OFSTED “does not work with schools to make improvements and needs major reforms,” teaching assistants represented by the GMB union stressed today.

A whopping 80 per cent of the workforce surveyed by the general union warned that England’s widely criticised schools inspectorate “does not have a good impact on schools, putting them under too much pressure.”

The public body is finding itself increasingly under the pump following the death of primary school headteacher Ruth Perry in January.

The educator, who ran Caversham Primary School in Berkshire, took her own life after being told by inspectors that her school would be downgraded to “inadequate,” the lowest of four one-word ratings, her family said. 

GMB member Luke Simcock told the union’s annual congress in Brighton that the poll, which also found that 87 per cent of teaching assistants had worked unpaid hours in preparation for an inspection, “backs up what members tell us every day.

He said: “Ofsted does not work with schools to make improvements — it makes simplistic judgements based on a very short time in a school when often they haven’t seen a true reflection of the good work carried out. 

“GMB believes that a replacement inspection service must be fair, supportive and work in collaboration with schools before and after inspections with an agreed programme for review.”

The inspectorate and the Department for Education claim that Ofsted is a “vital” tool for improving standards across primaries and secondaries, but the National Education Union (NEU) and NASUWT have demanded its abolition, describing the public body as the “snarling rottweiler of toxic government policy.”

Mr Simcock also warned that the strike-hit sector is “experiencing a funding crisis” as he urged Tory ministers to “take responsibility for properly funding our education system.”

The call came after educational charity NCFE warned last month that schools face a “crisis of support” without urgent action to improve wages and training for teaching assistants. 

It snapshot survey of 150 workers across Britain revealed that three-quarters have thought about leaving in the past year, while just one in 10 felt it was a “well-respected and valued role.”

Mr Simcock added: “Teaching assistants must receive fair pay for the work they do in addition to being recognised for their invaluable role in the education of our children, many of whom are the most vulnerable.”