A sister of Ruth Perry, the headteacher who took her own life last year, joins the call for ‘complete reform’ of the schools’ inspectorate in England.
The education union cautions that Osfed can’t be trusted to reform itself because headmasters report that school inspections leave their staff feeling stressed.
Prof Julia Waters, sister of Ruth Perry, the headteacher of Reading who took her last year after an inspection downgraded her school from outstanding to inadequate, will call on the government to enact deeper reforms of school inspectorate in England at the Labour Party conference on Sunday.
Walters and four other teaching unions stated that the inspector continued to operate with a culture of “fear and terror” while welcoming the government’s current confirmation that the single-worded rating will be scrapped.
Waters told the media ahead of the conference that since her sister’s inquest and the coroner’s prevention of death reports, she has been informed of 11 inspections this year that left headteachers in severe distress.
She stated: “These headteachers’ appalling experiences are shockingly reminiscent of what Ruth went through. Ofsted still seems defensive and complacent, unwilling or unable to change. They must not be allowed to reform themselves.”
The National Association of Head Teachers general secretary, Paul Whiteman, stated: “Nothing short of a complete reset will be enough.”
He described recent evidence of devastated headteachers as “deeply concerning,” saying it shouldn’t be permitted to continue.
He said, “School leaders accept the need for accountability, but it must be humane, proportionate and fair.” “The reform that is so desperately needed cannot be left in Ofsted’s hands alone.”
According to a governor at Eldon Primary School in Preston, several staff members are struggling with their mental health due to a recent inspection. A local councillor, Pav Akhtar, said that the inspection broke down several staff members, downgrading the school from outstanding to inadequate.
He said: “Two had suicidal thoughts and are accessing trauma-focused cognitive behavioural therapy.” Other staff also seek counselling, and “The complete disregard for staff health and wellbeing has been appalling.”
In line with Ofsted’s new policy of allowing school leaders to request a pause if the staff are visibly distressed, the inspection at Eldon was halted temporarily because the staff was upset. However, it was “appalling” that the school’s leadership’s “resilience” was questioned in the final report.
Ofsted stated: “We have acted with empathy and professionalism throughout our engagement with Eldon primary school. For months we took repeated and significant steps to protect the wellbeing of leaders at the school. Our top priority will always be making judgments in the best interests of children – even when those findings are uncomfortable for school leaders.”
The general secretary of the National Education Union, Daniel Kebede, said, “The idea that this regime of fear and terror raises standards and improves things for children is a complete fantasy.”
The education unions, along with Waters, will caution that the crisis in hiring and maintaining teachers cannot be fixed without further changes to Ofsted.
Waters added that the inspection system must be replaced by a “collaborative, supportive” system focused on improvement.
