The future of state-funded Steiner education has been thrown into doubt after a series of snap Ofsted inspections found that three of the four such schools set up under the Conservatives’ free schools programme were inadequate.

The four have been inspected in recent weeks – alongside private Steiner schools, a number of which have also been found to be inadequate – following an intervention by the education secretary, Damian Hinds, over concerns about safeguarding.

Ofsted reports for the Frome and Bristol Steiner academies are due to be published later this week and have been shared with parents. Copies seen by the Guardian reveal inspectors’ concerns about a wide range of issues including safeguarding, bullying and lack of support for children with special educational needs and disabilities.

The Frome report accuses leaders and governors of failing to provide pupils with a safe and effective education, due to a lack of understanding about the current statutory requirements.

'Inadequate' Steiner school to be taken over by academy chain Read more

It says the school failed to address serious issues that “put pupils at risk of harm”, that some behaviour management is “disproportionate and unsafe” and safeguarding is not effective. The inspection team, which visited in November, also raised concerns about a high number of exclusions, most of which were for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities.

The report for Bristol similarly details concerns about safeguarding. “Pupils are exposed to avoidable risk of harm,” it says. “Physical intervention is used unnecessarily.” It adds that bullying incidents are too frequent, and disadvantaged pupils and those with special educational needs make insufficient progress.

The damning assessments follow similar findings at the Exeter Steiner academy, another state-funded school, which is being transferred to a multi-academy trust after being rated by Ofsted as inadequate. The fourth state-funded Steiner school, in Hereford, was judged good.

The wave of inspections have prompted some parents to complain of a witch-hunt against Steiner schools. At Bristol, parents have been told that the governors have sent a legal letter to Ofsted challenging its report and the inspection process.

A different class: the expansion of Steiner schools Read more

The school refused to comment on the Ofsted report until publication, but the principal, Joss Hayes, said: “We take the judgments in the Ofsted inspection very seriously and have already acted on many of its findings. We have implemented additional training for all staff and are committed to ensuring that the school makes improvements in key areas.”

Frome is also planning to challenge its report and the inspection process. A spokesman for the trustees said: “When the government endorsed Steiner education in the state system and approved Steiner Academy Frome to open as a free school back in 2012, it was an acknowledgement of the importance of choice and creativity within the education system. Clearly this struck a chord for many families within the community, and continues to do so.”

Both schools will go into special measures and multi-academy trusts will be sought to take over. Parents fear that the Steiner ethos – the very reason they chose those schools for their children – will be lost in the process.

One Frome parent said the Ofsted report did not reflect her experience of the school in any way. “Our experience of the school has been very positive. We see how happy our children are every day and what great progress they are making,” she said. “I don’t have any concerns about safeguarding. I’m confident the school will make any changes they need to. For us the key thing is that the Steiner ethos and curriculum are not lost.”

Another Frome parent who rejected the judgment from Ofsted (“that’s just not our experience”) said he felt Steiner schools were facing a hostile environment. “They offered us the opportunity to have a school with a different approach. It’s not appropriate to now criticise the school for having a Steiner curriculum. That was the deal they made with us when the school started.”

The Bristol school also highlighted strong support from its parents: 98% agreed or strongly agreed that their children felt safe, 95% agreed or strongly agreed that their children were happy, 95% agreed or strongly agreed that their children were well taught, and 92% of parents said they would recommend the school to another parent.

Hinds called in November for additional scrutiny of Steiner schools by Ofsted after the chief inspector of schools in England, Amanda Spielman, raised concerns about safeguarding in the sector on the back of two earlier inspections.

In a letter to Spielman, Hinds said while there was evidence of effective safeguarding in some Steiner schools in both the state and independent sectors, the incidence of safeguarding issues in the independent Steiner schools appeared to be higher than average for the sector.

He commissioned Ofsted to carry out a series of inspections and report back to him at the end of the spring term. Meanwhile, the School Inspection Service – an independent organisation with expertise in Steiner methods, which has in the past inspected private Steiner schools – has now closed.

Asked to comment, an Ofsted spokesman said: “The inspection reports speak for themselves.”

A spokesperson for the Steiner Waldorf Schools Fellowship (SWSF), the membership organisation for all 31 Steiner schools and 14 independent early years settings in the UK and Ireland, said: “SWSF, which has operated in the UK since 1953, acknowledges the important role Ofsted fulfils, and welcomes honest, informed feedback to guide school improvement.

“Steiner Waldorf schools across the UK and Ireland are run independently from SWSF, each with their own governing body. Our role is to provide guidance and advice, so that schools are informed to meet regulatory requirements set out by the Department for Education and all other relevant authorities.”