Ofsted has provided the college at the centre of the “cat pupil” allegations a clear invoice of health and fitness, with inspectors praising its “culture of kindness” as well as its dealing with of connection and sex schooling.

Ofsted inspected Rye Faculty in East Sussex immediately after a grievance by Kemi Badenoch, the minister for women of all ages and equalities. There experienced been media protection of a movie of pupils arguing with a trainer around gender and id, with just one pupil appearing to assert that a pupil discovered as a cat.

The new report from the training watchdog – right after its snap inspection last month – has exonerated the school, expressing: “The problems relating to the teaching of [relationship, health and sex education] that led to this inspection do not mirror pupils’ normal activities at faculty.”

Despite the fact that the report does not instantly handle the argument between the teacher and pupils, or the question of no matter whether any pupils establish as animals, it praises the quality of staff coaching and instructing of romance and intercourse schooling “in a sensitive and impartial way”.

Ofsted’s direct inspector, Matthew Haynes, mentioned in the report: “Pupils are taught how to discussion contentious subjects. Most pupils study to do so respectfully and maturely.

“For illustration, pupils are obvious that there are contested sights about gender, sexuality and no matter whether these are assigned at delivery. Just one pupil summed up the sights of a lot of when he stated, ‘We are taught to consider for ourselves, but also to respect everybody’s place of check out.’”

The report also observed the majority of dad and mom have been “impressed” with how the college handles intricate troubles. “Reflecting the views of several other moms and dads, a single commented, ‘Rye College or university is a fantastic college. My youngster is incredibly pleased, feels secure and is supported by teachers,’” the report notes.

A spokesperson for Rye College explained: “We welcomed Ofsted’s visit as we had been self-confident in what they would uncover and in the conclusions they would arrive at.

“We are delighted that the letter obviously states that the celebration that led to the inspection ‘[does] not reflect pupils’ ordinary working experience at school’. We stay committed to presenting our neighborhood an inclusive instruction, in line with best exercise that prepares our young men and women for the entire world in which we stay.”

The controversy commenced when a student secretly recorded the discussion involving year 8 pupils and posted an excerpt to TikTok. In the transient clip, a pupil describes the thought of a further pupil pinpointing as a cow or cat as “crazy” and extends her remarks to consist of biological sex and gender as binary.

A instructor is read telling the scholar that their sights had been “despicable” and indicating: “If you don’t like it, you require to go to a diverse university.”

The online video provoked a string of outlandish media reports, such as one that claimed educational institutions had been “taking kids who recognize as horses out cantering and feeding strips of meat to these who consider themselves to be dinosaurs”.

Katharine Birbalsingh, a head trainer and the government’s former social mobility tsar, mentioned she knew of a private school in England the place “a bunch of women discover as cats”.

Rye College has reported no boy or girl at the university “identifies as a cat or any other animal”, but apologised to mother and father for the dealing with of the unique discussion.

Geoff Barton, the common secretary of the Affiliation of University and College Leaders, reported: “There was a substantial sum of political and media noise about the incident which led to this inspection and which we can now see quite clearly from the results of this report was blown out of all proportion.

“The most ridiculous factor of that media and political sound was the suggestion that small children were being pinpointing as animals in educational facilities on a popular basis – a thing we have never ever listened to of and never ever experienced reported to us by any faculty or school leader.

“We would urge politicians in distinct to create the specifics right before leaping on stories in the media and keep in mind that there are genuine people – college students, staff members, and dad and mom – who are deeply impacted by instantly discovering on their own in the eye of a created storm.”