The Ofsted report that condemned a headteacher who later killed herself trends now
An Ofsted report for a school where the headteacher killed herself after hearing it would be ranked 'inadequate' accused staff of failing to keep children safe.
Ruth Perry, 53, who led the Caversham Primary school in Reading, took her own life two months ago after being told it was being downgraded from 'outstanding'.
Her family say she described the inspection last November as the 'worst day of her life' and revealed the stress she was under while waiting for the report saying she was a 'shadow of her former self'.
The Ofsted report - which the school disputes and wants rewritten - praised many aspects of the school but raised a number of criticisms, including that staff were failing to keep children safe.
Inspectors identified a 'weak understanding of safeguarding requirements' among staff and suggested this could leave pupils at risk.
Ofsted inspectors made a number of criticisms in their report about Caversham Primary school in Reading
The report described pupils’ behaviour in lessons as 'exemplary' but said that during playtimes 'some older pupils make poor behaviour choices which go unnoticed and can put others at risk of harm'.
And while inspectors praised teachers for their 'determination to strengthen the quality of education', they suggested some teachers required 'further training and support' when it came to delivering the maths curriculum.
In addition, they suggested staff 'expectations' for pupils with special needs were not high enough and could lead to them underachieving.
In a letter to parents, Neil Walne, chair of governors, said he would be asking for a reinspection by Ofsted to highlight the school's hard work and improvement in areas that were criticised.
He added: 'All staff and governors are disappointed with the overall Ofsted rating received despite there being so many positives in the report.
'The inspection was carried out in November 2022. Ofsted delayed publication due to the death of our head teacher, Ruth Perry, in January.
Ruth Perry, 53, who led the Caversham Primary school, took her own life two months ago after being told it was being downgraded from 'outstanding'
In a letter to parents, Neil Walne, chair of governors, said he would be asking for a reinspection by Ofsted to highlight the school's hard work and improvement in areas that were criticised
'The school, led by Ruth, responded immediately after the inspection visit, to take action to resolve the issues raised.
'Following the heart-breaking loss of Ruth, we have continued her work to ensure that the school is an effective, safe and happy place for children to learn and achieve.
'When inspectors visited, they found that the school's safeguarding recording procedures did not meet the latest statutory guidance, which led to an 'Inadequate' rating for Leadership and Management.
'Whenever safeguarding is found to be ineffective, the overall judgement is automatically limited to inadequate, regardless of what else is found in the inspection.
'The word inadequate does not reflect or describe our vibrant school, and especially Ruth's excellent leadership and management over her many years as Headteacher.
'We wish to stress that during feedback to the school, inspectors clearly stated that children had not been put at harm.'
Ms Perry had been headteacher of Caversham Primary School (pictured) for more than a decade when Ofsted decided to downgrade it from Outstanding to Inadequate
Ms Perry's sister, Julia (pictured), told BBC South the headteacher was left a 'shadow of her former self' by the Ofsted inspection
Mr Walne said action had been taken to ensure the school was compliant in safeguarding and highlighted how the school was judged 'good' in all other areas of the inspection.
He said these included 'pupils enjoy coming to this warm and vibrant school and feel confident they will get the help they need if they have a worry or a problem'.
The letter ended with Mr Walne saying: 'A summary of our action plan will shortly be available on the school's website and we will be asking Ofsted to re-inspect our school as soon as possible.'
Ms Perry was a former pupil at the school and joined as deputy head in 2006 before
