Winchester sanctioned after resignation of head

Winchester College, which regularly produces some of the best A-level results in the country, has been suspended from the Headmasters and Headmistresses Conference, the organisation that represents Britain's leading independent schools.

The rarely used sanction follows the resignation of Winchester's headmaster, Nick Tate, also the former head of The Qualifications and Curriculum Authority, the Government's exams watchdog.

The sanction is used only if a school fails to meet required academic standards or if the HMC believes a head has been unfairly treated by school governors. With Winchester's academic record beyond question, the move is being interpreted as a message to governors that they did not take enough action to support the head.

Mr Tate resigned from his post this year, citing family reasons. One son, Oliver, a former pupil at the school, had been reprimanded for smoking cannabis and had also set fire to a car belonging to the journalist Martin Bashir, whose son had been a friend.

HMC said its decision was based on "issues of governance and management'' at the school. But this could refer to unease over staff comments about Mr Tate's son, or at the school's response to reforms he wanted to introduce.

Membership of the organisation is barred to the new head, Tommy Cookson, a retired headmaster of Sevenoaks School expected to act as a stand-in head until next year. Suspension has been used twice in 10 years. Cheltenham College and Bristol Cathedral School were temporarily suspended after clashes between governors and heads.