Ofsted “continues” to put staff wellbeing at the “forefront of its thinking”, the inspectorate has claimed today.
The comment was included in an update about pledges made as part of the Education Staff Wellbeing Charter.
But Daniel Kebede, general secretary of the National Education Union, said the comments showed Ofsted was “out of touch” with the profession, and needed to do “much more” to address unnecessary workload and stress.
The inspectorate has faced heavy criticism over the past year following the death of headteacher Ruth Perry.
Mr Kebede said today: “Ofsted’s progress update does not recognise that it is the cause of additional and unnecessary workload and stress, instead claiming they will improve wellbeing by inspecting it.
“This is upside-down thinking and shows how out of touch Ofsted is with the profession,” he added.
The charter set out joint commitments from the Department of Education, Ofsted and schools and colleges on actions they would take to promote and protect the wellbeing of staff.
Ofsted also said that it would continue to ensure that “any changes we make to the way we inspect considers the impact on wellbeing and seeks to improve it wherever possible”.
But the school inspectorate’s actions have “rarely matched” its promise to prioritise staff wellbeing, Geoff Barton, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, warned.
Sir Martyn Oliver took over the helm as chief inspector this month, announcing a temporary pause on inspections until 22 January, while all lead inspectors received mental health awareness training.
Mr Barton said: “We have been encouraged that the new chief inspector, Sir Martyn Oliver, is giving serious attention to the mental health of school and college leaders.”
Wellbeing “simply must” be prioritised when inspections resume, he added.
Commenting on the charter update, Paul Whiteman, general secretary of the NAHT, said the current approach to inspection was “one of the most important factors driving poor wellbeing among school leaders”.
“The new chief inspector has indicated that he wants to do more to address this, and that work will be absolutely critical. We must start addressing the underlying causes of poor wellbeing rather than just focusing on the symptoms,” he said.
In December, unions jointly called for an “immediate pause” to inspections following a coroner’s finding that an Ofsted inspection likely contributed to headteacher Ms Perry’s death.
Last year, her family said that she took her own life after an Ofsted report downgraded her school, Caversham Primary in Reading, from the watchdog’s highest rating to its lowest over safeguarding concerns.
Ofsted has been approached for comment.
