It’s taken more than five years for an Ofsted inspector to clear his name after being sacked for brushing water off a child’s head.
Rain was pouring when Andrew Hewston and a colleague were visiting a school for an inspection in October 2019.
When a group of schoolkids came in ‘soaking from the rain’, Hewston wiped water off a boy’s head and placed his hand on the child’s shoulder.
It was an act that ended his more than 20-year career – ‘with an unblemished record on safeguarding issues’ – at the body responsible for regulating schools in England.
Reported by the school, Hewston was hauled before a disciplinary panel and was sacked for gross misconduct. They said Hewston was unable to ‘maintain professional boundaries’.
Defending himself at the time, Mr Hewston said: ‘I feel that the gesture of care for a child and engagement, I still feel that it was not a crime… It does not fall within the definition of gross misconduct.’
After years of tribunals and appeals, Mr Hewston has finally won his case, with a court ruling that he was unfairly dismissed. The judge says it remains unclear what rule he allegedly broke.
Mr Hewston said: ‘At last I feel my ordeal is coming to an end. I’ve spent the past five and a half years dealing with the fallout of Ofsted’s decision.
‘It has been a very difficult time, but I am glad my name has been cleared and my exemplary record remains intact.’
An initial employment tribunal dismissed Mr Hewston’s claim for unfair dismissal when the case was heard in November 2021.
Two years later, an appeal tribunal overturned this decision and declared he had been unfairly dismissed.
But Ofsted tried to overturn this at the Court of Appeal, which rejected Ofsted’s appeal last October, unanimously ruling in Hewston’s favour.
Now, one of the judges has said: ‘It seems to me deeply regrettable that [Mr Hewston], who was an experienced inspector with an unblemished disciplinary record on safeguarding issues, should have been summarily dismissed for conduct which, on any reasonable appraisal, amounted to no more than a momentary and well-meaning lapse of professional judgment of a kind which he was most unlikely ever to repeat.’
A decision on compensation owed to Mr Hewston is due to be made by this Autumn.
Christina McAnea, general secretary of the Unison union, which brought the case to court on Mr Hewston’s behalf, said: ‘Andrew Hewston’s career was cruelly and unnecessarily cut short by Ofsted.
‘He never should have been sacked and Ofsted shouldn’t have wasted public money pursuing him needlessly through the courts.
‘Hopefully Andrew’s long ordeal is now finally drawing to a close. This case is a sobering reminder of how important it is for all employees to belong to a union.
‘No one knows when something might go wrong at work and lives can so easily be turned upside down by groundless accusations like those made by Ofsted against Andrew.
‘The union is delighted that it was able to step in, support Andrew and expose Ofsted’s dreadful behaviour. But it should never have come to this.’
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at [email protected].
For more stories like this, check our news page.
