Independent education investigative journalist Warwick Mansell has written about events at Byron Court on his blog and was recently interviewed by podcasters Two Heads about prospects for changes in Ofsted inspections and academisation under the new Labour Government.
Byron Court Primary School is no more and one of the podcasters described the eradication of its identity over the school holiday as 'Orwellian'. She was particularly concerned about its effect on the children.
It is early days, but I am already hearing reports that under the Harris regime discipline is much stricter and there are concerns about individual support for special needs pupils being withdrawn.
The community school currently known as Byron Court Primary School will open after the summer holiday as Harris Primary Academy South Kenton. The eradication of the Byron Court identity will be completed with the appointment of a Principal, Mr Hyneman, from within the Harris Federation; a new school uniform to be worn on September 4th, the first day of term, (see letter to parents below) and a two week half-term holiday in October for all but Year 6.
Campaigners against forced academisation had their hopes raised following what they saw as a positive end of term meeting with the new Labour Secretary of State, Bridget Phillipson.
In a letter to the Chair of Goverrnors, Claire Burton, the DfE Regional Director, states that the Secretary of State, has confirmed the takeover by Harris from September 1st. She rejects the campaigners' call for a pause in the process to enable the school to show its progress through a re-inspection.
Many local stakeholders have voiced their desire for certainty, for the pupils, the
parents, the staff and the wider community. This is particularly acute given how close
we are now to the start of a new academic year. Pausing the process now will bring
further uncertainty without a clear alternative. In all likelihood, it would lead to a
longer period of upheaval, which is not in the best interests of the children at the
school.
Ironically, Harris recognises progress already made in its letter to parents when they say they will support the school as it 'continues to raise standards.'
Regarding the Ofsted judgement of 'Inadequate', Burton says that the school had already been in need of support prior to the inspection although that judgement may have come as a surprise to parents:
My colleagues at Ofsted have confirmed that the
Ofsted complaints process has been fully exhausted. I am aware of a further
complaint to the Independent Complaints Adjudication Service for Ofsted (ICASO)
which is independent of Ofsted. Nothing of substance has been upheld.
You will note that there is no mention of a re-inspection. This means that the next Ofsted inspection of the school will be of its Harris entity and the improvements made by the LA and current school leadership will not be captured. However, the improvements will be built on what has already been achieved as demonstrated by the recent Year 6 SAT results.
The decision raises questions about the new Labour Government's policy both on academisation, including forced academisation, and on the much criticised Ofsted that many see as overly influenced by academy chiefs and Tory education policy.
Meanwhile Save Byron Court and the NEU must be congratulated for their energetic and persistent campaign.
Jenny Cooper, of Brent NEU said:
Yesterday, the Save Byron Court campaign learned that Harris will be taking over on 1st September. This is a terrible decision for staff, children and community and we know it is based on an Ofsted complaints process and forced academisation system that are not fit for purpose and do not involve stakeholders. The determination of our members, reps and the local community meant that we sustained 16 strike days, countless rallies and protests, a 2100 strong petition, FOI requests ( still going), four complaints to Ofsted ( still going) and a successful delaying of TUPE three times plus a meeting with Bridget Phillipson and a further pause in the decision.
The Grunwick strikes are painted on our walls in Brent, and on our union banner; they remain an iconic part of local and national history. You do not have to win everything you ask for to win the moral fight.
The moral fight is won. We wanted our academy order revoked but we have successfully shown that it should be and have shown ourselves and others how to fight.
Thank you to all of you who sent messages of solidarity, visited the picket lines, gave donations, wrote letters, joined the protests and helped share our story.
The members are not defeated; they have found their voices and will not be walked over.
It's obviously a heavy blow and there's no real way of escaping that feeling, but every single person who fought should hold their heads up very, very high. Don't get too down, we all live to fight another day. And we all will until the whole rotten system and those who run it, are brought down. You never went meekly like so many others. Phillipson needs to understand that while academisation exists, the (re)building of a comprehensive, inclusive, progressive and democratic school system is impossible. You're either for academisation or you're against it. The Byron Court campaigners will always be on the right side of history. Love the fighters in Brent.
Save Byron Court camapaign made the following statement on Friday August 2nd:
We are devastated by Bridget Phillipson's decision to proceed with the takeover of Byron Court by Harris Federation from September. Despite us exposing major issues with the Ofsted inspection, the many aspects of this opaque system that are rigged against parents and deny us choice and voice, and presenting the major rapid improvements made proving ours is not a failing school, we have been ignored by Bridget Phillipson in much the same way as her predecessor did. Specific concerns have not been addressed; we have been denied the opportunity of reinspection; we weren't even given the courtesy of a direct reply to us or our public petition signed by over 2,000 people.
There were many factors at play that led Byron Court to forced Academisation - turbulent leadership with an absent headteacher during the inspection; ineffective support and scrutiny from Governors and the LA; an understaffed SLT - yet despite this, with parent scrutiny, greater leadership capacity, and LA support, the improvements made at the school in one academic year were incredible.
The staff at Byron Court really believed in the school and in keeping it a community school, they too are victims of this unjust system, they too were failed by those entrusted with Byron Court - we needed them to fight for us, not to hand our school over to a corporate machine. Whilst we did get public support for a pause in this process from the school leadership and chair of governors, with only a week to go before the DfE deadline, it was all too little, too late.
Barry Gardiner made a statement on Twitter yesterday following what he said was a 'very positive discussion' with Labour's Shadow Education Secretary about the forced academisation issues at Byron Court Primary School.
NEU members at Byron
Court Primary School are continuing their strike in a fight to save their local
community school which is threatened with a forced privatisation by the huge
Harris Federation chain of academies. PICKET LINES OUTSIDE THE SCHOOL TUESDAY
21st and WEDNESDAY 22nd May.
[Subsequent dates: 4th/
5th/ 6th June]
Staff at Byron Court Primary School in Wembley
went on strike last week and will be striking again this week to save their
local community school from a forced “academy order” following an intimidating
Ofsted inspection which has left some staff fearing for their mental health and
their futures. Many of these long-serving staff served the school’s community
throughout the pandemic and face uncertainty in their jobs, pay and conditions as
they face a takeover by the hostile Harris multi-academy trust.
NEU MEMBERS,
PARENTS, COUNCILLORS AND THE LOCAL COMMUNITY HAVE BEEN TURNING OUT TO SUPPORT
THE PICKET LINES AND PROTESTS FOLLOWING A HIGH PROFILE PARENT CAMPAIGN which is
also supported by the local MP Barry Gardiner.
Staff and parent supporters are continuing to lobby
the Secretary of State to get their academy order revoked, asking for a
reinspection, handled fairly and proportionately. There is a live complaint
lodged with Ofsted which has exhausted the internal complaints process in which
Ofsted “mark their own work” and will now be sent to the external complaints
process. It is hoped this may halt the takeover.
Jenny Cooper of the NEU national executive has
stated:
We
will not be stopping this fight any time soon as there is too much at stake
here and we know we have the support of the community. Gillian Keegan knows
what she can do: commission a reinspection and pause the academy order; this
could resolve our dispute.
MEMBERS OF NATIONAL
EDUCATION UNION STRIKING TO SAVE THEIR LOCAL SCHOOL
NEU members at Byron Court Primary
School are to strike in a fight to save their local community school which is
threatened with a forced privatisation by the huge Harris Federation chain of
academies. PICKET LINE OUTSIDE THE SCHOOL FRIDAY 17TH MAY 7.30-9.30am!
Staff at Byron Court Primary School in Wembley will be on strike to save their
local community school from a forced “academy order” following an intimidating
Ofsted inspection which has left some staff fearing for their mental health and
their futures. Many of these long-serving staff served the school’s community
throughout the pandemic and face uncertainty in their jobs, pay and conditions as
they face a takeover by the hostile Harris multi-academy trust.
NEU MEMBERS VOTED IN HUGE NUMBERS TO
TAKE STRIKE ACTION OVER MULTIPLE DATES FOLLOWING A HIGH PROFILE PARENT CAMPAIGN
which is supported by many in the local community including Councillors and MP.
Staff and parent supporters will protest at a picket line outside the
school from 7.30am Tuesday and will continue to lobby the Secretary of State to
get their academy order revoked. Staff are asking for a reinspection, handled
fairly and proportionately, while a live complaint lodged with Ofsted is being
looked at externally after reports that Ofsted lied during the complaints
process.
Jenny Cooper of the NEU national executive has stated:
These striking
members undertake difficult jobs every day and have the expertise and knowledge
that should be valued in our schools. There has been no consultation whatsoever
with any stakeholder and we do not believe it is the right decision to hand
this school to a glorified carpet salesman who is paid half a million a year
for the privilege. The NEU will NOT accept privatisation of our schools through
a politicised Ofsted process which is what we are seeing.
Community and Wellbeing Scrutiny Commitee: Byron Court presentation & responses
Two Byron Court Parents attended Scrutiny Committee thia evening to ask questions about what Brent Council had done to help the school when it was realised it was in difficulties, The Rapid Improvement Group (RIG) was set up in September 2022 more than a year before the Ofsted Inspection of November 2023.
Parents' Questions
Tanisha Phoenic: RIG history - we
have put in an FOI request to help us understand how an Outstanding school with
a teaching status in the borough has been left to languish, in the meantime,
can the panel answer some of our questions:
Rig was put in place on Sept
2022, chaired by Shirley Parks. Why was RIG put in place? What issues were
identified in 2022? Are some of these the same issues that Ofsted identified in
their inspection?
What was achieved by the RIG
between its inception and the Ofsted inspection in Nov 2023? How many meetings
took place, what was the level of monitoring and support put in place?
Was it identified during the
year that the RIG was in place that improvements were not being made? What
interventions if any were made, were these issues escalated? If so, then where?
We understand that the
support to the school via the RIG and SESS has not been as intensive as
required i.e. meetings being frequently cancelled by Council officers. Has this
in part led to the poor inspection rating?
Did the Council experience
any barriers working effectively with the previous Headteacher and governing
body?
We want to understand if a
school mentioned in 3.3.2 that was rated “requires improvement” in
2022/2023has had a RIG in place and
been on “journey to good” - why has the RIG failed Byron Court?
Do the committee really
believe that they have done all in their power to help the school and avoid
what has now become a forced academy order?
Vina Vekria - Assurances from
now to academisation
Whilst we acknowledge that
you are legally bound to comply with the academisation order, Gwen Grahl
reaffirmed the council's commitment to supporting and improving the school and
assured us additional leadership capacity would be in place after Easter.
What if any guarantees can
you give us that the council will be living up to its commitment to
‘protect/promote community schools’ as per the Labour manifesto? Will you
commit to pushing for a reinspection?
We are campaigning for a
reinspection of the school, what guarantees can you give that the RIG will do
what is expected and required to achieve the rapid improvements needed?
What additional resources -
mentioned by Cllr Grahl at the Cabinet meeting on 9 Apr - are being put into
the school and when? Will this address the huge lack in capacity in the Senior Leadership Team?
Will the Scrutiny Committee
agree to return to this item at their next meeting in order to provide details
of actions put in place?
There was no specific reply to the RIG question or on resources as applied to Byron Court although it was claimed that RIGs were generally successful. Cllr Grahl spoke about her letter to the Secretary of State and offered to meet with parents. Cllr Ketan Sheth (Chair) said the Committee would keep a watching brief and parents could submit questions to the Committee. Answering a councillor's question Brent officers said that they were confident that no other Brent school would suffer a similar fate to Byron Court.
This is the FoI request made to Brent Council:
Dear Brent Council,
I am writing to you on behalf of over 130 parents involved in the ‘Byron Court Parents’ Campaign group’. The group represents parents who are opposed to the forced academisation of the school following Ofsted’s report.
We urgently request under the Freedom of Information Act the following:
Date of the initiation of Rapid Improvement Group (RIG), details of reasons(or redacted) the RIG was requested/instigated Date of RIG was put into place RIG Lead and its members Aims and Key Performance Indicators (KPI's) of the RIG Minutes from RIG meetings Details (or redacted) of improvements achieved
Matt Paul, parent and one of the
coordinators of the Save Byron Court campaign, yesterday presented a
1,300 signature petition to Brent Council Cabinet opposing forced academisation
and calling for the Cabinet’s.
He spoke about staff and
parent concern over how the inspection had been carried out by Ofsted, the
minimal parent involvement and the failure to take into account the instability
of the senior leadership over a four year period.
Over two-thirds of parents
and a majority of staff in a survey opposed academisation and wanted it to
remain a community school.
There was particular concern
that the Harris Federation had been named to take over the school given that it
is led by a Tory donor, has a CEO paid half a million a year, is known for poor industrial relations and a has
problematic approach to pupil behaviour management.
He asked that the Council in
line with Labour policy:
1.Provide
and support the recruitment of additional members of the school leadership
team, recognising the immediate lack of capacity and significant pressures faced
by existing staff.
2.
Ensure the work by the Rapid Improvement Group is succeeding and being monitored
– something that does not appear to have been happening for some time.
3.
Push the Department for Education and Ofsted to reinspect the school to reflect
improvements and its upward trajectory and thus delay the academy order being
implemented.
Cabinet Lead Member for Schools,
Cllr Gwen Grahl’s response was interesting and seemed to reflect an inner
battle. At times there were passages that sounded like cautious officers’
briefing notes on the legal position followed by passionate political comments,
She said she understood how
parents would feel that it was unjust that they had not had any say in what
happened to their school. That is why she had written to the Local Advisory
Board urging them to consider delaying academisation but disappointingly had
received no response.
On the Rapid Improvement
Group (RIG) she said:
The
local authority has been aware of inadequacies in some areas of the school for
several months and indeed established a RIG back in September 2022 [more than a
year before the Ofsted Inspection] which was chaired by Shirley Parks. The
group has provided detailed and structural support across many areas and that
includes early years. Safeguarding. SEND, leadership and pupil progress. In addition,
we’ve helped to recruit three really experienced school governors following the
resignation of the chair and vice chair.
It
was our hope and our best intention that this support would in time be
successful in resolving the problems, leading the school towards resilience and
a high quality of leadership and attainment.
Addressing the campaigners’
first demand she said:
On
your first request I can confirm we will be building additional leadership
capacity at the school, and I think we can assure you that will be in place
following the Easter holidays. We have been providing substantial support
through monitoring and challenge and are meeting really regularly with the
senior leadership team and the governors.
Stressing that academisation
was not a local authority decision, in a key passage that will disappoint campaigners,
she said:
However
strongly parents and pupils feel committed to Byron Court remaining a community
school, the academy order makes it clear that local authorities must take all
reasonable steps to facilitate academisation. It’s for that reason that the
Cabinet, officers, and the local authority as a whole cannot oppose or even
delay this decision. We have very little input into the timing of academisation
or indeed when the school will be next inspected.
She went on to express her
political views:
This
process has no doubt been a heart-breaking one for parents and at the political
level I feel that it highlights a number of areas where education policy has
been undemocratic and highly counter-active to delivery of high-quality
education for pupils. First of all it highlights the lack of trust in the
chronic problems of the current Ofsted system which we know places undue
pressure on staff and simplistically, at times cruelly, reduces the complexities
of running a school to a single word judgement. The tragic death of Ruth Perry
is emblematic of how brutal this process can be for hardworking teachers as
well as for the wider community.
I
have long argued that the inspection framework is not fit for purpose and
Labour have already pledged to abolish single word judgements and to bring
about a much needed overhaul of the system. I will continue to make these
argument and emphasise that teaching staff deserve better. It also lays out
plainly how illogical and punitive forced academisation is, tying the future of
the school to an inspection system that has been so openly discredited,
naturally feels draconian.
Cllr Grahl went on to promise
to carry on the fight for inclusive education at the school even when academisation
too place.
She finished:
If
you do have any specific questions or concerns do please email me and I will
respond. I am happy to meet up with you separately as well.
Cllr Gwen Grahl’s
contact details:
Correspondence
address:
c/o Labour Group Office
Brent Civic Centre
Engineers Way
Wembley
HA9 0FJ
The quiet suburban streets, lined with spring flowers and blossoms, around Byron Court Primary School. burst into passionate life today as the community rose up, united in their desire to save the much-loved school from forced academisation following a poor Ofsted report.
Meanwhile in an anonymous London Department for Education building the fate of the school was being decided by equally anonymous civil servants.
What a contrast!
Those attending were united in their belief that the school could and would improve without being handed over to the Harris Federation academy chain whose reputation is poor. Importantly they wanted the school to remain within the community and accountable to that community.
The Berkshire Senior Coroner, Heidi Connor, published her Report to Prevent Future Deaths on headteacher Ruth Perry's death today.
She gave a narrative finding of:
Suicide contributed to by an Ofsted Inspection in November 2022.
The Chief Inspector of Ofsted, Secretary of State for Education for Education and the Chief Executive of Reading Council are given until February 7th 2024 to respond the the findings in the report.
The Report:
The report is likely to lead to increased demands from educatioalists, school trade unions and professional associations, the public and political parties for the reform, at the minimum, or abolition of Ofsted.
Commenting on the report, Jenny Cooper, Co-secretary of Brent NEU said:
Very sadly Ruth Perry is not the first person to die with Ofsted having contributed either directly or indirectly. And she will not be the last if this damaging, authoritarian, inappropriate and unfit for purpose system of inspection is allowed to continue. The NEU has called for its abolition and stands by this call.
New: Michaela head told inspectors the school did not teach music in year nine mainly because pupils “are not really interested in the subject”.https://t.co/pECQEien1L Long read piece on the inspection notes on Michaela Community School,which I FOI’d following its recent report.
Yesterday school leaders’ union NAHT wrote to His Majesty’s Chief Inspector to demand a suspension of
Ofsted inspections while steps are taken to address the risk to the
mental health of school staff and enable suicide risk prevention to be
put in place.
The letter is the first step in judicial review proceedings and cites
Article 2 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which imposes
obligations on public authorities to take reasonable steps where there
is a real and immediate risk of a loss of life.
NAHT argues that the recent death of Ruth Perry, and the citing of
Ofsted inspections as a factor in the deaths of 10 teachers*, indicates
the human rights of school staff are not being protected by the current
Ofsted regime and that immediate action is needed to minimise harm and
protect lives.
NAHT has called on Ofsted to pause inspections whilst a review is
carried out to identify and put in place immediate measures to minimise
the risk of harm to school staff.
Paul Whiteman, general secretary of school leaders’ union NAHT, said:
The tragic death of Ruth Perry has shone a light on the intolerable
pressure placed on school leaders and their staff during Ofsted
inspections. It shouldn’t take a tragedy to force change, but Ofsted has
shown no inclination to change on its own.
We have requested that Ofsted works with NAHT, as recognised
representatives of school leaders, to identify and agree immediate
actions that can be taken. It is essential that these actions are
discussed and agreed with NAHT if it is to make any meaningful
difference. It needs to be done with us, not to us. Up until now those
requests have been ignored. As such, we have no alternative but to go
down this route.
Whilst Ofsted have issued warm words, that is simply not good enough
and it has shown nothing like the understanding or urgency that this
situation requires.
School leaders are determined that this should be a watershed moment
and that such a tragedy can never be allowed to happen again.
NAHT have demanded a reply from Ofsted by Thursday 6 April.
* As revealed in a recent Observer article. The underlying academic report cited by TheObserver can be found here.
I was in my first year of teaching, as a mature entrant, almost 50 years ago in 1976 when the Prime Minister James Callaghan launched the 'Great Debate' on education in a speech at Ruskin College. LINK
That speech was the launchpad for the many changes that followed implemented by both Labour and Conservative governments, some good, some bad and often with unexpected consequences.
Today government attitudes towards teachers exemplified by the derisory pay offer are clear and contribute to low morale, demotivation and a recruitment and retention crisis. The role of Ofsted is under scrutiny as never before following the tragic death of a headteacher in the wake of an expected poor Ofsted judgement on the school that she cherished. Ofsted itself, despite claims of its independence is linked to Government policies including the high stakes testing found in primary schools, which in turn contributes to a narrowing of the curriculum and the loss of arts subjects. This is compounded by a school funding crisis that means such subjects are a low priority when it comes to allocating the school budget.
It is worth quoting Callaghan:
Everyone is allowed to put
his oar in on how to overcome our economic problems, how to put the balance of
payments right, how to secure more exports and so on and so on. Very important
too. But I venture to say not as important in the long run as preparing future
generations for life. RH Tawney, from whom I derived a great deal of my
thinking years ago, wrote that the endowment of our children is the most
precious of the natural resources of this community. So I do not hesitate to
discuss how these endowments should be nurtured.
Let me answer that question
'what do we want from the education of our children and young people?' with
Tawney's words once more. He said: 'What a wise parent would wish for their
children, so the state must wish for all its children.'
The campaign group 'More Than a Score' has undertaken research to see what parents wish for in terms of their children's education and their report concludes LINK:
It is wrong to use SATs
results as shorthand for high standards in primary education. While test data
may generate easy headlines, parents and school leaders understand that
an 11-year-old’s tests results cannot provide an accurate picture of their overall academic
abilities and should not be used as a blunt tool to measure standards.
These views — held by an
overwhelming majority — are not reflected in current policy. Everyone who values
children’s education believes in high standards, but it is time to change the
language and shift the debate so that children’s learning, not data, is prioritised.
The report is extremely important at a time when government ministers justify their education policy, including Ofsted and SATs with the mantra 'we know this is what parents want' backed up with very little evidence. Callaghan called for a 'rational debate based on the facts' - More Than a Score's effort to intruduce some evidence into the discussion is very welcome.
Reacting to the report Rosamund McNeil, assistant general secretary
off the National Education Union, said;
The views of education staff and parents
have been made clear in More Than a Score’s research – primary school SATs
are not an indicator of educational standards, or whether a child is ready for
secondary school.
Both parents and educators feel standards
should be measured in better ways, such as engagement with a broad and rich
curriculum, not limited to English and Maths. This is a standard our
high-stakes system is failing to meet. Schools face incredible pressure from
government to prioritise tested subjects which mean the arts, humanities, and
sciences are being squeezed from the school week.
Children’s mental health should also be an
indicator of standards. Engagement with, and excitement about learning is not
well served by SATs preparation or the SATs pressure. Children deserve a fairer
system which captures more of what they achieve and they contribute. Children
should be looking forward to another day of primary school, where they feel
inspired and happy to learn.
The NEU wants to see an assessment system
that supports children's learning and gives meaningful information to parents
and educators. The system needs to be redesigned to meet those standards, not
the ones set by government to hold schools to account.
High Stakes Testing is just one aspect of the current crisis and the report (below) perhaps will start a process of evidence gathering that will contribute to a new debate.
20,000 teachers took part in a National Education Union on-line meeting this evening to hear the Government's pay offer after 6 days of intensive negotiations. As the meeting progressed, on-line comments showed teachers' anger at the offer and Co-General Secretary Kevin Courtney had to reassure them that the NEU was recommending members reject the the ballot - which was to be sent out after the meeting.
The pay offer averaging 4.5% itself was poor but worse was it going to be unfunded apart from a Government contribution 0.5% thus creating a financial crisis for many schools, leading to potential redundancies, particularly in support staff.
The Government attempted to impose a condition that the offer would only stand if all four unions involved either recommended acceptance or were neutral, otherwise the offer would be witdrawn. The NEU will recommend rejection.
Clearly the ball is now in the Government's court.
The slides below give some headlines but you can see the full meetingHERE
THE GOVERNMENT REJECTED THESE DEMANDS
THE GOVERNMENT OFFERED
THE GOVERNMENT'S ATTEMPT TO SET CONDITIONS REJECTED BY NEU
Vix Lowthion, a high school teacher and Green Party spokesperson on education said this morning:
Could teachers feel any more let down,
abandoned, insulted, angry and hated by government than we do this morning?
We
don't do this for them. We do it for our young people. We keep going.
I can
only conclude that the govt despise the entire profession.
UPDATE: Flora Cooper has made it clear that she does not want supporters of her decision to go to the school on Tuesday. This is for the protection of staff and children.
Social media was full of comments over the weekend about what many viewed as 'toxic' Ofsted inspections. This followed the sad news about a headteacher who, according to her family, took her own life due to the stress of an anticipated negative Ofsted finding. Ofsted were criticised for their report on the school which merely noted the death of the headteacher during the inspection. I understand the report was taken down following the criticism.
This morning Flora Cooper, Executive Headteacher of John Rankin School, took to Twitter to announce that she was taking a stand following 'the call' from Ofsted that they were coming in to inspect the school. She announced baldly, 'I've had the call. I've refused entry.'
In subsequent tweets she called for support and it poured in, although of course, not everyone was sympathetic. LINK
The NEU issued the following statement today:
Dr Mary Bousted, Joint General Secretary of the National Education Union, said;
Given recent events and widespread concerns about
leaders’ wellbeing, it’s the height of insensitivity for Ofsted to be
going into schools or colleges this week.
Ofsted should pause all its inspections and reflect upon
the unmanageable and counter-productive stress they cause for school
leaders, and the impact on leaders. This stress is well-documented in
literature about Ofsted. That they are phoning leaders this week and
initiating inspections speaks to the arrogance of Ofsted and their
absolute lack of empathy. The claims by Ofsted to make fair or reliable
judgements are not credible and this is part of the immense stress and
distress for leaders.
This is an agency that is completely out of touch, and
which is making claims and judgements which are unreliable. This can’t
go on. Ofsted should be concerned about restoring enhanced
professionalism to school leaders and education staff but they are not.
The NEU believes inspections should be paused.
The Union is campaigning for Ofsted to be replaced. This
week a petition to Replace Ofsted will be delivered to the DFE with
over 40,000 signatures from across the profession. It’s time we urgently
prioritise the welfare and wellbeing of the leaders and staff working
so hard with children and young people in their community. We need a
system which is supportive, effective and fair.
The National Education Union (NEU) today launched a petition calling for the replacement of Ofsted.
The petition says:
Teachers
and leaders work under the shadow cast by Ofsted. An unfair and unreliable
inspectorate.
As Ofsted
approaches its 30-year anniversary, now is the right time to examine what
effect its inspections have on the quality of education that teachers and leaders
are able to provide and, in particular, for our most disadvantaged
pupils.
In
2017, the National Audit Office concluded that: "Ofsted does not know
whether its school inspections are having the intended impact: to raise the
standards of education and improve the quality of children's and young people's
lives."
Ofsted
has never published any research to prove that its inspections accurately
reflect the quality of education schools provide. Comprehensive, independent
analysis of Ofsted judgements show they discriminate against schools in
deprived areas – awarding 'outstanding' grades to four times more secondary
schools with better-off pupils than schools with students who are worse off. A
major research study showed that, even when schools in deprived areas are
making excellent value-added progress, they are still more likely to be given
poor Ofsted judgements.
Teachers
and leaders know that working in disadvantaged areas is likely to be harmful to
their careers because of the unfairness of Ofsted judgements. It is harder to
recruit and retain teachers in these schools. Poor children, who most need
qualified and experienced teachers if they are to fulfil their potential, are
least likely to get them.
School inspection must be fair.
It should be supportive. It should not be, as too many Ofsted inspections are,
punitive.
The stress and unsustainable workload generated by Ofsted is a major factor in
the appalling teacher retention rates that blight English education. Nearly 40
per cent of teachers leave the profession within ten years. No education system
can improve while it haemorrhages school leaders and teachers. We must create a
new approach to school and college evaluation which is effective and
fair.
We are
calling on the Government to:
Replace Ofsted with a school accountability
system which is supportive, effective and fair.
Work with teachers, leaders and other
stakeholders to establish a commission to learn how school accountability
is done in other high performing education nations.
Develop an accountability system which
commands the trust and confidence of education staff as well as parents
and voters.
Both the Green Party and the Liberal Democrats have policy to replace Ofsted in its current form.
