Ofsted will be subject to radical reforms under a Labour government, the shadow education secretary has said.

Writing in the Observer, Tristram Hunt explained that the body responsible for carrying out inspections in schools is in need of serious reform.

According to Mr Hunt, there are far too many headteachers who believe that Ofsted can be a "barrier to success".

He argues that the body needs to evolve beyond box-ticking, as well as being less dependent on data to make decisions about the quality of teaching in a school.

"Too much teacher workload is the product of preparing for an inspection," the MP continued in his piece for the newspaper.

"Yes, Ofsted must confront mediocrity, but it must also start to allow heads the space to innovate and develop a richer criterion of school achievement.

"So it’s time for greater stability in the inspection framework, more consistency between inspectors and an end to any prescribed system of teaching."

Mr Hunt stated that with Labour in charge, Ofsted would be tasked with inspecting schools based on a "broad and balanced curriculum".

By way of example, he explained that no school can be categorised as being "outstanding" if they were found to be lacking in appropriate investment in drama, music and sport.

The shadow education secretary also called for Ofsted to be politically neutral, saying it is not right for the body to meddle in areas like performance-related pay.

"With £47 billion of public money spent on English schools, we need high accountability," Mr Hunt went on to say.

"What we cannot afford to discourage is the appetite for radical improvement. The impact of digital technology in the classroom, social media, the latest neuroscience – these insights need to be harnessed and shared and scaled up."

Last month, schools minister David Laws said that headteachers need to transform the way they approach Ofsted inspections.

The problem presently is that in the run-up to an inspection, the workload of teachers will increase substantially, adding further stresses to an already demanding job.