'Macho' school judgements criticised after head's death

A review prompted by the death of a head teacher has criticised a culture of "high-stakes accountability" that has led to the public condemnation of individuals.

Ruth Perry took her own life in January 2023 after an Ofsted inspection downgraded her school in Reading from "outstanding" to "inadequate".

A new independent review, commissioned by Reading Borough Council, recommended the authority support calls for Ofsted to scrap its one-word verdicts.

But it has been branded a "missed opportunity" by Mrs Perry’s sister who said the findings "went lightly" on the council's failings.

The review said the UK had a history of public reports "which by accident or design have led to the public excoriation of individuals".

"If Ruth's death tells us anything, it is that that practice must stop," it said.

The report was co-written by Steve Crocker, former director of children's services at Hampshire County Council, and Brian Pope, who was assistant director of education.

They spoke to Mrs Perry's colleagues and governors at Caversham Primary School, as well as other head teachers in Reading and council officers. The two also had several meetings with Mrs Perry's family.

The review concluded what had happened to Mrs Perry showed "the folly of the macho culture of high-stakes accountability".

Other issues raised included school governance, with volunteers on governing boards being responsible for line managing staff while their employer was the local authority.

Mr Pope described the arrangements as "a mess", with questions about who was responsible for what.

Mrs Perry's sister, Prof Julia Waters, welcomed the call for the council to campaign for the end of single-word judgements, but remained critical of much of the review.

"It goes very lightly on the local authority's part and their failings and the missed opportunities for things to have gone very differently," she said.

The family has questioned why there was no formal appeal against the Ofsted findings before they were made public.

Council officials told the review team that shortcomings with safeguarding and record checks meant any objections would probably have been dismissed.

BBC Education Editor Branwen Jeffreys says the report accepts communication with Mrs Perry’s family should have been better, but argues the council mainly did what it could in difficult circumstances.

So the criticism is mainly about the pressure on head teachers of an inspection system that sums up a school in one or two words.

Ofsted is taking far longer to consider what lessons it has to learn, to consult on changes and publish a review of events after the inspection of Caversham Primary School.

It will publish on all that later this summer. So what will change?

Ruth Perry's sister, Prof Waters, has received an invitation to meet the new Secretary of State for Education, Bridget Phillipson, who has insisted Labour would keep its pre-election promise to revise the inspection system.

"Change is needed - and it’s coming," Ms Phillipson said.

"We will reform Ofsted, replacing single-headline grades with a new report card system."

For too long, the welfare of staff had been an afterthought, she added.

Ofsted has described Mrs Perry's death as "a tragedy" and said, as a result, it had launched a "Big Listen consultation to help us build an Ofsted that is trusted by the professionals we inspect and regulate".

But two former senior inspectors have claimed the watchdog was facing an "existential crisis" and "piecemeal change" was not enough.

Frank Norris and Colin Richards set up "The Alternative Big Listen" to ask questions which, they say, Ofsted did not cover in its consultation, including if single-phrase judgements should be used to rate schools.

More than nine in 10 respondents, which totalled more than 1,300, said they were against the ratings, the inspectors said.

Their report concluded: "It is clear that Ofsted is facing an existential crisis - whether to engage in piecemeal change, to be fundamentally reformed or to be replaced altogether.

"Our findings imply that the first of these is no longer a viable option."

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