The principal is taking legal action against Ofsted, a British school watchdog, fearing that the new testing system would be “even worse than before” and would likely be harmful to the mental health of school leaders.
The National Association of Principals said it has submitted a judicial review claim against Ofsted “on the potential impact of the testing proposal.”
Ofsted’s testing regime has been plagued by controversy since its 2023 death in 2023 after the suicide of principal Ruth Perry.
NAHT General Secretary Paul Whiteman said:
“It should not be forgotten that the catalyst for these changes was the tragic death of Ruth Perry and the widespread acceptance of the testing system exposing school leaders to unbearable pressures, but little is apparently considered about the impact on school leadership well-being in the creation of these plans and subsequent consultations.
“School leaders are deeply concerned that new report cards could lead to even worse systems than before, and have potentially disastrous effects on workloads, happiness and retention.
“We’ve been involved with Ofsted and tried to explain this, but so far these concerns have been on deaf ears. We have little option but to pursue this behavior.”
A spokesman for Ofsted said: “Supporting the mental health of the people we test is an important part of the development of the proposal and we have already heard positive feedback through testing.
“Our legal team responded robustly to NAHT. Their proposed claims are clearly unacceptable. If legal action is launched, we will resist and ask for costs.”
The Workers’ Election Manifesto vowed to abolish the single eye examination decision used to rank Perry’s primary school in Berkshire.
Earlier this week, Perry’s sister, Professor Julia Waters, urged the government to suspend the overhaul as it puts a “shame-based” system in place.
Waters told the BBC: “In an investigation into my sister’s death, the coroner warned that if only lip service was paid to learn from tragedy like Ruth’s death, there was a risk of future death.
“But when they began their consultations, neither Ofsted nor the Department of Education mentioned Ruth’s death. Instead, they proposed a new system, an old system that really had some tweaks and was not the radical reforms needed.”
Ofsted’s plans follow a green shade of “safe”, “strong” and “experimental” in each area, using a report card grading school with up to 10 areas, using a color-coded scale ranging from red “concern” to orange “care needs.”
The motion being discussed at the NAHT Annual Meeting in Harrogate directs the union to oppose change “to protect the mental and physical health and well-being of school leaders and staff.”