A coroner has determined that a “harsh and intimidating” Ofsted evaluation, conducted inflexibly by inadequately trained personnel, played a role in the suicide of headteacher Ruth Perry.
Heidi Connor, the chief medical examiner for Berkshire, stated that Perry’s suicide was influenced by an Ofsted evaluation conducted in November 2022 at the school where she was in charge. Connor officially determined that “due to and after this evaluation, Ruth’s psychological well-being declined significantly” before she committed suicide on January 8, 2023.
According to the coroner, all witnesses who were acquainted with Ruth stated that the Ofsted inspection played a significant role in her passing. The evidence supports this conclusion and it is evident that Ruth’s mental health decline and eventual death were most likely influenced by the inspection.
Julia Waters, on behalf of the family, expressed concern about the “cruel inhumanity” of Ofsted inspections during the inquest. She stated that there is a lack of trust in Ofsted’s current leadership and management to implement necessary changes to their system and culture. These reforms are crucial and must be addressed promptly.
She stated, “I am prepared to hold Ofsted accountable and will persist in meeting with the education secretary and the future chief inspector, Martyn Oliver, to ensure significant changes are implemented.”
Perry, who had been the headteacher at Caversham primary school in Reading for 13 years during the inspection, was well-liked by families in the area. According to colleagues and family, she struggled with severe distress during meetings with Ofsted inspectors and was occasionally unable to communicate.
The inspectors found the school’s safeguarding measures to be ineffective, resulting in an overall inadequate grade.
The coroner determined that certain aspects of the Ofsted evaluation were carried out in a manner that did not adhere to the principles of fairness, respect, and sensitivity outlined in Ofsted’s code of conduct.
The behavior was occasionally impolite and threatening. This may have impacted Ruth’s capability to handle the inspection thoroughly. In my opinion, some aspects of the inspection were more about doing something “to” the school rather than working together with them.
Connor pointed out that Ofsted inspectors are not adequately trained or guided on how their inspections can affect the mental health and overall well-being of school staff. He also found that, at the time, Ofsted did not have any policies in place to pause or suspend inspections in situations where staff were experiencing distress.
Connor stated that Ofsted has previously halted inspections due to headteacher stress, as confirmed under oath. However, no direct proof of this was presented and it raises questions about the severity of the distress in those situations. It is evident that there is a lack of guidance or training in addressing this issue.
The examiner observed that the care of the employees being examined was mentioned only twice in Ofsted’s instructional materials: briefly in Ofsted’s ethical guidelines, and as one of six topics on a slide that was supposed to be covered in two minutes during training.
She determined that the guidance from Ofsted was not helpful and lacked specific information about professional standards.
The coroner stated that a large portion of Perry’s decline in mental health was due to the strict confidentiality rules imposed by Ofsted. These rules prevented Perry from discussing the inspection and resulting downgrade of her school until the official report was released.
Connor stated that during Ruth’s visit to Prospect Park hospital due to her suicidal thoughts, she was unable to discuss the inspection or reveal the name of the school with mental health professionals. Due to the need for confidentiality and the limited time for publication, Ruth felt compelled to handle this situation on her own.
In March, Ofsted’s website published a report on Caversham primary, which deemed the school to be good in all categories except for safeguarding. This area was deemed ineffective, resulting in an overall inadequate grade. However, after a reinspection in June, the school’s overall grade was upgraded to good.
Paul Whiteman, the general secretary of the National Association of Head Teachers, stated that the coroner’s ruling was a strong condemnation of the negative impact caused by Ofsted’s evaluations.
Whiteman expressed that this unfortunate event should have been prevented and immediate action is now necessary. However, Ofsted and the government have disregarded the important lessons to be learned from this case and have not properly considered the warnings or experiences of educators. It is crucial for them to collaborate with us in implementing necessary changes.
The coroner noted the Perry family’s lack of legal aid and expressed concern, stating that they would have been at a major disadvantage without proper legal representation.
The family was denied legal aid, so they gathered over £50,000 through crowdfunding. Waters expressed gratitude to the donors and highlighted the unfairness of the legal aid system. It fails to assist a grieving family, despite the fact that they are up against three public entities whose legal expenses are covered by taxpayers.
Source: theguardian.com
