When should I start using Perspective?

The answer to this question is complicated by Ofsted's lack of priority to enable the direct importing and exporting of SEFs from their website. Their latest information is that they will not take any further action until November; no date has been given yet as to when this will be enabled. However some Heads are waiting until this feature has been enabled by Ofsted before using Perspective. This may not be the best decision. All the Ofsted enabled facility will do is remove the need to cut and paste. Within the entire process of producing a SEF this is a very small element. The potential time saved by waiting for Ofsted is outweighed by the benefits of starting now.

The wish to save time and effort is well understood but this takes no account of some of the major benefits of Perspective, chief of which is the Bite Size Questions. Their purpose is to help and ensure all aspects of each part of the SEF are fully and properly covered. Suitably compiled, they form the SEF commentary. It is unlikely that the SEF commentary produced through Perspective will match the equivalent commentary in your current SEF. A reason for making Perspective available is to help improve the quality of the SEF commentaries. Further, Perspective links all relevant evidence to the SEF commentary through the Bite Size Questions. Therefore this part of the process is essential.

When you arrive at the Evaluate section in Perspective it helps you build the final commentary. You can then, if you wish, compare it against a copy of your current SEF. You can even cut and paste if that proves to be appropriate. However if you wait to be able to import your SEF from Ofsted you will have the task of reconciling the outcome of the Bite Size Questions with what you wrote in the SEF. You are likely to want to alter your commentary; therefore any gains from importing the original SEF are marginalised.

Reasons for not waiting for Ofsted:

• Perspective will alert you to changes of data that affect your SEF, it can only do this is you are using it.


• A major School Development Plan module is in development, this will only be of value to you if the Bite Size Questions have been completed.


• Sharing your SEF online with colleagues, mentors, governors, SDA and SIP are only possible if you are using Perspective.


• Perspective is now the LA's method for supporting school self-evaluation.

When should I start using Perspective? As soon as you can. A number of Headteachers who have already committed to Perspective have confirmed this advice.

The document 'Perspective for Harassed Heads" is available here and may help you to get started.