Headteacher row: Councillors pledge to listen after East Neuk outcry over restructure plan

Councillors in Fife have pledged to listen to communities, parents and staff over any proposals to change school leadership models following the outcry seen in the East Neuk in recent weeks.
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Education chiefs came under fire from many sources last month after launching a consultation for the Waid Academy cluster which could have seen a ‘super head’ installed to cover Waid and the area’s eight associated primary schools while primary headteacher posts were removed.

Following a local campaign and an online petition, a decision was delayed in favour of a fuller consultation being held during the 2022/23 session, with the current leadership arrangements for Waid being retained for August 2022.

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Members of the education and children’s services sub-committee have now backed “further engagement” with key stakeholders in a bid to “understand concern and meaningfully inform” the council’s overall school leadership strategy, while also recommending further consultation in the next academic session that will contain “more clarity and detail” regarding a wider range of options relating to the Waid cluster.

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The debate was sparked by a formal motion tabled by Conservative councillor Kathleen Leslie, who called for a full report, with evidence for any assumptions or conclusions, to be provided on the impact of the models proposed.

“There are currently 29 of these shared leadership models, but these are all joint headship models,” she explained.

“Those of us who served on the education appointments committee will be aware of the concerns and anxieties expressed by parent representatives about what it meant for schools sharing a headteacher. Of course this proposal was looking to go far further, to a model of seven or possibly eight schools under one headship.

Campaign material produced by the parents fighting the moveCampaign material produced by the parents fighting the move
Campaign material produced by the parents fighting the move
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“I’m pleased this has been delayed but it’s a delay, not an end.

“It’s vital, as part of local democracy, for transparency and accountability, that there is full detail and clarification of any changes to the model and that that comes before elected representatives.”

Her motion was subject to a slight amendment by Labour councillor Altany Craik, which was accepted, and called for that proper engagement required with all interested parties.

“We’re supposed to be doing things with residents, not to them, and I think that’s the important thing here,” he said.

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“My personal view is that plans for a ‘super head’ is many, many, many steps too far.”

Committee convener Councillor Craig Walker agreed to accept the amendment and stressed that the decision to delay and further consult had been “the right thing to do”.

Discussions around proposals for the Waid cluster - which includes Waid Academy, Anstruther, Crail, Pittenweem, St Monans, Kirkton of Largo, Lundin Mill, Colinsburgh and Elie Primary Schools - are expected to continue over the coming months, with the consultation slated to take place during 2022/23.

The last word of the meeting went to religious representative William Imlay: “I was headteacher for 26 years so my preference would be to have one head in every school.

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“But being the headteacher of a very small school can be one of the most difficult jobs.

“The concept of a headteacher working across schools can mean that they receive shared support and experience and bring a shared vision and confidence.

“That person is less liable to be influenced, harassed and bullied by parents or staff with a particular grudge.”

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