Head Teachers Move From No Confidence to Strike Ballots
Having passed a motion of no confidence in Ofsted’s leadership on Friday, the Association of School and College Leaders now says it will seek an indicative ballot on industrial action if change is not forthcoming. The National Association of Head Teachers will consider strike action at a leadership meeting next week.
The number that gives the unions their ground comes from the inspectorate itself: 88% of schools reported that recent inspections had negatively affected staff wellbeing, in a survey Ofsted published. Pepe Di’Iasio of the ASCL says repeated attempts to resolve concerns through negotiation “have hit a brick wall” and that the system “is not fit for purpose. It is an overbearing mess and urgently needs to be reviewed.” Paul Whiteman of the NAHT is explicit about next week: “Our executive committee will be meeting at the end of next week… We fully expect that debate to include the option of pursuing industrial action.” The ASCL motion names the consequence it fears, which is not disruption but attrition: that “the disproportionate stress and anxiety exerted by the inspection system will lead to school leaders deciding to leave their posts”. The education secretary Lucy Powell has already said she wants Ofsted to go back to the drawing board on the framework introduced last year. The inspectorate acknowledges that workload and wellbeing “remain a challenge”. All of this sits in the shadow of Ruth Perry, the Reading head teacher whose death a coroner found in 2023 had been contributed to by an inspection, and whose case produced the system now facing its second no-confidence vote in a month.