Ofsted Chief Slates Birmingham's "Awful" Schools
22 December 2016, 10:23
The Chief Inspector of Schools has told LBC that Birmingham's schools are "awful" and the government needs to act now.
Sir Michael Wilshaw had some very strong words for the government for failing to act on the education system in the west Midlands' city.
Speaking to Nick Ferrari on LBC, the Ofsted chief said: "This is the second city in the land. It's one of the largest cities in Europe. It should be matching London for its educational success, particularly with a large Asian heritage school population. It's a key stage 2 - its primary school scores - are awful. They should be matching London.
"Birmingham's Children Services have failed for 10 years. The most vulnerable children in Birmingham have been let down year after year after year.
"And I'm quite clear about this, unless the government acts to do something about corporate governance in Birmingham, this sorry state of affairs will continue.
"I feel very strongly about this. This is the second city in the land and the children and families in Birmingham deserve a significantly better."
On his final day as head of Ofsted, Sir Michael was forced to defend his reports into the Trojan Horse scandal in Birmingham, after a caller asked why he didn't mention Islam in his report.
