‘Investigate firms if staff kill themselves’

EMPLOYERS should be investigated if staff take their own life, academics have said, following a row over Ofsted’s role in the death of a headteacher.

The reforms would tackle an “invisible problem” with suicide and could prevent similar deaths in the future, its backers claimed.

Currently, suicides are not automatically referred to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), unlike other workrelated deaths and injuries.

Culpable employers could be fined or sent to prison if the proposals are taken up.

Writing in the British Medical Journal, Professors Sarah Waters and Martin Mckee called on the HSE to “investigate every workrelated suicide, in whichever sector they occur”.

It comes after the death of Ruth Perry, the headteacher who took her own life after her school received an “Inadequate” Ofsted grade.

Caversham Primary School was scored “Good” in every category except leadership and management, where it fell down over safeguarding failures. Ms Perry’s family claim this made her take her own life.

Professor Waters told The Daily Telegraph: “There are lots of cases of work-related suicides. Nothing is reported, nothing is investigated. In the Ruth Perry suicide, there were eight previous cases we know of a suicide linked to an Ofsted inspection.”

She called for a move towards the French system, where if there is a suggestion of a link between suicide and working conditions the employer has to prove they are not to blame.

In the France Telecom case in 2019, three executives were sent to prison after 19 employees took their own lives during a restructuring.

Chief executive Didier Lombard was found guilty of harassment, as was his former deputy and the human resources director. Each was given a one-year suspended sentence and a fine of €15,000 (£12,800).

Ofsted was approached for comment.