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.

Ok. I’m gonna simplify it.

Head teacher is working for 39 weeks a year. She then gets paid for 4/5 weeks as annual leave and the rest of the time she isn’t employed to work.

So it’s unpaid leave.

X-post have now seen what the issue is. Confused as to how the HT is supposed to address a behaviour issue when the school is closed, though. Presumably the child in question isn't likely to be available to be dealt with?!

Email the school office, which is likely to be open, if on a skeleton staff. It will be passed to the Head if deemed urgent.

HT are exempt from the 1,269 hours per year that MPS/UPS staff are subject to (although bear in mind those are directed hours, so it doesn’t account for any out-of-hours work, of which the hours are too numerous to mention).

However, their salary is for 39 weeks, spread over 12 months for payment purposes. Despite this, I’ve never met a HT or classroom teacher who didn’t spend a significant amount of time working in all of their ‘holidays’ (said as a former teacher).

If there is a ‘serious incident’ during the holidays, HTs get to know about it (I’ve been in schools where a parent has died in the holiday - we knew, so could support the child - and several cases of DV or SS involvement, so that again the child could be supported). They’re not uncontactable, just not uncontactable to parents.

My HT friend - who ‘broke up’ on Friday - has been in school today, and will be tomorrow, catching up on paperwork they just can’t get done when children/parents are in, and it needs doing. Said friend will then take a couple of weeks ‘holiday’ (albeit still checking emails and responding if necessary), before switching back into work mode and getting ready for back to school.

Whatever your issue with the HT in question, it’s personal, not professional. Leave them alone and let them have a few weeks peace and quiet.

I think teachers are paid for 195 hours per year so no they should not be available when school is closed

Thanks, ourmiracle

Have you ever considered it might be you who is the problem and not the head?

My headteacher is on just over £40k. Nowhere near the 90k that keeps getting mentioned.

Right but is it really 13 weeks of leave or not? People seem to have different views here.

No it's not. Teachers, and heads if they're on the main scale work 39 weeks, get annual leave for four, and unpaid the rest. If they're employed by an academy they can set their own terms and conditions, but generally they're worse than LA.

From the NASUWT staff handbook:

The vast majority of publicly funded schools in England and all schools in Wales operate according to the School Teachers’ Pay and Conditions Document (STPCD) which states that a classroom teacher can only be directed by the headteacher to work for up to a maximum of 1,265 hours over 195 days of the year.

A maximum of 190 days involve teaching pupils/students, the remainder being non-teaching days where you may be asked to undertake other duties related to your role as a teacher. These are often known as in-service training days (INSET). These limits do not apply if you are paid on the leadership range.

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

It doesn't matter one jot what you think about how much holiday a person gets compared with their salary. That is the job, those are the conditions. None of your business. And if you think it's so cushy, maybe go and be a teacher.

I'm honestly not trying to be goady but I don't get the thing about teachers not being paid for the holidays. A teaching starting salary is around £22,000 which is slightly more than for a nurse or physio (both who also do a three year degree as a minimum). Is that £22,000 pro rata, or is it the salary they get with the holiday already deducted?

I tried to explain this on another thread but others insisted they knew better.

Teachers are required to be in school for 195 days per year (this includes the 5 inset days). Because their jobs require masses of work outside the classroom (prep, marking, etc), they have a clause in their contracts which says they can be 'directed by the head for 1265 hours a year...but must also put in as much other time as required to do their jobs properly.

Teachers are not "unpaid" when they're on holiday. They receive an annual salary and get 13 weeks' holiday per year. They can only be "required" to be in school for 195 days however and this is where this 'only paid for 195 days and pay spread through the year' notion has arisen.

Most teachers work stupid hours during term time (including at weekends) and a lot of hours in the holidays. Requiring any od them to be constantly available to parents is ridiculous - does the OP seriously think she'd be the only parent plaguing the head if this were the case?

There's nothing suggesting teachers are only paid for 195 days a year in their pay and conditions because it's not actually true.

The Head is paid to be Head, not to be on call 24/7. There's no need for parents to be able to contact them over summer. If it's a bullying issue it can only really be sorted during term time anyway so that's a non-starter as an argument.

And if you think it's so cushy, maybe go and be a teacher.

As I mentioned a few times, I see a clear distinction between school teachers and a non-teaching head. I surprised when people don't see that difference.

So the head will be doing more than that but their holidays will be spent preparing for the new year. You know, the really important stuff.

From the NASUWT staff handbook

The quote doesn't seem to be about head teachers.

Ah oops.. These limits do not apply if you are paid on the leadership range.

Agreed op. Although i would expect that only important emails be answered, once a week, give or take a fortnight away.

As I mentioned a few times, I see a clear distinction between school teachers and a non-teaching head. I surprised when people don't see that difference.

You may well see a distinction. That doesn't mean your judgement of when she needs to be contactable outweighs hers. Why do you think your view is more important?

Wow, you're a goady fucker, aren't you, Eloise?

Most Head Teachers have "[email protected]" as their email address. I wouldn't bother trying it though, as I have an inkling that your child's HT will have you blocked.

And pay is for 1,265 hours and 195 days, with expected extra directed time. That's 6.5 hrs a day - all of which I'm teaching or on duty. So on £34,000 that's about £25 ph (would be £42,000 if paid for holidays).
Except most teachers do over 2,000 hours of work (parents evenings, planning, marking, parent meetings etc) for about 45 weeks which equates to £17 ph. My DD earns £11 ph stacking shelves in supermarket (items tempting !).
Head teaching is the hardest job I have known - and I worked in the city in the 1980s.

I read the two threads. I have a genuine question, as I come from a completely different system, it seems quite unbelievable that to see the HT you have to put a complaint in. And when you want to praise them ? Lol. This default system is the problem. IMHO. I remember my secondary school where there were no keys, no uniforms and you could barge in the HT office at any time (of school term of course). 1000 students. Far from perfect. That was the rule. Nobody ever barged, of course. I'm listening goes a long way. I hope that things get better. With the governors you could request that she has an " open office " for parent once a week, to begin with.

Thank you MissSusanSays , that is very interesting!

Thanks hibeat!

*Wow, you're a goady fucker, aren't you, Eloise?

Most Head Teachers have "[email protected]" as their email address. *

It's not accidental and has nothing to do with me. She, as a rule, has never allowed any parent to email her directly.