Ofsted chief inspector Amanda Spielman “overstepped the mark” in her comments about pupils wearing the hijab, according to a leading teaching union, which plans to issue new guidance on sensitive uniform issues.
The executive of the National Union of Teachers section of the National Education Union will this weekend seek to pass a motion condemning comments by Spielman, which it claims “go beyond the remit of Ofsted”. It will also will seek to advise schools on the best course of action to take when developing a uniform policy or dress code.
Spielman was criticised last year when she announced plans to have inspectors ask pupils why they were wearing the hijab during school visits. The situation was exacerbated when Spielman backed a headteacher at the centre of a row over her decision to ban young girls from wearing the hijab.
The NUT today warned that Spielman’s comments have “ramifications beyond the school gates” and could lead to “further marginalisation of, and increased physical and verbal attacks on Muslim women and girls”. [Schools Week] Read more
