To think school heads should be contactable in school holidays

[EloiseMinch]

A secondary head is likely to be on 70k+ and a primary head of 50k+. Those are high salaries for positions of senior management responsibility. AIBU to think they shouldn't just cut off completely in the school holidays?

Maybe some heads really are working in the holidays but I know the head at DC's school definitely doesn't. She is, for example, completely uncontactable from the end of one term to the start of the next.

And you would need to contact them because......?

If you are desperate to speak to the head, send a message to the general admin email on the school’s website marked urgent. Likelihood is it will be being manned by someone. However, that person will make a decision as to just how urgent the issue is and deal as they see fit.

I suppose I regard 13 weeks holidays as too much for a manager on a high salary.

Go work in a school then.

Just because you can't contact the HT doesn't mean they are on holiday. Most work places when you are on holiday you are away from work, most school holidays all teachers are in for part of it.

The head for my children's school has specifically said I can contact him via email during the holidays. Both my son's have SENDs though, with one having a serious health condition. I guess if it was necessary you'd be told you could too.

Why do you need to contact her?

Why would you need to contact her in the holidays?
The office is usually open at least part of the holidays.
50k is not much considering the crap they get, the terrible responsibility- and if there’s a bad Ofsted they can just get replaced pretty much overnight.
It’s really hard to recruit heads despite 50k and all the holidays....

Perdyboo I can name one (but probably shouldn't on MN) :)

Bizarre that there’s a critical shortage of headteachers isn’t it.

The office is usually open at least part of the holidays.

It is never open for a moment in the holidays in DC's primary.

I have sent emails in the holidays and had replies. I think most heads check their email even if they don't answer the phone

It's very hard to recruit teachers and Head teachers. If long holidays help make the job more attractive then I say keep them.

Go work in a school then.

I am not talking about the school teachers, just the head.

Still haven’t said why you would need to contact them?

I am sure heads are contactable by maybe chair of governors or head of finance or head of admin. If needed.

I am struggling to think of anything that would be so urgent that a parent would need to contact a HT during the holidays.

The head might well be connectable to social services, the governors, other staff but not to parents.

I have sent emails in the holidays and had replies. I think most heads check their email even if they don't answer the phone

That sounds good. Our head won't allow anyone to have her email address.

It's not that high a salary. For a highly qualified professional, managing a large staff and budgets, it's not very much at all. I earn more than that managing ten research consultants, with no budgets to manage and without hundreds of kids and parents to deal with.

It may seem like a lot of money to you depending on what you earn, but for the skillset, its really not.

And she will be working some of the six weeks, planning, prepping, sorting the budget. Am daughter of a head teacher so I know they definitely work over the summer

Relevant bodies like the local education authority, social services, other senior teachers will know her phone number if anything super urgent came up.

What do you need to tell her that can't wait until September?

It wasn't that long ago that teachers didn't use email at all and everything was still ok

I don't think teachers or HT's should be contactable during holidays.
However, I do think there should be a designated time scale before they break up when you can gain responses to questions.

e.g. If your child is struggling and you intend to use the holiday for a bit of a catch up, they haven't stated any guidance in the report, then I think it's fair to expect a response before the end of term.

we all got an email telling us we could contact teachers this week, then a week before term starts, but this is private boarding with 9/10 weeks holiday.

You have really got it in for this woman haven't you?

Some people will be able to contact her, just not parents.
Plenty of people on those sorts of salaries are not contactable ( or not by everyone who might want to contact them) during annual leave.

I'd imagine it's only a certain selection of parents that she doesn't want emailing her

I pity your stupidity OP.

I don’t know any teachers, including Head’s, that get 13 weeks off. They’re there for much more time that you might realise. What do you want them to be doing during the summer when the kids aren’t there anyway, sitting in their office just waiting incase you call?

So not content with being told on your last thread that you were unreasonable for wanting to have a pack of parents muscle in on a headteacher's performance management, you start a new thread still going on about head teachers and their emails and holidays.

Bloody hell.