Primary Teacher - Temporary Contract renewed for the 4th year

[mumnosGOLDisbest]

I finally got my contract for my 4th year teaching in the same school. It's not to cover a temporary position and it's not temporary funding so why is it still temporary? :(
I know after 4 years it usually becomes permanent automatically. Can anyone think why mine might not? and if not should I just ask them to make me permanent anyway before the 4th year is up? (worried it might remind them and prompt them to find a way out of making me permanent). I really do need a permanent contract as we want to move house and get a bigger mortgage.

Posting in Primary Education too for another perspective - sorry if you read this twice)

I'm a parent governor in a primary and it has been the trend to do this although I think it's actually pointless unless you actually have a temp contract situation like a long term sick or maternity or a future real change in numbers forecast.

It's bitten a lot of schools on the bum employment law wise as continuos employment occurs within schools in the same lea.

There is no real avoidance of redundancy payments or et and in my experience of making stuffing appointments you get a better calibre of candidates when you advertise a permanent post.

My position is now that we should always seek to make permanent appointments. I know this doesn't specifically help you sorry.

As far im aware you have the same rights as any other member of staff so if the numbers fall and the school is in a redundancy situation you shouldn't be treated any differently in any redundancy selection process ( assuming your school is getting correct hr advice).

Perhaps you should just seek your unions advice but i think you should write to your ht / gov body to state you now have 4 years continuous service and would like your position regularised.

I have done this in the past - a staffing panel of the govs is convened and under the ht' s recommendation the member of staff is given a permanent contract. It should be a formality.

Thanks thats useful info. They did try to make me and 2 others leave last yr by ending our contracts as we had gone way over budget and they planned to merge yr grps. The union got involved and as they didnt want to do a whole school redundancy process they changed their plans after a couple of months of worried teachers
I will certainly write to the head/governors at some point. My 4th year doesn't end till august but if they plan to keep me on it makes no difference when they change my contract surely? For me it makes a huge difference as it means we can move house a year earlier!

Once you're past a certain point (sorry don't recall what, sorry), you have the same rights as perm anyway, doesn't matter what your contract says. I was in this situation in an old job, and the onus was on me to apply for it to be made perm at that point. They couldn't say no, but to get the bit of paper I needed to do something. Had they tried to get rid of me, I would have had perm rights anyway and would have sorted it through the union. I never quite got there, got a perm job, but I was essentially keeping quiet till I got to the magic date and would then apply.

And I believe it's post not person. So if that post has existed for that period of time, even if different people have done it, you're still entitled to perm.

Are you in the union? I'd ask them

Yep will give union a call. I have got the same rights, they tested these last yr. I just need that title for a mortgage

Good luck with it. I know how frustrating it is. Been there twice now.

Thanks Alice

Know absolutely nothing about this but people generally do whatever is the least effort on their part. Giving you a new one year contract presumably involves opening up last years, changing the date and printing it off. If you ask about it (nicely) then it may suddenly seem less effort to give you a permanent contract.

I'm going to check my contract with my union first then think i'll have to ask. I just don't want to ask, retmind them it's my last year and give them the chance to save money and get rid of me iyswim