Please reassure me this is normal...

[PastSellByDate]

Hello MumsNetters

I've posted before about DD1's Y6 class being split in half - with the lower ability half with the assigned Y6 teacher + other teachers, getting intensive SATs training (workbooks/ extra homework/ one to one interventions) and the upper ability half have had a string of substitutes + part-time KS1 teacher has gone full-time and spends part of her week with them now.

We've now got a letter that the HT has decided to retire and that they'll shortly start to advertise for new HT.

Coincidence? Or is HT jumping ship?

I'm sure you can imagine the rumour mill - just wondering if a HT would jump ship if it looks like this year's SATs results are likely to be below government floor target?

How old is the current head? If they are mid 60s, probably they genuinely do want to retire. Younger, then I'm not sure. Have Ofsted been in recently? Is the rest of the school in disarray or just your DD's class?

Maybe she's just tired of jumping through hoops to try to fit in with Gove's flawed mathematical logic that all children should be average, or above?

The HT would have usually told the Governers a year earlier that they wish to retire as significant planning goes into replacing them. So although the parents have only just been informed I should imagine the decision was made and informed to the governers 18 months or so ago.

That is not strictly true, RandomMess. Headteachers are required to give more notice than class teachers, but not a year earlier. Teacher need to resign by specific dates to leave at the end of that term and headteachers are required to give three months notice. One would hope headteachers have been reflecting on resignation/retirement long enough to be able to give their governors longer notice than that as succession planning, recruitment, etc. is a lengthy process, but they are under no obligation to do so. For example if a spouse or child becomes seriously ill and the head decides to take retirement to be with them, or if another post comes up, is interviewed for and accepted close to a resignation date it would not be possible for the head to give longer than legally required notice. All the schools I know of inform parents pretty soon after the governors receive the information that the head will be leaving to avoid gossip should the advert be seen and to reassure parents that they are actively seeking a strong replacement.

I agree it is unlikely the head's decision to resign is linked to staffing issues in one class/year group. There are far more complex reasons that a head may leave, most of them linked to Gove and his changing goalposts and attempts to use children as his political football.

I think you need to see how your child is doing OP, and whether they are happy enough to go to school or living up to their potential otherwise. Focus on that not rumours. DC have had a hiccupy lot of temporary teachers for spells and not come out worse for it, so it's possible ime that all will be fine.

There could be all sorts of private reasons for a HT to retire: age, health problems, family trouble etc.

Thanks all.

Letter to parents just says HT has decided to leave our school - no specific reasons, but said she's looking forward to spending more time with family/ friends - so I actually may be assuming they are retiring. They could well be moving on to another school I suppose. They're 50 years of age. So it would be 'early retirement'.

Is it true that if a school is placed in special measures the HT is fired?

With DD1 we're sort of in the boat of damage is done really - hasn't been a great run through this school (have posted a lot especially about dire maths curriculum/ approrach at this school & our home spun solutions).

DD2 has had a better run (I'm sure there's no coincidence that being in a class with 2 governors' children & Head of PTA's child + 2 staff's children could influence how curriculum/ homework is delivered). We could potentially change schools (as we've now finally moved) - but fear jumping from frying pan into fire.

I suppose what I'm wondering is:

How much turmoil is there when a new HT starts? [Are there procedures for this sort of thing in primaries? This must happen fairly regularly - I get the impressions HTs are typically there for about 7 years - which is the case for ours.]

Not all HT loose their job if a school goes into special measures. It does depend on their capacity to drive improvement. Some do go voluntarily as they see their future as untenable or can't face the workload, some are forced out and some stay and see it through. I know of a couple near me who have stayed and moved steadily up to "good" over a couple of years. SM schools come under huge scrutiny and some HT just don't want that and others feel a point of professional accountability in turning it around.

Any new HT will want to stamp their mark on a school. If the school is RI or lower they need to be seen to be turning the school around rapidly. My experiences have been very smooth transitions with children seeing very little change except the face at the front of assemblies and talking to them in the playground. Behind the scenes transition has happened and may have bumps e.g. staff struggling with changes in approaches and expectations. Sometimes experienced staff leave and I do know of one school where three years on not a single teacher is still there, but the head now has staff in tune with her philosophy rather than bucking against it.

The biggest issues you may face is if they struggle to recruit. Many, many primary headships are re-advertised due to lack of suitable applicants. Nationally lots of heads are coming up to retirement age and not enough people wanting to step up (I'd never go back to headship!). If they don't appoint (or even interview) there will be an acting head, who may or may not apply for or get the post during the second round of advertising. If it is a small school they may decide on federation, which is a totally different can of worms, to get a head in post.

Another option if SM may be becoming an academy ....

If every Head Teacher whose school went into Special Measures or RI was fired, there would be even more of a problem recruiting than there is already. According to my HT, they're walking out in droves round here as their job is becoming untenable.

And no, it should make no difference at all to the teaching of a class, whether there are children of Governors or PTA members in it. I find it hard to believe people seriously think this.

A new HT could be just what the school needs

Having been under various swaps of head for my dc's schools. It has always been handled well, and the new head has been an improvement.

And in a very general way, often if a head is sort of marking out time to get to their retirement, then it can end up being a very lackluster time. They can't be bothered to start changes that they won't see through, and don't really want to face up to issues knowing that they can leave it and it will become others' issues.

I do like the idea that having governor's children in makes a difference to staff leaving. Obviously haven't told my school, Ds's class has 3 governors' children in-including the chair (with only 4 parent governors that is unusual).
In three years he's had 7 teachers (1 job share). It's unusual in his school to lose staff, even more unusual for them to go mid year. He's just managed to have them all. If he's been in the other form (without the governor's children) then he'd have had 3 teachers in that time.

When our head left to spend more time with family and friends it turned out it was because she had to nurse her ailing father. After he died, she wanted time to come to grips with her loss. Sometimes it's easy to forget that heads are human. I understand how the gossip mill goes. You can't help but think, "Is the school going downhill? Is he/she jumping ship?" We all wonder the same questions. And of course, there is the worry about the next head, especially if the previous one has been really beloved and turned a school around. But in a case where the school isn't that brilliant and SATs scores are looking a bit malnourished, there's nothing like a vibrant new head to breathe life into a school. Could be a very good change. The head who replaced our previous one was the reception teacher and she was/is outstanding! She has been awesome!

Thanks all for comments, especially DeWe, Oneside and Delite for pointing out that a change of HT could be a good thing. I certainly hadn't considered the effects of a long drawn out run to retirement,

Clam/ DeWe - I think you can be right about DD2's highly organised run through school not necessarily a result of 'connected' offspring present in class - it may just be coincidence. Luck of the draw. But I can assure you when a KS1 class gets weekly homework and another doesn't (and they're KS2 upper) - it does strike you as odd as a parent. In our case DD2 is literally doing work DD1 did late in Y5.

When I point this kind of thing out I either get:

'We're working hard to drive through improvements, but need to test them out in certain years first....'

or

'Nobody else has commented on this Mrs. PSBD' - (which I always find out subsequently isn't the case - most parents are asking, 'Why does my elder child have 1/2 as much homework as my younger child?' at parent teacher meetings).

I'm not saying there might not be inconsistency between classes (although, to be frank, there shouldn't be, if a school is well-run), but I doubt it's down to where the Governors' children are.