Heads could strike after ruling on inspections

A UNION will consult its members on strike action after it lost a bid to challenge Ofsted’s new inspection plans in court.

The National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT) claimed the education watchdog failed to adequately consult on its colour-coded report card system, which is to come into force on Monday.

Ofsted scrapped single-word judgements for schools following the death of Ruth Perry, who was headteacher of Caversham Primary School.

She took her own life in January 2023 after an Ofsted inspection downgraded her school from “outstanding” to “inadequate” due to concerns over safeguarding.

Sir Martyn Oliver, Ofsted’s chief inspector said after the hearing that the changes to inspections will be “better for parents” and are “fair” to schools.

The NAHT, which was supported by two other teachers’ unions, had its legal action thrown out by the High Court on Monday.

But the union said the failure of its legal challenge did not detract from its concerns about the potential impact of Ofsted’s new system on the mental health and wellbeing of school leaders and staff.

General secretary Paul Whiteman said the union will consult its members on industrial action.

Ofsted’s new inspection framework is based on a “traffic light system” which will grade schools on several areas of school life, as well as on safeguarding.

The launch was pushed back to accommodate a consultation on the proposals, which included
6,500 responses.

The NAHT told the hearing that it wanted a narrative-only approach to inspections, similar to the way it works in Wales.

Estyn, the Welsh school inspectorate, has removed judgements such as “excellent” and “good” with reports providing a detailed summary of key findings which highlight a school’s strengths and areas for improvement instead.

The NAHT also claimed that wellbeing was not taken into account in Ofsted’s development of its plans.

But Ofsted’s barrister Sir James Eadie told the court wellbeing issues were “absolutely in Ofsted’s eyeline”.

He said that the new framework, with its altered grading system, also had the “overwhelming backing” of parents.