Yahoo News 130 schools have shown no improvement for 10 years, Ofsted reveals
Up to 130 schools have shown no improvement for the past decade, a major Ofsted report has found, as teachers are trapped in a narrative of “disadvantaged one-upmanship”.
Amanda Spielman, the education watchdog's chief inspector, warned that pupils from deprived backgrounds should not be used as an excuse for chronically under-achieving schools.
She spoke of her “frustration” with the culture that has emerged in some parts of the country, where schools appear to compete with each another on the number of underprivileged pupils they cater for.
It is not about areas in particular, it's schools that are still not able to raise their standards and raise their game
Angela Rayner, shadow education secretary
Speaking at the launch of Ofsted’s annual report, she said: “A few years ago, you couldn’t go into a school without being told the number of home languages spoken by pupils. “Now, it often seems that school leaders are constantly comparing notes about how high their pupil premium or SEND (special educational needs and/or disability) rates are.
“Even more depressing, we still hear things like ‘If you met my pupils’ parents, you’d understand why results are as they are’.”
Ofsted’s annual report found that around 80 primary schools and 50 secondary schools have not recorded a good inspection in the last 10 years despite receiving "considerable attention and investment".
The report noted the similar characteristics of these schools, such as a high staff turnover and unstable leadership. Many of these schools had higher than average proportions of white British pupils from low-income backgrounds, and pupils with special needs.
Around 80 per cent had high proportions of pupils from deprived areas, the report said. “It isn’t that there aren’t many children facing disadvantage and difficulties: they are there in all our schools, and more in some schools than others,” Ms Spielman said.
“But the narrative of disadvantage can become all-absorbing. Fixating on all the things holding schools back can distract us all from working on the things that take them forward. Schools with all ranges of children can and do succeed.”
Ofsted published the names of schools which have not been rated good in the past ten years, but was forced to apologised after several schools were mistakenly featured on the list. Ms Spielman also used her speech to criticise “well-meaning" school leaders who are turning to conservative religious institutions for advice.
Speaking about the difficulties posed by certain faith schools which resist teaching children about British values, she said: “We have a proud tradition in this country of respecting religious freedom.
“But there are occasions when multiculturalism can and does comes into tension with the expectation that students should be prepared for life in modern Britain.”
School Standards Minister Nick Gibb said that standards are rising in schools, but added that more must be done to tackle “consistent under-performance”.
He said: "We are targeting the areas that need the most support through our Opportunity Areas and by investing £280 million over the next two years to target resources at the schools most in need to improve school performance and deliver more good school places.”
Shadow education secretary Angela Rayner said schools were struggling with Government policies, which had created problems with teachers' pay and recruitment while driving up their workload.
