Education unions are to warn that Ofsted cannot be trusted to reform itself, as headteachers continue to report that school inspections are leaving their staff feeling distressed.
Prof Julia Waters, sister of the Reading headteacher Ruth Perry, who killed herself last year after an inspection downgraded her school from outstanding to inadequate, will call on the government to make deeper reforms of England’s education inspectorate at the Labour party conference on Sunday. While welcoming the government’s recent confirmation that Ofsted’s single-word judgments will be scrapped, Waters, along with all four teaching unions, said the inspector still operated with a culture of “fear and terror”.
Ahead of the conference event, Waters told the Observer that since her sister’s inquest and the coroner’s prevention of future deaths report, she had been told of 11 inspections this year which had left headteachers in serious distress.
She said: “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.”
Paul Whiteman, general secretary of the National Association of Head Teachers, said: “Nothing short of a complete reset will be enough.”
He described recent evidence of traumatised headteachers as “deeply concerning” and said it could not be allowed to continue.
“School leaders accept the need for accountability, but it must be humane, proportionate and fair,” he added. “The reform that is so desperately needed cannot be left in Ofsted’s hands alone.”
A governor at Eldon primary school in Preston said that a recent inspection had left several members of staff struggling with their mental health. Pav Akhtar, who is also a local councillor, said several members of staff had broken down during the inspection, which downgraded the school from outstanding to inadequate.
“Two had suicidal thoughts and are accessing trauma-focused cognitive behavioural therapy,” he said. Other staff are also receiving counselling. Akhtar added: “The complete disregard for staff health and wellbeing has been appalling.”
In line with Ofsted’s new policy of allowing school leaders to ask for a pause if staff are visibly distressed, the inspection at Eldon was temporarily halted when a staff member was upset, but Akhtar said it was “appalling” that the “resilience” of the school’s leadership was then questioned in the final report.
Ofsted said: “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 spokesperson added that Ofsted had granted an initial deferral of a planned inspection in February, then at the school’s request paused the inspection when it was under way in March: “Inspectors returned to conclude the inspection from 15 to 18 April. And we delayed publication of the final report from July to September to allow the local authority to provide a package of support for school leaders.”
Daniel Kebede, general secretary of the National Education Union, said: “The idea that this regime of fear and terror raises standards and improves things for children is a complete fantasy.”
Waters and the education unions will warn that the crisis in recruiting and retaining teachers cannot be fixed without further reform to Ofsted.
Waters said the current inspection system must be replaced by a “collaborative, supportive” system focused on improvement.
• In the UK and Ireland, Samaritans can be contacted on freephone 116 123, or email jo@samaritans.org or jo@samaritans.ie. In the US, you can call or text the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline on 988, chat on 988lifeline.org, or text HOME to 741741 to connect with a crisis counselor. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14. Other international helplines can be found at befrienders.org
• This article was amended on 23 September 2024 to include more of the statement provided by Ofsted regarding the process at Eldon primary school, and on 22 September 2024 to clarify that Ofsted’s remit covers England.
