Commenting on the results Christine Blower, General Secretary of the National Union of Teachers the largest teachers union said;

"The picture that Christine Gilbert paints of schools finding the new inspections regime a fair and positive experience bears no resemblance to the reality many teachers and head teachers are experiencing. The NUT has been inundated with teachers expressing concerns about punitive and unfair inspections led by inspectors who themselves often have little idea of life in the classroom.

"Evidence from our members shows that Ofsted have inspected a full range of schools not just focused on ‘weaker schools’.

"Despite assurances given by Christine Gilbert, both personally to the NUT and publicly, that school attainment would not be a deciding factor in the overall judgement of schools, the evidence we have is that school attainment is in reality the deciding factor in the overall judgement of schools.

"Schools in tough areas need all the help and support they can get as well as an understanding that their successes need celebrating for their own sake, and not by being measured against national targets and school league tables. Under this system there will be schools that will never achieve a good or outstanding result no matter how hard they try.

"Similarly, the claim that schools are not penalised for minor safeguarding issues bears no resemblance to reality. We have numerous examples from members which show that, while they are not on their own a deciding factor, they are certainly a contributing factor which could easily lower a school's judgement.

"Many teachers have complained that they have been subjected to very short inspections and those snap shot observations are being used to make less than informed observations about teaching and learning. Where teachers do need some extra help in the classroom, it is not inspection which will improve their skills but support and training, which currently is not available to many teachers.

"I can only imagine that this report will be greeted with incredulity in staffrooms across the country. We need to see a complete overhaul of the way schools are inspected and ensure we have a system that gives a true reflection of the work and progress that is being made in our schools. Ofsted have not ‘raised the bar’. They have simply driven many good schools to the wall for no valid reason."