Number of failing primary schools rises by a quarter

By Richard Garner, Education Editor

Published: 01 February 2007

A dramatic rise in the number of failing schools has been revealed in figures published by Ofsted, the education standards watchdog.

The number of primary schools on Ofsted's list of those failing their inspections soared by 25 per cent last term to a total of 171, figures released yesterday revealed. Including secondary schools, the figures showed a 17 per cent increase with 243 schools on the watchdog's blacklist by Christmas - compared with just 208 at the start of the autumn 2006 term.

A leading academic said part of the blame lay with ministers treating headteachers "like football managers". They face the sack if the schools fail to improve.

Primary schools, in particular, were struggling to find staff ready to become headteachers because pay increases for stepping up from the classroom were less than in secondaries and teachers could see the stress their head was under.

Sarah Teather, the Liberal Democrat education spokeswoman, said: "The biggest obstacle to schools succeeding is they have had a central government which interferes in every detail of daily school life.

"Tony Blair will leave a legacy of schools struggling under the weight of excessive testing, targets and guidance."

Mick Brookes, general secretary of the National Association of Head Teachers, added: "Primary schools are certainly under the cosh now because we're beginning to gather more and more evidence that the support and guidance from local authorities is diminishing.

"Heads are having to take on more administrative issues which may well be distracting them from the core purpose of education and learning."

The Ofsted figures also showed a major rise in schools ordered to improve by inspectors after showing weaknesses. This figure went up from 312 to 367 last term with primary schools again responsible for the largest part of the rise.

A total of 79 primary schools in this category (which is one step short of being classified as failing) were given one year to make progress or face closure. Only 38 satisfied inspectors that they had done enough to come off the list of schools ordered to pull their socks up.

Professor Alan Smithers, of the University of Buckingham's Centre for Education and Employment, said disappointing national curriculum test results for 11-year-olds and the reluctance of classroom teachers to become heads were to blame for the rise.

"It is a worrying rise because of the large numbers of parents who have sons and daughters going to these schools," he said.

After initial improvement in test results in English and maths when Labour came to power these have stagnated in the past four years, with more than one in five children unable to read or add up properly by the time they leave primary school.

Professor Smithers said: "Heads are being held responsible for their schools in the way football managers are being held responsible for their team's performance. The aspiring head is likely to go for a top performing school in the same way as football managers want a high-flying club rather than the Macclesfields of this world.

"Ironically, by labelling these schools failures, Ofsted is denying them access to the kind of talent they need to be turned round."

Nick Gibb, the Conservatives' schools spokesman, said: "These schools are letting down thousands of children and blighting their opportunities in life."

Teachers' leaders argued that Ofsted had "moved the goalposts" with the new inspection regime introduced in 2005. In her first annual schools report, the chief schools inspector, Christine Gilbert, who was appointed in October last year, had insisted, "satisfactory was no longer satisfactory".

Mary Bousted, general secretary of the Association of Teachers and Lecturers, said: "It is not surprising the number of schools in special measures has increased."

John Illingworth, former primary school head: 'They rely too much on statistics'

John Illingworth knows all about the pressures of being a primary school head.

The 56-year-old was forced to take early retirement from his job as head of Bentinck Primary School in Nottingham as a result of a stress-related mental breakdown.

For Mr Illingworth, a former president of the National Union of Teachers, the new inspection regime introduced by Ofsted be one of the last straws. "The short, sharp two-day inspection regime relied much more heavily on statistics on school performance given by the head - rather than classroom observation of lessons," he said.

He added: "It wasn't only Ofsted. If you're head of a school in a tough, difficult area, always struggling to improve your position in the league tables is difficult. There are good reasons why these schools are struggling, but it is difficult to justify it with data."

Mr Illingworth is now putting his experience to good use by talking to teachers about how they can avoid stress and what action they can take if they succumb.