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The new  will incorporate five key areas of judgement, Ofsted has announced.

The framework, which will be introduced in September, will encompass , maintained schools, academies, non-association independent schools and further education and skills providers, so that common judgement and terminology can be used across all sectors, according to the inspectorate.

The three key judgements used to gauge quality and standards in a setting will be replaced under the CIF, with an adapted version of the inspection frameworks from schools and further education providers.

The five key areas of emphasis will be: ‘overall effectiveness’; ‘effectiveness of leadership and management’; ‘quality of teaching, learning and assessment’; ‘personal development, behaviour and welfare’; and ‘outcomes for children’.

Ofsted stated: ‘A young person, parent or employer should be able to pick up any of Ofsted’s inspection reports and be able to understand them quickly because the format and judgements are the same.’

A consultation with the sector earlier this year showed that three quarters of teachers, lecturers and early years professionals welcomed the concept of the framework.

But Alliance chief executive Neil Leitch has warned against a “one-size-fits-all” approach.

He said that the success of the CIF would “hinge on how it is practically applied by inspectors”.

Other changes to Ofsted’s inspection model announced by its chief inspector Sir Michael Wilshaw at an event on Monday (15 June) included the introduction of short inspections every three years for schools (including maintained nursery schools), academies and further education and skills providers judged as at least ‘good’ at their last inspection.

He said: “Make no mistake, this is a very different inspection model to what has gone before.”

But Neil Leitch expressed confusion as to why PVI providers are excluded from the short inspections system.

“This may well cause confusion for parents trying to compare different provider types, and so we would be keen to better understand from Ofsted what prompted them to make this distinction.”

Sir Michael also confirmed plans for a new ‘scrutiny committee’ to help improve the complaints process, which the Alliance has broadly welcomed.

“We have] long called for better support for providers who have made a complaint about an inspector or inspection, and this is a positive step in the right direction,” said Neil.