The criticism sparked fury from trade unions who represent civil service staff, with Sir Keir accused of ‘scapegoating’ officials.

Dave Penman, general secretary of the FDA union, told the BBC’s Newsnight: ‘I don’t think the PM understands how damaging his words have been… I think they feel a sense of betrayal.

‘They were told that this was going to be e different government… and yet here we are five months in with that Trumpian language that’s getting used.’

Mr Penman added: ‘Why you would invoke that language when you’re talking about the civil service is just astonishing.

‘He could have spoken today about the incredible work the civil service does…

‘He didn’t do that, he talked about the tepid bath of managed decline.’

Steve Thomas, the deputy general secretary of Prospect, said that ‘blaming the civil service for failures in policy delivery is an easy thing to do and is wide of the mark’.

‘Reform may well be necessary, indeed civil service unions have been saying for years that we stand ready to work with the Government on how best to do that,’ he added.

‘That offer remains on the table. The first thing the Government can do to improve policy delivery is to recognise and make use of the specialist talent it has at its disposal.

‘This means reforming pay for specialists to avoid what until now could be termed the ‘unmanaged decline’ of various parts of the civil service and its agencies, which are unable to compete with the private sector resulting in a recruitment and retention crisis.’

In the foreword to a document laying out his plan, Sir Keir promised ‘a profound cultural shift away from a declinist mentality’ as well as honesty about the ‘trade-offs’ required to achieve his aims.

Tory leader Kemi Badenoch said the PM’s ’emergency reset’ showed Labour had not been ‘ready for government’ when it won the general election in July.

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Parents who WFH are letting their children skip school to be with them, Ofsted chief warns as he hits out at the rise of ‘flexi-schooling’

Parents who carried on working from home after the pandemic are letting their children shirk school to be with them, Ofsted has warned.

Sir Martyn Oliver, chief inspector of schools, said ‘societal norms have changed’, meaning parents are more willing to allow children to bunk off classes, especially on Fridays.

During Covid-19 lockdowns many parents got into the habit of working from home while supervising children’s remote lessons.

Sir Martyn said schools will have to work hard to ‘recover that position’ to stop the ‘concerning’ rise in parents condoning absence.

Unveiling his annual report, he also raised concerns over a new trend for ‘flexi-schooling’ – part-time schooling for children who cannot cope with school every day.

It comes after Labour pledged to tackle an epidemic of absence, which has persisted after the pandemic.

Sir Martyn said: ‘There has been a shift in attitudes since the pandemic lockdowns: the expectations of school attendance are now viewed more casually.

‘With working from home now firmly established for many parents, the old family routines have been loosened.’In an interview with Good Morning Britain, he explained how the pandemic trained parents to be able to cope with having children around them as they work.

Sir Martyn Oliver, Ofsted’s chief inspector, said ‘societal norms have changed’, meaning parents are more willing to allow children to bunk off classes, especially on Fridays

Parents who carried on working from home after the pandemic are letting their children shirk school to be with them, Ofsted has warned. Stock photo

He said: ‘Pre-pandemic, we used to notice as headteachers and teachers that if parents did work from home they would send their children in.

‘But now post-pandemic we see parents are working from home and sometimes they keep their children off with them.

‘We notice that because on Fridays attendance tends to go down more than any other day.

‘We went into a lockdown period where children were told not to go into school and were actually told to go onto their screens and use their mobile phones.

‘And then suddenly we go back and [say], ‘Now come off your screen’.’He later added in a press briefing: ‘I think societal norms have changed. We’ve got to do more now to recover that position because it is concerning.’In his wide-ranging report, Sir Martyn also talked about ‘flexi-schooling’, which he said is ‘on the rise’ across England.

This is where schools agree to allow children to attend only a few days a week and spend the rest at home, supposedly being supported to do work by parents.

But Ofsted is concerned that children may not be getting a good quality of education during the days at home, and said it should not be a ‘long-term solution’.

It is thought schools may be resorting to the arrangement to help those with special educational needs and disabilities (Send), behavioural problems or extreme anxiety.

Labour pledged to tackle an epidemic of absence, which has persisted after the pandemic

Ofsted’s annual report – which reflects on the state of education and children’s social care in England in the 2023/24 academic year – estimated that 34,000 children are on part-time school timetables.

Department for Education (DfE) guidance says part-time timetables should only be used in ‘very limited circumstances’ and should not be used to manage a child’s behaviour.

‘The spread of part-time timetables suggests they are becoming more readily used, which cannot be good,’ Sir Martyn warned.

Ofsted’s report highlighted that attendance issues have ‘deepened’ since the pandemic, and disadvantaged children are more likely to miss class.

Nearly a fifth – 19.2 per cent – of pupils in England were ‘persistently absent’ – missing at least 10 per cent of school sessions – in autumn and spring 2023/24, latest Government figures show.

This is higher than the pre-pandemic rate in the autumn and spring terms of 2018/19 – 10.5 per cent.