Ofsted's chief inspector has called on schools to consider "positive discrimination" when hiring new staff to better reflect the ethnic mix of pupils.

Speaking to the presenter Nick Ferrari on LBC Radio, Sir Michael Wilshaw said that headteachers presented with candidates demonstrating a similar level of skill and experience should opt for the individual who perhaps better reflects the diverse make-up of their school.

Sir Michael explained that there is a need for schools to hire staff that "fairly represent" their pupils.

"Every head teacher I have ever met wants the best person, best qualified person, best communicator in front of children and will put that as the first priority in appointing staff," he said during his talk with the radio presenter.

"I have always worked in inner-city environments with youngsters from different ethnic backgrounds and always felt it was important to try and get a staff mix in that sort of environment.

"If I had two people applying for a job of equal merit and I felt we needed to increase the number of teachers from ethnic minority backgrounds to the staff then I would apply positive discrimination - as long as the two people were of equal merit."

His comments about positive discrimination contradict the Department for Education's stance on the matter, arguing that schools are required to stick to and uphold equality legislation when employing teachers.

Nevertheless, acknowledging that more needs to be done to attract people from ethnic and minority backgrounds into the teaching profession – currently making up 12 per cent of the entire teaching workforce – the DfE says that schools should take "positive action" in this regard.