I'm sinking

[mistywintermorning]

I have taught for sixteen years and I have always been OK with the workload. But now I am really going under.

I have to organise and deliver two extra curricular activities, each lasting an hour after school. This is doubly hard as on both days I am teaching all day. The school only has a half hour lunch and it's expected we spend break times in the school canteen with the kids. The days are exhausting and draining.

The traffic is just terrible as well, I only live twenty minutes away on a clear run but because of roadworks and peak hour traffic I am frantically rushed in the morning (can't get in any earlier because of nursery - I have two young kids) and then I am committed to staying until twenty past four two evenings a week, one evening is a half five finish and the other two evenings I've loads to do.

It's just a struggle and I'm constantly stressed

What subject do you teach? I think you should discuss how you're feeling with your LM. Yes, you might technically be doing the right amount, but it's not in your school's interest for you to go off sick. I think you're putting too much pressure on yourself. Is going part time an option?

I know giraffe but I don't know what. I honestly don't.

I know if I had started there ten years ago, I'd have gone under: there's no real behaviour system in place. Luckily, I have charm and I can manage the kids pretty well, but I recognise a lot of signs of a school that's passing the blame.

Thing is, I genuinely can't do anything. I can leave but career wise that will look bad.

Going PT just doesn't work financially. I'd have to sacrifice my HOD role.

Sorry I'm being an arse. Not intentional. I'm just sounding off. But I need this job for financial reasons. DH is self employed.

Everyone ‘just ploughs on’. Until they can’t. People who get signed off with stress aren’t wilting flowers with no resilience. You will get ill and at some point ‘ploughing on’ won’t be an option.

In your shoes, I would look for another job. I moved to an academy this September and I hate the atmosphere and the ethos. I have a job interview the week after next. You don’t have to stay in a school with bad management.

And I know what you mean about it looking bad to leave so soon but I plan to be honest at my interview without slagging my current place off. A decent school will know about bad practice in academies and will understand why you’re looking for an out.

If your LM isn’t being any use, then can you take it higher?

Can you talk to other HODs and sound out how they are managing their time?

Can you arrange a swap so your P6s aren’t on your full day?

Can you talk to nursery about the potential for earlier drop offs?

Can you not spend your breaktime on your full days in the canteen? Is everyone always there? Would your absence be noted?

I don't trust any other HODs to be honest. I am a bit wary.

Nursery doesn't open before 8 - why I don't know ...

I found a childminder for my children - she started at 7am. However, then you have to get children up and ready very early which isn’t great. If your DH is self employed, can he drop the children off in the morning?

If you can’t trust colleagues, the school hasn’t got a proper behaviour system and they are ‘making things up’ about directed time as they go along, it won’t improve.

Do you like the job apart from the workload? Is it a generally good school? You mention no system for managing bad behaviour; surely this is a source of stress for staff and you might get a lot of support from colleagues if you were to confide in them.

He can't because his work takes him in the other direction - we chose this nursery as it is near my workplace. I didn't realise the logistics. In theory it should take me five minutes to drive from nursery to school. In practice it takes me fifteen. So I arrive at 8:20 stressed and frazzled.

Not really - it's more "he's fine for me" or "well you need to build a positive relationship with her."

The school sounds dreadful. Crap structure, unrealistic expectations and unsupportive colleagues. How are your department?

Nice. Small department though, even though it's a core subject, it isn't a big school.

Why so many extra curricular activities then?

What are the activities? Could someone on here help with planning or could you tone things down a bit?

Both GCSE intervention, years 10 and 11

Oh right, do they actually need planning? Can your second in department run one?

Hmmm. I interviewed for a HOD job in an academy like this. It was in the contract that I had to supervise children for two hours a week after the teaching hours and, yes, we were also expected to eat with them in order to model ‘sitting down to have meals’. I’m bloody glad I didn’t get the job. The fatal flaw was that I don’t know when you’d get your prep done.
Sympathies, OP.
Erm....I would also look to leave. Ride it out for the year- but I bet staff retention isn’t good.

I don't have a second

In a core subject?! What subject is it?

English. We are a small dept. Just three full time staff and someone from SLT. There are only 500 kids in the school, though.

How many kids actually turn up to intervention?

More or less everyone targeted tbf.

Is this a state or private school?

Can you make half the session compulsory reading or something low effort for you?

State school. It's more the physically being present - the students are also at their most rowdy then.

It means when I leave it's peak hour traffic.