smaller primary schools.
These aspects all make for better wellbeing for leaders and also for your staff.
I am really pleased with what we are hearing. It’s still a rigorous process, I know. That is how we assure high standards. But it’s also fairer, more human, more collaborative.
All those changes I’ve just mentioned have been in action since we started inspections in November.
And since then, we’ve published almost 6,000 report cards.
That is, of course, a small sample if you think about the number of schools and providers and settings all over the country.
So while it is too soon to draw anything particularly conclusive, there are some positive trends starting to emerge that I’d like to tell you about.
I’ll start with ‘leadership and governance’. Currently, 84% of schools and FE and skills providers are achieving ‘expected standard’ or above in ‘leadership and governance’: 84% across both remits.
That’s hugely reassuring! It means there are leaders who are setting priorities and acting on them, instilling a culture of high expectations for all pupils, and making sure staff have the training and knowledge they need to make that change happen. I’ll come back to that last point later on.
We’re also seeing very positive results for the ‘inclusion’ evaluation area – an area that is particularly close to my heart. At the moment we see 85% of FE and skills grades and 89% of schools at or above ‘expected standard’.
It means that, on inspection, we’re seeing leaders who actively identify which pupils and learners need support and who do all they can to make sure they have it.
As always when I talk about inclusion, I mean those with SEND and those who are disadvantaged – and I also mean the other barriers that might hinder a pupil’s chances.
Caring responsibilities that tire them out, disruption in the home that unsettles them, bereavement that puts them through stress and emotions they may not have had to process yet in life.
So, it’s really reassuring to see such positive results in that area, and to know that children and learners are being supported to overcome those long and short-term barriers.
In schools, I am also pleased to report that ‘attendance and behaviour’ is graded at over 84% ‘expected standard’ and above.
I hope this positive figure can start to alleviate the concerns that some have had about this evaluation area.
On inspection, we’re seeing schools where attendance is being placed as the highest priority, pupils and their families are being supported to attend, and the culture in the school is conducive to learning. It makes pupils want to show up every day and it benefits those who need the stability most.
And as I have said before, we will always, always recognise where you are working against the odds in this area. We look at your context, we use it to understand the circumstances you are working in, but we never use it to pre-determine our grade.
In schools, we’re also seeing really positive results around ‘personal development and wellbeing’, with 95% at ‘expected standard’ and above.
It means pupils are being given opportunities to broaden their interests, including in the arts. They’re supported to be confident, resilient and independent, which helps them grow into well-rounded and happy adults.
They know where to get pastoral care and, crucially, if they do seek it out they can feel assured that they will be listened to and supported.
Quality of teaching makes the greatest difference
I want to dwell on that point. It speaks to something that’s been on my mind a lot recently – that importance of real, lasting, genuine, human connection and the difference that real teachers make day in, day out.
Research consistently reminds us that it is the quality of teaching, and the quality of interaction, that makes the greatest difference to how pupils learn.
That is particularly important for the most vulnerable and disadvantaged – those children and learners who perhaps don’t benefit from as many positive interactions at home or in their daily lives.
The interactions they have in education can make all the difference.
And this starts at the earliest stages! Interactions in the early years lay the foundations for everything that comes next.
Of course, the quantity of these interactions matter. Lots of opportunities to hear songs, speech and stories.
The quality matters too! Turn-taking, hearing new words, shared reading – and of course, staff being able to spot the children who need those interactions most.
These rich interactions shape children’s language and vocabulary, which boosts their confidence, which in turn gets them ready to learn.
Our review of the evidence, including work with the Education Endowment Foundation, reinforces this point.
Effective teaching remains the single most important factor influencing a child’s progress across their education.
I’ll say that again: effective teaching is the single most important factor.
That’s a lot of pressure, I know! But also: what a privilege. To be at the absolute core of these children’s experiences. To personally know the difference that stands to be made.
At the heart of that lies the environment we create in our schools and settings and providers: an environment where pupils feel safe, supported and ready to learn.
I spoke at this event last year about how schools are ‘citadels of childhood’: places of safety and refuge. Community and connection. Friendship and humanity.
So, as I prepared to speak to you again today, I revisited that speech. It’s always a good exercise, looking back over your own words and metaphors. I was musing on the role of teachers within that metaphor, within the citadel.
I think it is teachers who make those citadels a home rather than merely a fortress.
Because without dedicated teachers and staff and leaders, a school is just a set of walls and corridors and classrooms. There’s no character, no culture, nothing to really belong to. It’s the people who make it so.
Teachers have a unique power to nurture and to make sure children feel like they belong in a room of other people and their peers. You create the conditions that make children want to turn up every day.
In my 30 years in of being in classrooms, I’ve seen countless examples of teaching assistants, reception staff, teachers and leaders who go above and beyond.
One that sticks out in my mind is of a pupil who was having the toughest imaginable time at home.
Pastoral staff, teachers, leaders and the community police officer who worked in the school with us were in constant contact with social services. Even the chair of governors, who was also the local councillor, was personally involved.
This really was an example of the ‘team around the child’. Sadly, this experience won’t be unique, some of you will be bringing similar experiences to mind as I speak.
Anyway, this all-too-common tale – I could go into more detail but even 15 years on, I still have raw emotions about this case and a sense of not wanting to share the private details.
Suffice to say, spending time in her home, working with her mother, providing food, clothes, and giving them trips and experiences that were unimaginable to them otherwise, was only a small part of what made any kind of difference.
After months, years, what ultimately made a difference was the constancy of relationships.
The same staff, the same community, being in their life, knowing the background, understanding why some days were ‘bad days’, and yes, having boundaries too.
It was, as I talked about here last year, the humanity, the genuine empathy that helped – at least I hope it helped.
This isn’t a fairytale; not everything works out gloriously, despite best efforts. Sometimes ‘progress’ is safety rather than a grade 4.
But what I can look back on, despite the mistakes and missteps we undoubtedly made, was that we did our best. I said this last week to the Education Select Committee: ‘Know your children, know them well, and make sure you are meeting their needs: that is the job of an educator’.
Schools and teachers cannot be everything to society; we cannot be expected to solve all community problems but thank goodness for you and for everyone who works in the public sectors!
Professional development
So if, as we know, effective teachers, and support staff, are the single most important factor for children, then developing effective teachers must be one of the most impactful things leaders can do.
Because none of this – the quality of teaching, quality of interaction, the culture – is an accident. None of this just arises naturally. A person is not born with this innate ability.
The expertise at the centre of effective teaching comes through the training you complete, the learning you do, the reflection you make time for, and the improvement you make throughout an entire career.
And all of that must be supported by well-evidenced continued professional development.
I admit to now preferring the term, sustained professional learning. This might sound like semantics, but I think it is more than that.
Giving staff the tools and training to nurture an effective, sustainable culture of professional growth, grounded in the best available evidence, is crucial in every school and setting.
I am doing a workshop with Professor Stuart Kime after this session where we will discuss exactly that.
Evidence Based Education speak about moving the conversation about teacher growth towards a more meaningful, sustained approach that helps every teacher recognise their strengths and become even more effective than they already are.
When you see it in action, it is truly inspiring.
I saw it just the other month in a small community charity nursery where 2 of the 5 staff were trainees. One was doing a Level 2 and the other a Level 3 apprenticeship – time on the job and off the job, with a coherence between the two.
This small, rural nursery, which we judged to be ‘strong’ in all areas, wanted all staff fully qualified and developing their practice, something we do not see in all early years settings. The children there were happy and thriving.
We want to see more of this: more staff being able to develop.
And I will say, the word ‘develop’ bothers me still – it’s technically the right word, but it still conjures up CPD, which for far too much of my early career was about one-off, fragmented ‘training days’. Lurching from one inset day to another months later, with little or no connection between what was being thrown at me.
We know, when we teach, that coherent learning, a well-planned, well-implemented and intentional curriculum is best. Add to that a clear understanding of how we check that that impact has been made.
We also know that spaced review and interleaving, building a coherent mix of knowledge and practice over time, works. So, we do want to see sustained professional learning, which supports a well-thought-out programme of growth for staff, from the smallest nursery to the largest college.
Positive practice and thank you
So what does all this look like when it’s done well?
We recently inspected Spring Vale Primary School in Wolverhampton, whose inspection report neatly ties together some of those themes I’ve just been speaking about. You can read it online and I’ll summarise some of it here.
In the school, relationships are firmly at the centre of leaders’ work. They have made a deliberate choice to prioritise strong and authentic connections with pupils and families.
The result is that staff know their pupils incredibly well. Parents feel listened to as partners in their children’s education. ‘Stay and play’ sessions mean that staff know children’s circumstances from their earliest years. And all interactions are characterised by warmth, clarity and respect – creating an environment where pupils feel valued and ready to learn.
And that doesn’t come from nowhere.
Leaders have designed an effective professional learning programme that helps staff to build more and more expertise every day. Staff have access to external training, support from the multi-academy trust and coaching.
Teachers are supported early in their career and all staff get bespoke training that connects to the specific needs of the pupils they teach.
This is a brilliant example of how professional learning builds expertise, encourages top-quality teaching and interaction, and empowers staff to create a positive culture that’s conducive to helping pupils learn.
I know this doesn’t always come easy. You know better than anyone what it takes to run a school, a citadel, where trust is implicit in every interaction.
Children need to know that a teacher is going to be there consistently before they can let their walls down.
Seeing their teacher at the front of the classroom – rain or shine, morning and afternoon – helps children and learners to understand what ‘showing up’ means and what it is to feel safe.
That spirit of ‘showing up’ is something I’ve seen time and time again across the sector – in all sorts of places and provision.
One example is in alternative provision. I’ve heard teachers who speak very powerfully about how much of a challenge the job can be.
But they also speak about how they are there precisely because they are so needed.
When mainstream education isn’t right for a child, it’s even more important to help them feel like they have somewhere they belong and people who believe in them.
The teachers working in that provision know all too well that they might be the core pillar of stability in a child’s life.
So too in mainstream schools, particularly tougher ones. I know from my own years of teaching that children often won’t speak to you until they know you’re going to turn up and look out for them each day no matter what.
No matter what that pupil is going through. No matter what they’re going home to. It’s an extraordinarily powerful thing to look into someone’s eyes – not into a screen – and to know that this adult believes in you and your potential.
I still have moments now where I bump into a child I taught, who’s now in their twenties or thirties (I hate to say it, but even their forties now!), and get to hear about what they are up to. They glow with pride when they tell me, they’re really excited, and it’s absolutely contagious!
Those are some of my proudest moments, when I see the happy adults they have become.
Wrap-up
Our intention with this renewed approach has always been to raise standards for all children and learners, especially for the most vulnerable and disadvantaged. To give their parents and carers detailed information about their child’s education. To encourage a self-improving system where we all learn from one another, all the time.
I include Ofsted in that, too. We want our own sustained professional learning and reflection – to hear your experiences of this system and to make sure that we continue to improve.
So please, keep speaking to us and to one another and sharing good practice. Keep reading about it, posting about it, celebrating it and learning from it. And if a provider gets less than the expected standard, let’s help them, let’s recognise that it is perfectly natural to be strong at some things and working on others.
We’re now at a stage where we’re moving out of a period of great change.
The new grading and new-style inspections are bedding in, we’re hearing that you’re more confident about those changes and what I want now is for you all to feel able to focus on your brilliant work, day in and day out.
I know that brilliant work often happens in really difficult circumstances.
We will always recognise that. We will always back you to do the best job you can. And we will keep working with you to make things the best they possibly can be for children, learners and their parents and carers.
Thank you again for being here, and I’m happy to take questions.