Judicial review sought over closed Steiner school

Wynstones School near Gloucester closed in January

Parents of pupils at a Steiner school have lodged permission to seek a judicial review against Ofsted after a damning report led to it shutting.

Wynstones School near Gloucester closed in January after inspectors said children were "at risk of serious harm" and there were "fundamental failings".

A group contesting the findings said prominent barrister Michael Mansfield QC had agreed to take the case.

Ofsted said it would not comment due to ongoing judicial review proceedings.

The Wynstones Parents Initiative spokesman Arthur Edwards, who had two children at the school, said the Ofsted report "completely misrepresents the nature" of the school.

"It's a question of justice and a strength of feeling about what has happened," he said.

"It's really just completely unrecognisable to the children, the parents and teachers."

He added the group was seeking a judicial review because "there are very few remedies open to us to challenge Ofsted".

The group has launched a crowd funding campaign to pay for its legal case, and permission to seek a review has been lodged at the High Court.

The 212-pupil school in Whaddon, which taught ages three to 19, shut in January following the inspection report which found the school had a "toxic" culture.

An Ofsted spokesperson said "it would not be appropriate to comment" because judicial review proceedings had been issued.

The school's principal Paul Hougham, who was appointed in March, said the school "strongly disagrees with any reactive critique of Ofsted and the Department for Education (DfE) in general", and added it was focused on a "robust and credible action plan to reopen".