Managing the pressure of Ofsted - DATE CHANGED FROM 18.10.24 TO 21.03.25

Ofsted inspections are often a high-stakes environment whereby the results can have significant implications for school. Head teachers often feel enormous pressure to perform well.
Given they are usually announced just a day or two in advance, it leaves little time for preparation. This unpredictability can be stressful for head teachers and staff in the build up to this event.
Finally, the subjective nature of inspections can often feel unfair and affect the morale of school.

The purpose of this course is to help you to navigate the stresses and pressures that come with the build up, the inspection and the aftermath. I have prepared individuals and teams to perform at 5 Olympic Games and am uniquely positioned to offer you some strategies that have been harnessed over the last 20 years in my work in high performance sport. In my world, our equivalent of Ofsted is UK Sport, and if we don’t perform, we don’t receive funding. It can be as black and white as this. There are a number of things we can do to best prepare for the event so that it doesn’t become this hugely stressful event. Confidence comes from knowing you have done your preparation, its then a case of executing the plan on the day. Following on from this, how do you then recover and reset to go again. My experience is that some schools can take their foot off the gas following Ofsted due to the exhaustion that it can create. However, if we manage this well, we can bounce back quicker and make sure the quality of education we are providing is where you want it to be for your children.

This course is led by Dr Mike Rotheram who is a HCPC Registered Performance Psychologist and Coaching Psychologist who works in elite sport, education, business and health. He has supported teams through 5 Olympic cycles. Mike worked with the senior England men's and women's cricket teams for a period of 10 years and has a wealth of experience that he will apply to help you navigate your challenges.

Aims

To identify the sources of pressure that come with an Ofsted Inspection
To reflect on what has gone well and not so well over previous inspections
To help you think about how you can best prepare for the day itself and get everyone aligned in this
To help you and staff manage the pressure and expectation that can come with the day itself
- To develop a plan for how you can recover and reset quickly from the event

Facilitator
Venue & Travel Information

Dr Mike Rotheram, External Consultant, Performance Mind

Mike is a HCPC Registered Performance Psychologist and Chartered Psychologist with the British Psychological Society. He is the Director of Performance Mind Ltd and currently works as the Performance Psychologist with the England Women's Cricket Team. He also works as a Psychology Technical Lead within the English Institute of Sport supporting GB Boxing, British Athletics, GB Para Table Tennis and Cricket. Mike has a wealth of experience in the world of performance. He has been through three Olympic cycles with the GB Speed Skating team and recently finished working with the England Lions Cricket team. Mike completed his PhD in 2007 at Sheffield Hallam University. His PhD looked at the psychological mechanisms which underpin severe performance breakdowns such as the ‘yips’. Over the past 10 years he has worked as a performance consultant within education, business and health. He has worked extensively within Lancashire Education Authority delivering leadership training and coaching. He has also worked with the Royal Bank of Scotland, Natwest, Boots and the NHS bringing the principles of performance psychology to the front line. Mike is a passionate and engaging presenter and brings the theory to life with his rich experience of working on the coalface in elite sport.

For more information see the Performance Mind Website here.

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