Ofsted inspections will resume in schools in England this week after they were paused to ensure inspectors were given mental health awareness training.

Sir Martyn Oliver, Ofsted’s new chief inspector, delayed inspections at the start of term following the inquest into the suicide of headteacher Ruth Perry.

The watchdog has published new guidance for schools on how to request for an Ofsted inspection to be paused if staff show signs of distress.

Mrs Perry took her own life after an Ofsted report downgraded her Caversham Primary School in Reading from its highest rating to its lowest over safeguarding concerns.

In December, Ms Connor concluded the Ofsted inspection on November 15-16 in 2022 “likely contributed” to Mrs Perry’s death.

Since the inquest, the watchdog has made some changes and it has published a policy on how school inspections can be paused in exceptional circumstances – including where the headteacher requires support.

The pause would usually only be until the next day, but it could be up to five working days or even longer in “some very exceptional cases”.

The watchdog said that lead inspectors will talk through the changes with schools during inspection notification calls which will begin from Monday.

Ofsted is also considering separating safeguarding from the leadership and management grade as part of a formal review of where safeguarding fits within judgments.

We stand ready to work with the new chief inspector to bring about the changes desperately needed to help school leaders regain trust in the inspectorate, which has been so badly damaged in recent years

Paul Whiteman, general secretary of school leaders’ union NAHT, said: “The initial steps Ofsted has taken ahead of resuming inspections this week, are welcome – but NAHT believes it would have been better for inspections to be ungraded while more fundamental, far-reaching reform takes place, as recommended in our new report.

“That means not just enabling school leaders to raise concerns and pause inspections, but also to tackle the root causes of the intolerable pressure they pile upon school leaders and their staff, which can have such a dangerous impact on their wellbeing.

“It also means reforming inspections to ensure they provide a fairer, more reliable assessment of a schools’ strengths and weaknesses, including scrapping single-word judgements.

We will be watching carefully to see how the inspection system is working and gathering feedback from members about how it feels on the ground

“We stand ready to work with the new chief inspector to bring about the changes desperately needed to help school leaders regain trust in the inspectorate, which has been so badly damaged in recent years.”

Geoff Barton, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL), said: “We have been encouraged by the actions and tone set by the new chief inspector, but clearly the acid test is the experience of school and college leaders who get the call from Ofsted in the coming weeks.

“We will be watching carefully to see how the inspection system is working and gathering feedback from members about how it feels on the ground.”

Last week, Sir Martyn said: “As the new chief inspector, I am determined to do everything in my power to prevent such tragedies in the future.”

He added: “We must carry out our role in a way that is sensitive to the pressures faced by leaders and staff, without losing our focus on children and learners.”