Every estate agent knows the scenario – the local school is rated as ‘outstanding’ and the property prices shoot up.

Well, that is about to change, as school inspection body Ofsted is scrapping one-word school assessments.

And that move is likely to seriously affect polarised property markets where school ratings have a major influence on buyers’ behaviour.

With school ratings currently included as part of the listings detail on property search portals, like Rightmove, Ofsted’s decision could have major repercussions for some areas.

Here’s a burning question: What’s Rightmove going to do?”

Sir Martyn Oliver, the Chief Inspector of Schools (main picture), said: “Here’s a burning question: What’s Rightmove going to do? It’s a serious point.”

He said he knows of examples of where school ratings were upgraded to ‘outstanding’ and house prices jumped £15,000 within a week, The Times reports.

“It does make a difference,” he said.

Higher prices

Research by Yopa published last year showed that higher house prices generally corresponded with better schools.

Property costs an average of £359,000 near schools rated as ‘outstanding’, £305,000 near ‘good’ schools, £277,000 where a school ‘requires improvement’, and £243,000 in areas with an ‘inadequate’ school, Yopa found.

So, it costed an average of £116,000 more to live near an ‘outstanding’ school compared to one rated as ‘inadequate’.

Ofsted is to replace single-word ratings from November with more detailed descriptions of a school’s performance.

“The single word judgment was crude, it doesn’t give you that nuance and complexity,” Oliver said.

The current one-word grades were criticised for over-simplifying school performance.

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