Do you work in a school, mines so bitchy!

[Mickeyfish]

I've recently started working in a primary school. Its given me a huge insight into the school and how its viewed as a parents perspective vs a staff perspective.
Some of the fellow staff are very vindictive, rude, abrubt, snide, bitchy, really couldn't care about the children. My list could go on. If you work in a school what are your staff like

I used to work in a school and they were a mixed bunch, pretty much the same as anywhere.

How do you know they don't care about the children? What are you basing that on? People often offload at work just to let off steam.

Most of mine are lovely, and really care about the children. It is in a deprived area so perhaps attracts down to earth and caring staff.

In the school I teach at everyone is lovely and genuinely cares about the children. It's a small, rural village primary school so perhaps that helps.

However, I do know from friends who work in other schools that this is not always the case. I suppose schools are like any other workplace - just because the staff work with children doesn't mean they will all be sweeter than sweet.

It's a shame if they seem not to care about the children though. Sadly, a lot of people working in education are very bitter and disillusioned at the moment.

You're in an unusual school OP.

I've taught 43 years in eight schools, seven of them in the UK and never come across anyone who didn't care about the pupils.

It totally depends on the school. Some schools have been lovely, made friends for life, very welcoming, supportive etc.
Other schools it's very much a work only relationship, will talk about staff members behind their back, bitchy comments etc. Very toxic atmosphere.
Never known anyone not care for the children though, that's unusual in that career.

I'd agree with most of your post as a former primary supply teacher, but not the lack of care/concern for the kids part.

Yes, I have definitely seen adults favouring or being irritated by particular children, but that's as far as it went.

I adore it. My colleagues, to a person, are supportive, kind, caring, driven, professional. I've never been happier since starting in secondary education.

I worked in a school as an learning support assistant and then a Cover supervisor. I have to say my whole experience put me off of teaching (I was working towards a graduate training programme and trying to gain experience).

My experience was varied. Staff genuinely care about the students, in my opinion. However I found the attitude of SOME teachers towards support staff was awful, and ultimately put me off. I think they have no comprehensive of how much they are paid for a start. I absolutely hated the job, and particularly working with some staff, who treated all the LSAs with disdain or just ignored us entirely.

Schools can be quite bitchy and toxic. However I think that can be said of all workplaces I suppose.

I work in more than one school. The staff mainly really care about the children in all of them. When i first started in education i was surprised how much they all cared. Sometimes, a bit pissed off with parents, though, but it tends to make them feel sorry for the child.
On the whole they are less bitchy than other orgsnisations i worked through.

I had my eyes opened a little at my children’s school. And yes, definitely a little bitchy.

I volunteered at the infant school and noticed there was a huge gulf in terms of who used which staff room. The teachers used one and the support staff used another! Someone asked me if I’d noticed and which room I used 🤣 I didn’t spend long there so didn’t bother!

At the junior school, I used to attend an evening class and a lot of support staff used to attend to. They would huddle together and bitch about the head every week.

Every school is different. I remember when my Mum worked at my school when I was little she was horrified at the way the teachers spoke about others and found it very bitchy. She told me that one of my classmates (then aged 7) was openly mocked for having asthma and eczema by a few of the teachers and that they used to do an impression of her and be in stitches with laughter - it really upset her as we used to babysit this child and she was very sweet but ill mainly due to poverty (damp cold house, malnourished). She'd come from nursing which can be quite bitchy too but thought the teachers at my school were the worst.

I've worked in toxic schools but none that were THAT bitchy.

Some of the nastiest, vilest older women I know are retired teachers (HODs), the level of bitching is next level. They must have been a nightmare to work with and created an awful, bitchy enviroment at work. They quite literally spend their entire retirement finding and spreading gossip.

I've worked in 3 different schools. The first one was exactly as you describe and a horrible divide between teachers and support staff too.

The second one was lovely. It's a cliche but the staff really were like family, just so kind and supportive of each other and of the children and families.

The next one was much bigger and TBH there were elements of both.

In all cases it was entirely down to the quality of the leadership.

I do agree with others, the vast majority care deeply about the children, too deeply for their own good probably.

I do supply teaching in different schools and some of them are dreadful for people being awful about other adults in school or parents.

Some are lovely of course. But some have an incredibly negative atmosphere. I've usually got wind of it by 8.30.

@echt 👋

Yes I’ve worked in a school and it was so bitchy, but my god!! I’m now working in a care environment and it’s worse than in the school!!!

Thank you all for your responses its interesting to read. I just find every shift really hard at the moment to be upbeat and happy with the staff when it's such a toxic environment

I actually moved away from England after truly dreadful experiences with schools. Bitchy, false accusations, my property stolen, utterly vile. And this was the ADULTS, never the kids. You expect some kids to be childish and challenging. Some "adults" who work in schools seem to miss the days when they were the bullies and got away with it.