The leadership of the NAHT headteachers’ union is considering whether to ballot members for industrial action over Ofsted reforms, Schools Week has learned.
During an emergency online meeting on Tuesday, almost 2,000 NAHT members were asked if they would support exploring industrial options. Eighty-nine per cent voted yes.
The NAHT’s ruling executive committee will now consider whether to formally ballot members.
The union said members on the call, whose schools are estimated to educate 900,000 pupils between them, “aired serious worries about the planned new system”.
“They included concerns that the continued use of crude grading would perpetuate a high-stakes inspection regime. They said this would harm the wellbeing and mental health of themselves and their staff, while failing to offer parents a reliable gauge of schools’ effectiveness.”
Unions cannot take action directly against inspection reform, but can take it on the grounds of risk to their members’ health and safety or their wellbeing.
Ofsted ‘lost sight of original rationale’
The reforms were set in motion following the suicide in 2022 of headteacher Ruth Perry. In 2023, an inquest ruled an Ofsted inspection had contributed to her death.
The response of Ofsted’s chief inspector Sir Martyn Oliver has been to propose replacing the current system of four grades across up to six inspection areas with five grades across up to eight areas, with a further judgment for safeguarding.
The NAHT said members had “expressed concerns that Ofsted and the government appeared to have lost sight of the original rationale for the reforms – the tragic death of Ruth Perry”.
Paul Whiteman, NAHT’s general secretary, said: “This was the biggest turnout we have had at a meeting of our members since the pandemic, and the strength of feeling was palpable.
“We heard loud and clear that these plans simply do not have the support of the profession and should not go ahead in their current state. Rolling them out would pose clear risks to the health and wellbeing of school leaders and teachers.”
Legal challenge updated following wellbeing report
Schools Week understands the NAHT has also updated the terms of its legal challenge against the reforms, which was filed in the High Court earlier this year, following the publication of an independent review of the wellbeing impact of the proposals.
In the report, Sinead Mc Brearty, chief executive of the charity Education Support, warned new Ofsted report cards will create more anxiety for leaders with already “concerningly high” stress levels.
Whiteman added: “The worrying findings of Ofsted’s own independent wellbeing assessment should have been a red flag, but instead it has rushed ahead regardless, tinkering around the edges while failing to properly work through the recommendations of this assessment.
“We will now liaise with our national executive committee to consider next steps – but we are appealing once again to Ofsted and government to put the brakes on these hugely flawed plans.”
Ofsted was approached for comment.
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