The Chief Inspectors Annual Report on Education Children Services and Skills 2006-2007.

17 October 2007

Commenting on the report Steve Sinnott General Secretary of the National Union of Teachers, Europe’s largest teaching union said:

“This is a professional report. Teachers will welcome the generally positive picture painted of schools by the Chief Inspector but she is right to highlight the impact of poverty on socially deprived youngsters.

“Schools have to contend with a society where social segregation is increasing. The obvious conclusion from the report is that Gordon Brown’s commitment to raising spending on state schools to private school levels must be realised and that it must focus initially on narrowing the gap between the haves and the have nots.

“The Chief Inspector’s concerns about citizenship and pupil behaviour in secondary schools highlight the pressures faced by secondary teachers. They teach demanding youngsters while coping with an overloaded curriculum and excessive testing. I hope that the new curriculum being introduced this year will give teachers the space and freedom to concentrate on all youngsters’ needs.

“I am concerned that the number of Academies inspected by Ofsted is too small to draw a conclusion about there impact rather than leave comment on such a high profile initiative to private consultants. Ofsted should itself conduct an evaluation of the Academies programme”.