HIGH-performing education authorities are to face shorter inspections by the Office for Standards in Education. Inspectors will spend more time and money looking at councils which need to improve and seeking out best practice. Chief education officers are being asked to write a report outlining progress before OFSTED arrives. The report will be used to decide areas on which the inspectors will concentrate and the length of the inspection. Professor Tim Brighouse, CEO for Birmingham, which was visited in January, said the emphasis on self-assessment was “excellent”. OFSTED also intends to make more use of electronic media. Forms for inspections are now only available in electronic format from its website.