30 November 2023 , 12:57
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An Ofsted inspector "sneered" at teachers and "did not listen to them" during meetings, an inquest into the death of headteacher Ruth Perry heard today.
Ms Perry, 53, was found dead in January this year after being told that her school – Caversham Primary School in Reading, Berkshire – was being downgraded from "outstanding" to "inadequate", the lowest possible rating. Her inquest this week had heard how Ms Perry had the "worst day of her life" during an Ofsted inspection at the school, just two months before her death.
And today Berkshire Coroner’s Court heard one of the meetings Ms Perry had attended had been "unpleasant" - with teachers being “sneered” at and “interrupted”. Clare Jones-King, who was deputy head at Caversham at the time of the Ofsted inspection and is now acting co-headteacher, said she wasn't listened to in the meeting.
The headteacher was left "traumatised" by the Ofsted inspection (PA)Speaking at the inquest, Ms Jones-King said: "You expect a level of challenge in this kind of meeting, but the manner at points in this meeting was unpleasant. I was not being listened to. The voices of others were not being listened to. I was interrupted. There was a hand lifted up at one point to stop me speaking. There was a sneer. The lead inspector, Mr Derry, said very loudly to one of my responses, ‘I beg to differ’, which stopped the conversation in its tracks."
Ms Jones-King also said that Ms Perry "became increasingly upset" as the meeting progressed. She explained: “It was clear that she was very upset. Her makeup was smudged. She was red in the face. She was crying.” Ms Jones-King later described the Ofsted inspection as “lacking in empathy, kindness, and compassion.”
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The inquest in Reading also heard from Joanne Grover, who likewise held the position of deputy head at the time of the inspection and is now acting co-headteacher. Coroner Heidi Connor asked: “Did you feel you could raise issues during the inspection, in light of the manner in which Ruth was presenting?”
Following Ms Perry's death after the Ofsted inspection, other schools in the area showed solidarity to Ms Perry and her colleagues (SWNS)Ms Grover said: “We were very concerned about Ruth during the inspection by Ofsted, but we were also concerned that any action we took would further impact Ruth – or further impact the outcome of the inspection. I think in terms of raising issues, it is very difficult to do that when the person you are raising them with is at the centre of those issues.
“It is difficult, when you are a headteacher, or someone in the senior leadership team, to challenge, stop, or ask something when you are in the middle of an inspection. There is a power imbalance and that makes it very hard for people to act in a certain way.”
Ms Grover was then asked by the barrister for Ms Perry's family Hugh Southey: “Evidence by Ofsted suggests it is possible to pause an inspection. Were you aware of this?” Ms Grover said that she was not. She then said, when it came to her own experience of the inspection, that she had “never before been so stressed for such a sustained period of time.”
Ms Connor’s final question to both Ms Jones-King and Ms Grover was: “Do you feel there is a link between the Ofsted inspection and Ruth’s mental health deterioration and her death?” Ms Jones-King replied: “Yes, absolutely.” Ms Grover said: “I do, yes.”
The inquest previously heard evidence from Ms Perry’s husband Jonathan, who described his wife as “traumatised” by the inspection and said she had told him she would be “destroyed” if Caversham failed on safeguarding. It also heard from a chief at Ofsted, who claimed the watchdog had a duty to “minimise the stress and anxiety” of headteachers but “was not responsible” for their welfare. The hearing continues.