Ofsted has announced changes to its inspection system following the death of a headteacher by suicide.
The education inspectorate will overhaul its complaints system and bring in faster checks for safeguarding failures, among other reforms.
Ruth Perry, the head of Caversham Primary School in Reading, Berkshire, took her own life earlier this year after the school was downgraded from ‘outstanding’ to the lowest possible rating.
The school was judged to be ‘good’ in every category except leadership and management, where it was judged as ‘inadequate’ due to ineffective safeguarding which gave it a low overall rating.
Professor Julia Waters, Ms Perry’s sister, said the changes are ‘a start’ but claimed they do not ‘adequately address the many problems that the system creates’.
‘I am disappointed that no mention is made about removing harmful and misleading single-word judgments,’ she added.
‘I can understand the need to provide clarity and simplicity for parents about an inspection, but too much is hidden or lost behind a headline judgement of just one or two words.’
She said some reforms were a ‘very welcome, much needed change’, such as the removal of a requirement for findings to stay confidential before they are published and additional funding for mental health support.
The death of Ms Perry saw pressure mount on Ofsted to reform after thousands signed petitions calling for a ‘supportive, effective and fair’ system.
But the changes have not gone as far as abolishing the one-word assessments, which were previously defended by education secretary Gillian Keegan as clear and easy to understand.
Paul Whiteman, general secretary for education leaders’ union NAHT, said: ‘It has taken far too long for the government and Ofsted to announce this relatively modest set of measures and school leaders remain immensely frustrated at the lack of urgency and ambition being shown.‘
NAHT continues to call for more fundamental reform of the inspection process.
‘While the Government insists on consigning schools to simplistic single word judgements, the system will remain fundamentally flawed and put unnecessary pressure on school leaders.’
Geoff Barton, the general secretary of ASCL union, said the changes are a ‘step in the right direction’ but the inspection system is ‘badly in need of much more significant reform’.
Ofsted chief inspector Amanda Spielman said the ‘whole school accountability system’ is built around single-word ratings.
She told BBC Breakfast: ‘The whole school accountability system is built around those judgments.
‘Government decides when to support schools, when to intervene based on those judgments so it is simply not up to me to frustrate that system by changing the model.
‘What we’re doing here are some things that we really think can allay the concerns that are felt by heads in the context of disappointing outcomes.’
The former education secretary told Times Radio: ‘I think that all of us recognise that the Ofsted process can be a testing one and all of us are aware of the particular individual case that has shone a light on inspection, but rigorous independent inspection of our schools has contributed to the improvement of education alongside the excellent work that teachers and headteachers do.’
Ms Keegan said: ‘Today’s announcements are a really important step. I have committed to continuing our work on improving the way we inspect our schools with Ofsted and the family of Ruth Perry following her tragic death.’
Shadow education secretary Bridget Phillipson said she welcomes the changes but added the Labour Party would go further and scrap single-word judgements.
