The former chief inspector of schools had to be protected by two bodyguards after being “threatened and intimidated” during his investigation into the influence of Islamists on Birmingham schools.
Sir Michael Wilshaw said he needed “two heavies” accompanying him at taxpayers’ expense after Ofsted became concerned for his safety and that of his family.
In an interview with The Sunday Times, he told how he was screamed at in a public meeting, threatened on social media and accused of being an Islamophobe as he led an inquiry into whether schools in the city were coming under Islamist influence in the so-called Trojan Horse plot.
Wilshaw felt “really bitter” about his treatment, which he is making public for the first time. He said that “political correctness at the Department for Education [DfE]” had stopped — and was still stopping — ministers effectively intervening in failing or illegal schools, including Islamic schools. Even though more than 291 illegal schools have been identified and 38 warning letters issued by inspectors, no owners have yet been prosecuted.
The former chief inspector said: “What was truly shocking was the level of personal intimidation. I was personally targeted. There was a real sense of threat.” He added that he and his inspectors “on the front line” did not feel they were adequately supported by the DfE or Birmingham city council, as Ofsted highlighted the problem of failing and illegal schools in “parallel communities” across England.
He warned that in some schools Muslim girls were still being strictly segregated from boys and that both boys and girls were at risk of being cut off from British values and of falling prey to “extremist thinking”.
Wilshaw decided to speak after the Court of Appeal ruled this month that Al-Hijrah in Birmingham, one of Britain’s first state-funded Muslim schools for four to 16-year-olds, was guilty of sex discrimination in separating girls and boys from the age of nine for lessons, breaks and school clubs. The school, which has a history of problems, was one of the original 25 schools investigated as part of the Trojan Horse affair.
The court ruling brought to an end a 14-month legal battle that started when Wilshaw visited Al-Hijrah and was “shocked by what I saw . . . Girls there were treated incredibly badly. I spoke to a drama teacher who did not want girls to join boys in putting on a play, even though it was screamingly obvious it would have been good for both.”
Within days, inspectors had visited the school and placed it in special measures. They found books in the library that said husbands were allowed to beat their wives — as long as they did not do so “harshly” — and could force them to have sex. Stereotyped views that a woman’s role was to cook, clean, care for children and provide love, while a man’s role was to work, were approved by the teachers.
The damning inspection report from the Ofsted inspectors should have led to the school being taken over, but instead the interim executive board (IEB) at Al-Hijrah — backed by Birmingham city council — went to court to try to stop the report being published and the school being named.
“I think it is really important that the story is told of Al-Hijrah. It is nearly two years since I put that school into special measures against a huge level of opposition,” said Wilshaw, who is writing a book about his years as head of Ofsted.
“Birmingham and the IEB should not have taken this to court. Because of this, we have lost almost 18 months in which Ofsted could have gone in and closed down more places that are illegally discriminating against girls with a segregation policy. Ofsted was in the front line on this. We put these schools into special measures and I would say to the DfE, ‘You are the registered body, do not allow these schools to reopen. I feel very bitter about it. It is outrageous.’”
The government eventually ordered the takeover of Al-Hijrah after a nine-year-old pupil died in March following an allergic reaction and inspectors issued one final, damning report. They found bullying, a chaotic playground, weak teaching, pupils who were not “sufficiently” safe and staff who did not know what to do in medical emergencies.
“My concern is that the DfE should not have allowed all this to happen. It has become a politically correct department although Ofsted has raised so many concerns, including about the proliferation of illegal schools. We were telling the DfE they had to be prosecuted. I think the DfE is at fault here. They have become politically correct in not wanting to confront these schools. In one inspection report we wrote that male and female governors were separated from each other by a Perspex screen. The DfE has to tackle these places.”
Councillor Brigid Jones, deputy leader of Birmingham council, said Wilshaw had himself been the head teacher of a boys’ school despite having concerns about gender segregation. “To criticise Al-Hijrah without questioning the role of single-sex schools is utter hypocrisy,” she added.
The DfE said: “We always support Ofsted, local authorities and the police in tackling unregistered schools, which are illegal and unsafe.
“We have established a joint team with Ofsted and given them additional resources to step up investigations into these schools and work with us to take whatever action is required, including closing the school or working with the police and Crown Prosecution Service as necessary.
“There are already clear powers in place for local authorities and the police to intervene where children are being put at risk or not receiving a suitable education. We expect them to use them and will support them to do so.”