Queen Emma Primary School in Cambridge rated ‘good’ after challenge to earlier Ofsted inspection

Queen Emma Primary School has been rated ‘good’ by Ofsted inspectors, after a previous inspection was withdrawn as unreliable following a legal challenge.

The Cambridge school said it was “delighted” by the reinspection, which chair of governors Dr Sean Lang described as a “glowing tribute to the staff, the children and the wider community”.

It came after the school challenged a report made following an Ofsted visit last October, when it was downgraded to “inadequate” due to supposed safeguarding and record-keeping issues. Ofsted acknowledged mistakes, removed the report and agreed to reinspect.

The new inspection report - which maintains the Gunhild Way school’s previous ‘good’ rating - describes the safeguarding arrangements as “effective, praises the “relevant and aspirational curriculum” and notes that “pupils enjoy being part of a diverse and welcoming community”, sharing “respectful and warm” relationships with staff.

Dr Lang said the earlier “flawed” report had come “close to destroying the Queens’ Federation” and said the process underlined the need for Ofsted reform.

“The whole school community at Queen Emma is delighted with the report from the June Ofsted inspection, which, we feel, accurately reflects the quality of the school,” he told the Cambridge Independent.

“This inspection was carried out professionally and supportively, by a team which included two inspectors of HMI rank. The October 2022 inspection team, whose report was the subject of legal challenge and was subsequently judged unreliable by Ofsted and withdrawn, did not include anyone of HMI status.

“This inspection report is a glowing tribute to the staff, the children and the wider community of Queen Emma School, and especially to the leadership of its executive headteacher, Mrs Sarah Jarman. It shows that Ofsted can carry out its functions professionally and supportively.

“It also fully vindicates the school’s legal challenge to the flawed October 2022 report. The school is very grateful for the support it received in its fight from the parents, the wider community and the local authority.

“The contrast in the experience and results of the two inspections is powerful evidence of the need for major reform at Ofsted. It is not right that Ofsted judgments should be reached so inconsistently; moreover, Ofsted should face the same scrutiny and be subject to the same level of accountability for its actions as the schools it inspects.

“In this case, a flawed report came close to destroying the Queens’ Federation, by forcing Queen Emma School into a multi-academy trust, which would have broken its close link with Queen Edith School and cost the Federation something in the region of £100,000 in job losses and other economy losses.

“This outcome could only be stopped by the school taking expensive legal action in the courts.”

But a further challenge to the previous report continues.

Dr Lang confirmed: “The school will also be lodging a complaint with the Parliamentary Ombudsman against the Information Commissioner’s Office, which has consistently supported Ofsted in its refusal to disclose the evidence base of the October 2022 inspection and has turned down the school’s complaint about the lead inspector’s removal of confidential information about individual children, even though this data breach is admitted by Ofsted.”

Anthony Browne, the MP for South Cambridgeshire, said he was “very pleased” to hear of the reinspection and suggested the case indicated how the inspection system needs reviewing.

He said: “I was happy to assist Queen Emma’s, meeting their headteachers and chair of governors, and by raising their case with the Department for Education and asking a number of related questions in Parliament. But full credit must go to the school’s leadership team. This revised ‘Good’ rating is a testament to their hard work and determination. They took on the daunting challenge of disputing the original report and raising concerns about the inspection process. This required a huge amount of detailed work on their part.

“When I visited Queen Emma earlier this year, I was deeply impressed by the commitment and enthusiasm of the school's leaders and staff. It is heartening to see their efforts vindicated by the new report, which highlights the school's effective safeguarding procedures and its focus on the pastoral needs of pupils.

“However, the fact that they had to go through the difficult process of submitting a formal complaint to Ofsted and even had to consider taking legal action, is indicative of an inspection system that needs to be be reviewed. Schools and teachers deserve to be treated fairly and justly from the outset.

“I will continue to work with schools across South Cambridgeshire. Every child deserves a high-quality education, and we must all work together to achieve this goal. The inspection system needs to robust, but fair.

“Once again, congratulations to Queen Emma, and I look forward to seeing the continued progress and success of the school.”