Two Islamic faith schools in Luton were given snap inspections to investigate if governors had too much control over day to day running, according to Ofsted chief Sir Michael Wilshaw.
Giving evidence to MPs on the education select committee this morning, Sir Michael said that across the country there was no evidence of extremism in pupils but there is “promotion of a culture which would have made children vulnerable to extremism because of disconnection to a wider society.”
Olive Tree Primary and Rabia Girls’ and Boys’ schools were both given inadequate ratings by inspectors, who were summonedto visit by the Department for Education.
When asked if there is evidence of governors running schools instead of setting policy, Sir Michael said: “We’re looking at schools where this might be happening, we’ve been looking at schools in Bradford and in Luton, and where we receive information that this might be happening elsewhere we are conducting unannounced inspections.
He added: “Where we see serious problems with governance it affects our decision and our judgment.”