This is the unquestionably significant part of the story in the National Audit Office's report (the Daily Telegraph version of the story is here):
It found that 28 per cent of primary schools and 20 per cent of secondaries lacked a permanent head teacher last year."The situation is likely to get worse as more heads retire next year," said Angela Hands, the NAO's director of education reports. "Younger teachers are not keen to follow the role of headship in their careers."
Without ploughing through the report, I am not sure exactly what 'lacked a permanent teacher' means. Does it mean lacked a permanent head all year or for part of a year?
But even if one in five secondary schools has no head for a single term each year, it is still amazing incompetence on the part of the state education system. It is extremely rare for any private school at all to have no head for term, ever. Many heads stay for ten years and more. When a head retires, a replacement is sought and found by the governors long before the actual date of retirement.
Meanwhile, the headline that 'one million children are taught in poor schools' is less of a reliable statistic. Any decision about whether a school is acceptable or not must be highly subjective and precise figures are frankly not credible. Consequently I also give no credence whatever to the assertion that the number of 'failing schools' has gone down. Such analysis is not only too subjective but, under the current administration, may also be subject to political pressure.
Posted by James Bartholomew • Indexed in Education
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Ah, if only it were true. I'm no fan of Kelly's but actually in this case the reality is that the LEA (Norfolk) allowed the man to start work without a completed CRB check. This breaks rule #1 of employing teachers.
As someone who lives in Norfolk, I know for a fact they don't bother too much with CRBs in all situations ; and I'm pretty sure their general checking and referencing is shambolic.
Posted by: Paul Robson at January 11, 2006 07:45 PM
Paul:
As someone who lives in Norfolk, I know for a fact they don't bother too much with CRBs in all situations ; and I'm pretty sure their general checking and referencing is shambolic.
Do you think this is because of the costs involved in running CRB checks? I understand there is a cost for the check, and suspect it is relatively high -- and schools/LEAs may be, perhaps, thinking that they've got better things to spend their money on?
Or do you think they are just incompetent?
Personally, I'm hoping they are just being incompetent. Though of course, that doesn't bode well for any future changes to the law regarding sex offenders.
Posted by: Rory at January 12, 2006 12:13 PM
Incompetent ... and costs .... they're just useless.
It would appear that Norfolk/Hewitt appointed and started this gentleman knowing he was on the SoR and had a caution for Child Pornography.
In that case I don't quite see how it's Ruth Kelly's fault.
Posted by: Paul Robson at January 12, 2006 01:34 PM
Schools should be seen for what they are. With an average cost per pupil of around £5,000, most comprehensives are actually businesses with a multi-million pound turnover (my old comp would have had a turnover of £7,500,000).
As such, Headmasters are really analagous to managing directors and should be treated as such. This would involve both better remuneration and greater independence - company directors being held accountable at the AGM, rather than micromanaged by the government.
If treated that way, I have little doubt that more teachers would want to progress.
Posted by: James Hellyer at January 12, 2006 02:16 PM
That's the problem ; you are micromanaged and get all this rubbish dumped on you, but everything is *your fault*.
I live in Rural South Norfolk. Very rural. No violence, no nasty stuff, no hoodies. In our local school a 'bad kid' is a piece of cake compared to even Norwich's schools. By education standards an easy place tow work.
We can't get a Head Teacher ; our old HT who wanted to retire two terms ago is going to be here till at least Easter.
My brother-in-law, Deputy in the next village or two along, had to advertise 3 times, they've now got one.
How the heck is anyone in Moss Side going to get anyone ?
Posted by: Paul Robson at January 12, 2006 03:11 PM
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Don't worry James. Ruth Kelly will soon have those empty posts filled (by sex offenders)
Posted by: Alec Hodgson at January 11, 2006 03:42 PM