School leaders oppose ‘inappropriate’ peerage for ex-Ofsted boss

School leaders have come together to “vehemently” oppose a proposed peerage for the former chief inspector of Ofsted, calling the move “inappropriate and insensitive” amid ongoing criticism of Ofsted’s framework under their tenure. Headrest and the Headteachers’ Roundtable have jointly written to the Appointments Commission opposing the Conservative Party recommendation that Amanda Spielman be awarded the peerage. 

In a joint letter, the bodies said the honour would “make clear the State’s desire to award a senior official responsible for creating, introducing and implementing a flawed inspection framework”, citing the framework’s contribution to the death of Ruth Perry in 2023.

Spielman led Ofsted from January 2017 and according to Headrest and the Headteachers’ Roundtable, during her leadership an “alarming and increasing” number of headteachers, principals, trustees, governors and other senior staff “voiced their deep concern at the way Ofsted inspections were conducted and how frequently their criticisms were rebuffed by the inspectorate”.

Headrest is a group that was created by former Headteachers and CEOs in October 2020 to offer personal and professional support to school leaders. In the period when Spielman was leading Ofsted, it experienced a “significant” rise in the level of support being requested after a school inspection. 

It also wrote directly to Ofsted “on numerous occasions” regarding the “unacceptable pressure” that Ofsted’s inspection framework was placing on schools, yet “on no occasion did Ofsted offer an indication that it was willing to meaningfully address the stress and strain it was causing”. In October 2021, Headrest alerted Ofsted to the type of tragedy that might occur. 

Following Perry’s death, a coroner’s ‘Prevention of future deaths report’ was highly critical and reached a verdict of “suicide, contributed to by an Ofsted inspection carried out in November 2022”. 

The Education Select Committee also produced a critical report which indicated that Ofsted “lost trust and credibility among many in the teaching profession”. 

In light of this, the joint letter said “we very much hope the Lords Appointment Committee will consider this in their deliberations”, adding “we thus believe the awarding of a peerage to Amanda Spielman would be inappropriate and insensitive”. 

The letter concluded that Spielman “created an inspection framework that led to unacceptably high levels of anxiety and stress” which “ultimately contributed to a distinguished headteacher taking her own life”.