Religious School Chief Named New Head of Education Inspectorate

A head of a religious educational institution has been named as the new chairperson of Ofsted, reportedly marking the first such occurrence.

Sir Hamid Patel will assume the temporary position until a replacement is identified for Dame Christine Ryan at the education oversight body.

He serves as the head of Star Academies Trust, overseeing approximately 40 primary and secondary schools, including several Islamic schools .

The organization additionally operates a Christian school along with several grammar schools, and many of its facilities have been recognized as exceptional by Ofsted.

Sir Hamid has served on the Ofsted board since 2019 and has headed Star Academies from its beginning in 2010. Before this, he held the position of headteacher. Tauheedul Islam Girls' High School in Blackburn.

While holding that position, the school was among the earliest in the nation to encourage students to wear a hijab outside of school.

The guidance instructed students to "read the Quran at least once a week" and "avoid bringing stationery with non-Islamic imagery, like photos of pop stars."

Criticised over cleric visit

The institution faced criticism due to a visit in 2010 from Sheikh Abdul Rahman al-Sudais, a Saudi Arabian clergyman who referred to Jews as "pigs."

Shaikh Sudais additionally sought for God to "bring an end" to the Jewish people, and regarding his visit, Sir Hamid informed The Sunday Times in 2013, "The girls were eager to meet this individual who has 5 million followers. They had come across him on YouTube. He remained for about 20 minutes."

These comments do not appear to have been made at the school.

A spokesman for the Campaign Against Anti-Semitism “We hope that in this new position, Hamid Patel will exhibit greater rigor compared to what was observed during his prior employment. British Jews have valid reasons to worry about having someone who hosted an individual alleged to call Jews 'pigs' overseeing the evaluation of school performances.”

The schools within the trust now welcome speakers representing Judaism, Sikhism, Hinduism, Christianity, and Islam.

Sir Hamid received knighthood in recognition of his exceptional contributions to education as part of the Queen’s Birthday Honours list in 2021 and participated in the King’s Coronation.

Those familiar with Sir Hamid know him as a fair board member who hasn't stood against efforts to impose stricter regulations on fundamentalist religious institutions.

‘A national disgrace’

Even though much of the trust’s schools have an Islamic character, he has also pledged to support white working-class boys.

"Only one out of every seven white working-class boys will achieve passing grades in both English and math at GCSE level. This is a national shame," he stated in 2020.

The National Secular Society stated: "Given the rising influence of religious extremism on educational institutions, we are prepared to back any chairperson who advocates for equality principles, irrespective of gender and religious convictions."

We strongly encourage Sir Hamid to guarantee that Ofsted continues to uphold the commitment of preventing religious beliefs from hindering educational standards or infringing upon children’s basic human rights to receive a well-rounded education.

Sir Martyn Oliver The Chief Inspector stated, "Sir Hamid Patel oversees some of the finest educational institutions in England. Recognized as an esteemed leader in both schools and academies trusts, he was honored with knighthood for his significant contributions to education. Having served over half a decade on the Ofsted Board, I am pleased that he will now advance into this new leadership role as the Secretary of State seeks out a permanent chairperson."

The appointment arises amid criticisms of Ofsted's approach to conducting school inspections in England. Sir Martyn has come forward to defend a new inspection methodology. policy on report cards on Friday.

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