Union boss condemns politicians for treating schools as ‘a sideline’

Paul Whiteman, general secretary of the NAHT union, will also describe the accountability system for schools as a ‘diseased root’.

Paul Whiteman has criticised the Government (PA) (PA Archive)

Politicians’ treatment of schools as a “sideline” has had a “pernicious” effect on the education system, a union boss will say.

Paul Whiteman, general secretary of the National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT), will call on all political parties to make education a priority in their manifestos ahead of the general election.

In a speech to school leaders on Friday, Mr Whiteman will call for urgent Ofsted reform and describe the accountability system as a “diseased root which creates further havoc” in schools.

At the union’s annual conference in Newport in south Wales, Mr Whiteman will urge Education Secretary Gillian Keegan to be the “profession’s champion” at the Cabinet table and make the case for children.

The accountability system, in its current form, resembles a diseased root which creates further havoc across the school ecosystem

Paul Whiteman, general secretary of the NAHT

He will say: “For the best part of 15 years now, schools have been treated as though they’re a sideline, a niche portfolio to be considered once all populist talk on immigration, polarised positions on trans rights, and removing the right to protest have been exhausted.

“The effect of such neglect on our schools has been pernicious.

“If political parties think the electorate haven’t noticed, or simply don’t care, I strongly suspect they’re all going to have a nasty shock during the election campaign.”

The NAHT leader will call on politicians to raise their game “out of the gutter of smears, misdirection, and the creation of division to simply win a vote”.

Sir Martyn Oliver, chief inspector of Ofsted, is due to address the conference on Saturday morning.

Last week, the Department for Education (DfE) said it had no plans to remove single-phrase Ofsted judgments despite repeated calls for them to be scrapped.

In its response to an Education Select Committee inquiry on Ofsted, the DfE said its priority was to look for ways to improve the inspection system rather than “developing an alternative to it”.

We will continue to work with Ofsted to further improve the inspections system - informed by Sir Martyn Oliver’s Big Listen exercise

Department for Education spokesperson

Mr Whiteman will tell hundreds of school leaders that the response “left a chill in the air”.

He will say: “The accountability system, in its current form, resembles a diseased root which creates further havoc across the school ecosystem.

“From the monumental increases in workload, to never-ending cycles of monitoring and accountability, and, most importantly to the detriment of our members and their teams’ wellbeing and mental health.

“It does nothing for children or their families either, despite the rhetoric. Accountability and inspection need to be reimagined in their entirety.”

Ofsted has come under greater scrutiny in the past year following the death of headteacher Ruth Perry.

Mrs Perry took her own life after an Ofsted report downgraded her Caversham Primary School in Reading from its highest rating, “outstanding”, to its lowest rating, “inadequate”, over safeguarding concerns.

In December, a coroner concluded the Ofsted inspection on November 15 and 16 in 2022 “contributed” to Mrs Perry’s death.

In March, Sir Martyn launched the watchdog’s Big Listen public consultation – which closes at the end of this month – to seek views about the inspectorate.

A DfE spokesperson said: “Headteachers across the country are doing an excellent job day in day out ensuring pupils have a world class education, and on average they are rightly among the highest 10% of earners in the country.

“At secondary school, heads can receive a total package of well over £130,000 including pension contributions.

“Thanks to our reforms, 90% of schools are now rated Good or Outstanding, up from just 68% in 2010.

“We will continue to work with Ofsted to further improve the inspections system – informed by Sir Martyn Oliver’s Big Listen exercise.”