Inspection scheme flawed says new leader

Steve Iredale, 56, the head of Athersley South Primary School, Barnsley, has promised to tackle the way the education watchdog Ofsted operates during his year as president of the National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT).

He claims their current inspection regime is flawed as reports are based largely on results rather than what happens inside the school.

He has also criticised the Government’s reliance on school league tables and exam results.

The Yorkshireman will be sworn in as president of NAHT at their annual conference in Harrogate this weekend.

He was born in York and educated at Archbishop Holgate’s Grammar. He qualified as a teacher in 1977, has taught in schools in Ealing, Huddersfield, Leeds and Barnsley and has been a head for more than 20 years.

Mr Iredale believes using league tables as a way of assessing school performance can drag down standards as it forces teachers to drill pupils to pass exams rather than develop individual potential.

Mr Iredale said: “As a profession we fully recognise the need to demonstrate a strong degree of public accountability to parents, school communities and other stakeholders. This has never been in doubt.

“We welcome this accountability but not the high stakes reductionism of the present system.

“Our professional responsibility has been eroded over the years by the completely misguided view that schools can be judged solely by raw data. This must end.”