I blocked my Headteacher on WhatsApp this week

I would strongly suggest this isn't the career for you.

There's nothing wrong with having boundaries, but if stuff needs doing by a set time/date for students benefit, it needs doing.
I know how overwhelming the last few weeks of summer term can be - isn't therefore very possible that you were told about this deadline and forgot/failed to diarise it?

I'm a student welfare officer - my salary is probably 2/3 of a teacher's and I'm term time only. I've still allocated time to go in over the holidays because the welfare of the kids and my professional reputation are important to me, even though I'm only going back for a couple of weeks before moving to a new job outside of education.

Quite apart from anything else I don't know how you can relax knowing that stuff is outstanding.

I was a teacher - and I would have definitely gone in and done it - for the child, not the head.

Blocking was unprofessional.

Teachers do what they do FOR the children, you've decided you aren't prepared to do what was missed, which is your prerogative, but it is indication that you aren't really cut out for the profession.

I simply can't imagine reacting as you have, or leaving a child in the lurch. Roll my eyes? Yes. Be pissed at myself for missing something important? Of course. Chunter about it? Absolutely! Go in and do it? 100%.

As a HoD were you not on the leadership scale rather than main pay scale (M1-6)? In which case directed hours don't apply.

You have 5 weeks ahead. You could easily do this paperwork. How long would it take? A few hours max, given that you know the student?

I would definitely do this. In fact I am doing a couple of hours tomorrow marking some stuff that is easier for me to pick up than a colleague. This is for a third party (a student) who submitted the docs late and is leaving before I get back from my annual leave. And I only get 5 weeks holiday a year (and used to be a teacher).

Same and 100%. The ECT should have been given support to complete this paperwork in her ECT time and the fact that she wasn’t reflects poorly on the SLT.

@Mushypeasandchipstogo That's incorrect. No teacher can be directed to work over the holidays.
How long ago did you leave teaching?

These are two separate issues:

1. your work place was unsupportive and has potentially driven you away from the career and understandably you resent being chased by the head when no support was given during term time.

2. there is an incomplete SEND document and that impacts the child, their family and their future.

Don't harm the child because the school have harmed you.

Do the paperwork, ask for guidance and walk away knowing you didn’t do to the student what the school has tried to do to you.

I would contact your union for advice.

I think teaching does rely a lot on goodwill. Someone has dropped the ball in not checking this has been done but if it's something you could manage then I would do it for the sake of the child.
People do talk, depending on where you want to teach if you have limited amounts of schools then it's not only staff that might make remarks but also parents talking to parents at other schools that might get you off on a bad foot. If you got a long term supply one parent might say to a friend about their child having a temp teacher, next thing you know is they say oh my child had them, didn't do their job properly (remember the school might now blame you come September if the parent is angry it hasn't been done) and next thing you know the rumours amongst parents are that Mrs Smith wasn't very good and to keep an eye on if she follows up on things.
Teaching is brutal so you are wise to reconsider it.

@FunPartyIdeas . I retired early from teaching after teaching secondary school level in England for 30 years ! (10 years as a HoD)
Secondary school teachers are certainly expected to do some work during the summer holidays and, as a HoD, I was required to be in school for results days.

@middleagedandinarageAre you a teacher?

I think the problem here is the blocking

I think you should have replied politely explaining why it can’t be done. But blocking is bad. And she will know it’s a block

Go to GP and get signed off with WRS for the next 4 weeks. And then reassess whether teaching is for you. You will need to use your HT for a reference whether you work in supply or your next role whatever that is, so keep that in mind if you do decide to take this route.

@Crusttt My gut feeling tells me those vociferously shouting at OP to "Just get it done FFS!" and "You are a crap teacher if you don't" are those who have no direct experience of teaching whatsoever.
The demands of the job (above and beyond this example) are now ridiculous and my life (and that of my family) has become immeasurably better since I left primary teaching after 22 years.

This isn’t some insignificant piece of paper that’s easily managed without, it’s something to help a child with SEND. How would you feel if it were your child ?

Jesus, would it of killed you just to nip into school and finish the paperwork that you only need to do in the holidays because you didn't do it when you were meant to! This sums up the countrys attitude to work these days and why we're in such a bloody mess!

So, there's children involved that you're planning to leave high & dry? No matter what axe you have to grind with the system, do what you should be doing. Your conscience & contractural obligations will be clear then. Good luck for your future.

No, a HT cannot ask you to work during the holidays (unless you're SLT/HoD/HOY of course, who will have different contracts to factor in needing to be present for exam results, extra inset days, etc). Holidays are not included in directed time.

Teachers can - and mostly, do - choose to get planning and marking done over the holidays, because it helps us manage our workload during the rest of the year. But our HTs can't ask or demand that we do this. The union would have a field day if they tried!

I can’t imagine what SEND paperwork an ECT, not the Sendco or Head of department, needs to do that couldn’t be completed by someone else. It does sound like you have been unsupported in that school and the head should also be concerned that you haven’t had the additional meetings/ support to which you were entitled. For all they know you could be away and unable to get into
school as it’s holiday time. I would probably unblock but ignore the message, certainly until September - it’s not really appropriate for the HT to contact you via WhatsApp anyway.

I'm a primary SENCO and think this is completely unreasonable, as are most of the responses on this thread. Whilst it might be easiest for you to fill certain forms in, you will not be the only person who can do so. What if you were signed off sick? They would have to work round it then. If it was so vital, it should have been checked in terms time. Your union will back you up on this. The head is chancing it that you'll just do as you're told, they'll know that.

"How old are you? This isn't how the world works."

These were, pretty much word for word, my first two thoughts on reading the OP 😂

I'm an experienced teacher.

You are contracted to the school until the 31st August. However, school holidays are outside of directed time and you cannot be directed to come into the school during the holiday periods. Your HT will know this perfectly well.

However, I would imagine your HT would not have asked you to do this paperwork if you weren't leaving - if you were going to be at the school in September, you could have just done it on your return. But you have left a key task outstanding on leaving the school, and this leaves the school and a child in the lurch.

I appreciate you don't recall being asked to do this and you had a difficult time of it at the school. However, ignoring the request and blocking your HT is highly unprofessional. Having worked in education for 15 years, I can tell you that it is actually a surprisingly small world and wherever you go, you'll find someone who knows someone you taught with somewhere. You really don't want to burn any bridges.

I am a militant supporter of teachers' rights but in this case I do think you should just go in and do the paperwork. If the HT has contacted you to get it done, it must be urgent and if you don't do it, then support for the child in the next academic year may be delayed. That's not fair on the child. It is part of your job, you should have done it last term, and as you won't be there to sort it in September, the HT has no choice but to ask you to do it now.

Legally, do you have to? No. Morally, should you? Absolutely.

It's clearly weighing on your mind and I think you already know you haven't behaved correctly, otherwise you wouldn't be on MN asking people's opinions. Just pop in tomorrow for an hour and then it'll all be over and you can move on with your life.

Definitely take a stand, OP. You were unsupported and are now justifiably angry at the head teacher. Time to make that clear by punishing a disabled child, and delaying their access to support. That will teach the head teacher, too bad about the harm to the child, it can just teach them too.

Honestly, I can’t even fathom your approach for a few hours work. If someone randomly came up to me and asked me to spend a few hours doing a task to help a child then I’d absolutely do it. But yes, best to make a stand at the cost of a disabled child

@Mushypeasandchipstogo May I ask what experience you have personally of the teaching profession?
Genuine question...how much of a teacher's summer holiday do you feel should be spent working?

This!

It is one task, apologise for lack of contact, finish it out, do it for the child in question.