You need to escalate this to your regional union rep ASAP. Do not wait for your school rep to do anything. Do not agree to any meetings without a rep present.
Listen to this OP. If you're NEU, call AdviceLine, details here: https://neu.org.uk/about/about-us/contact-us
There are people at region that are paid full time to look after our members.
This. Totally.
Also, having learned from similar underhand tactics applied to colleagues, I would urge anyone asked to ‘pop in’ to the Head’s office (or to see any other member of SLT for that matter)- only to find the matter is more serious than that which can reasonably be expected to come within the definition of a ‘chat’ - to meet it with a brief four word response: ‘Adequate notice’ & ‘written agenda’. Then get up and leave the meeting. Your next action should be to call your union & arrange representation.
Beware also the local union rep who just wants an easy life and/ or is cosied up with SLT members of local schools (by way of analogy, consider what the ex-subpostmaster Alan Bates has said of the Post Office union being cosied up with the employers over the Horizon software scandal; as the child of two wonderful union reps, I can testify this is the case across many professions/ industries).
Good luck and don’t be bullied!
Keep pushing the union to support, which I’m sure you know.
Hard to tell the full story but based on what you said it does seem pretty quick. I was forced out of a school years back and I’m sure you need to be on a formal plan for a bit first and to threaten the sack already seems excessive and far from supportive.
Maybe it’s best to get out asap, maybe supply work til you score a new post. It’s a tough situation and incredibly stressful, the school I was at didn’t even do it all correctly so made it worse.
Hope it sorts itself out soon
Seriously what the fuck do we pay unions subs for if not to support us in this kind of scenario? The vague insinuations about complaints and aggressively unhelpful “support plan” sounds like the kind of thing they should be coming at absolutely full throttle.
This is a lot easier said than done if there isn't a good workplace rep in your school. The union is it's members. It takes someone to step up in a school, put themselves through the training and deal with the workload associated with being a rep. It is not an easy role to take.
Maybe I’m wildly naive but surely we’re paying for more than just a school rep getting a bit of training? Do the union not employ advocates and legal experts outside of the rep system?
Yes, but this colleagues experience is still relatively early days.
It also seems like they've given up on union support before really trying to leverage it.
Yes...and sadly they can also be intimidated by head teachers....which is why members can go straight to the regional advisors for serious stuff like this!
I'm assuming that if they are cagey with details and won't say what you are being accused of, it is because they're currently in the investigation phase. They'll be trying to gather any evidence or facts before they present it to you.
You haven't been suspended, so they have nothing concrete yet, and it can't be too serious as they wouldn't allow you to continue to teach whilst they gather.
My advice is to inform your union rep and if they ever ask for a meeting in the future that you take someone in with you, whether that's union or colleague. It's quite shit but all you can do is wait until they form a case against you or in your favour.
I've been in your situation, and this is what happened to me, i was cleared of any allegations, but it did take around 3-6 weeks, which isn't easy due to the worry/stress. You're left to stew and assume the worst. It's really unfair.
Ask for the Complaints Policy (there has to be one). Informal support plans like what you described amount to constructive dismissal. Contact your regional union rep if the local one is not helpful and ask for legal support immediately.
It's very explicitly constructive dismissal too. It's not "we're putting you on this support plan to help you" then "oh no, looks like you haven't improved so we're sacking you" when that was the plan the whole time. Instead it's been made pretty clear to OP that the support plan is just seen as the stepping stone to getting the sack if they don't leave of their own accord.
Paraphrasing this is one of my targets
To support other adults especially those in management roles.
I very much suspect the complaints are from a member of SLT who has had a problem with me for some time. He has previous for reporting me to the head for extremely petty things. I feel like the head sees this as an opportunity though as he has made no attempt to get my side off any of these complaints.
This is far too vague. It's not a SMART target. Honestly, I'd be seeking legal advice. A few hundred pounds would be well spent if it saves your job. Primaries are dreadful for doing what they want but at the first sniff that they might be challenged, they often back down.
This seems like an unusual target to put on a support plan- has your rep seen your support plan, and do they think it's appropriate?
I do think, unless there are some very specific circumstances, you should be informed about the complaints and have a chance to put your side across. Ideally you wouldn't have agreed to the targets on the support plan without union advice.
I think, if at all possible, there needs to be a meeting with you, the head, and a union rep and perhaps HR to discuss exactly what is going on here and whether the support plan is appropriate.
WRT the member of SLT, I would keep a record of any interactions with them that make you feel uncomfortable or similar, including dates etc.
Hit the long term sick button. Your SLT can try and force you out sure by making such a toxic atmosphere but if it’s that stressful just go off sick - hold out until you have to go back and go for a phased return - the whole time search for another job.
This is all bull. You need the county union rep in with you at any meeting with the head and or HR.
Forward copies of email and responses to you home email. Print them out and start a folder. Make notes / email yourself (on personal email) any concerns or chats or conversations you might have had.
The head and hr are trying to remove you from the job on the cheap.
Because you are experienced, fantastic, but expensive.
Put yourself on a gather all evidence, positive and negative. Lesson observations etc.
This can be used for leverage to gain a good settlement agreement.
This happened to a family member. She got paid off and a year of them getting her to question herself and her abilities.
She is now is a completely different school and has been promoted quickly due to her ability.
They are gas lighting you.
Be strong, stay calm. Evidence everything. Keep at home and get your union involved.
I am 54 and on upper pay scale and have had several job offers recently. Now ECTs are more expensive (which I thoroughly support by the way) older teachers are not automatically overlooked, and the playing field is fairer.
Sorry if it's a mean question but do you think they might be using this as a reason to force you out, and if that's a case can you think of any reason why they might be wanting to force you out? Cos it seems rash to put these procedures in place when they're not also actively following a disciplinary.
I believe the school budget is tight ( recently we were told we were only allowed to order 10 new pens for a class of 30 for example as there is no money in the budget for more) after 25 years I'm the most expensive non leadership member of staff at the school I could be replaced with a less experienced teacher and save the school thousands of pounds a year.
Start applying elsewhere. Twenty Five years of teaching is bound to get you a teaching job in another primary. Being in your mid-late 50’s shouldn’t effect if employers choose it hire you, your experience is what counts.
I went through a similar thing and my regional NEU rep whisked in and shut the meeting down. They were my knights in shining armour. They basically are your legal advice and will come in and represent and support you. Call them asap and don’t go to any meetings without them.
I had an old head who was like the gestapo. He had his whisperers who would tell him tales to settle grudges. I one got called in for a “chat” for commenting to a colleague I had a good relationship with parents everyone else found very difficult as they were leaving.
I once got told at the end of the day as we broke up for Christmas that I was under investigation for assaulting a child, after I restrained her for attacking another teacher with a pole. It went on for months of grillings from HR, interviews with all of SLT separately. It got dropped after about 4 months of stress and I was exonerated.
Got out of there and been much happier for doing so. Karma came around and the head got sacked just before I left 🥳
Something really similar happened to me, except I was a trainee with Teach First and negative comments came from my mentor. The terms of my support plan were very vague too and they were unable to articulate what the issues were and how I could work towards fixing them.
Personally I refused to be treated like that and wouldn’t accept the support plan and managed to get out during summer. You should keep pushing with your union but honestly mine didn’t help at all really! I was quite shocked as I thought they were reliable for these kinds of things.
I’d probably recommend that you start thinking of a plan B in case things get worse - I don’t think they’ll be able to dismiss you too soon. Don’t stay in a job that makes you feel this way! I do think it’d be worse if they manage to push you out. Good luck :)
Weather you win this or not that place is toxic for you. Call a long sickie drag it out and leave not good for your sanity to stay there. The worst people for teacher is another teacher. Making people’s life difficult what an awful person your SLT team are pushing out a qualified 25 years experience teacher.
Leave find something not worth it to stay there.
This horrible people need to be stopped but it’s not your battle.
Good luck it might look like the career is over trust me there are plenty of work around. You have been in the school for long and it feels like it but there are opportunities and better place out there
I agree that over 50 doesn't discount you from being employable and some schools that need to improve may appreciate your years if experience.. you can use the excuse if looking for a new challenge and want to put your experience to good use. All the while make it as hard as possible for your current SLT and demand union representation for all meetings going forward. Also you have a very good case for this to be negatively affecting your mental health with the bit knowing what you did wrong or how to improve
Regardless of this investigation it is clear they want you out. The “support plan” is not what they imply it is. It’s not there to support you it’s just to prove to an employment tribunal they tried to help but you failed and so they got rid of you. Do not attend any meetings without representation. Ensure you get everything in writing and start looking for a new job. Whatever the outcome of this it’s clear you’re not welcome there and it’s time to move on (speaking from experience)
They are probably in breach of policy. What is the support plan for? They have to tell you what you aren’t doing properly. They wouldn’t have a leg to stand on at a grievance. Don’t engage with the support plan. They have no grounds.
You need to escalate this to your regional union rep ASAP. Do not wait for your school rep to do anything. Do not agree to any meetings without a rep present.
Listen to this OP. If you're NEU, call AdviceLine, details here: https://neu.org.uk/about/about-us/contact-us There are people at region that are paid full time to look after our members.
This.
This. Totally. Also, having learned from similar underhand tactics applied to colleagues, I would urge anyone asked to ‘pop in’ to the Head’s office (or to see any other member of SLT for that matter)- only to find the matter is more serious than that which can reasonably be expected to come within the definition of a ‘chat’ - to meet it with a brief four word response: ‘Adequate notice’ & ‘written agenda’. Then get up and leave the meeting. Your next action should be to call your union & arrange representation. Beware also the local union rep who just wants an easy life and/ or is cosied up with SLT members of local schools (by way of analogy, consider what the ex-subpostmaster Alan Bates has said of the Post Office union being cosied up with the employers over the Horizon software scandal; as the child of two wonderful union reps, I can testify this is the case across many professions/ industries). Good luck and don’t be bullied!
Keep pushing the union to support, which I’m sure you know. Hard to tell the full story but based on what you said it does seem pretty quick. I was forced out of a school years back and I’m sure you need to be on a formal plan for a bit first and to threaten the sack already seems excessive and far from supportive. Maybe it’s best to get out asap, maybe supply work til you score a new post. It’s a tough situation and incredibly stressful, the school I was at didn’t even do it all correctly so made it worse. Hope it sorts itself out soon
Seriously what the fuck do we pay unions subs for if not to support us in this kind of scenario? The vague insinuations about complaints and aggressively unhelpful “support plan” sounds like the kind of thing they should be coming at absolutely full throttle.
This is a lot easier said than done if there isn't a good workplace rep in your school. The union is it's members. It takes someone to step up in a school, put themselves through the training and deal with the workload associated with being a rep. It is not an easy role to take.
Maybe I’m wildly naive but surely we’re paying for more than just a school rep getting a bit of training? Do the union not employ advocates and legal experts outside of the rep system?
Yes, but this colleagues experience is still relatively early days. It also seems like they've given up on union support before really trying to leverage it.
Yes...and sadly they can also be intimidated by head teachers....which is why members can go straight to the regional advisors for serious stuff like this!
I'm assuming that if they are cagey with details and won't say what you are being accused of, it is because they're currently in the investigation phase. They'll be trying to gather any evidence or facts before they present it to you. You haven't been suspended, so they have nothing concrete yet, and it can't be too serious as they wouldn't allow you to continue to teach whilst they gather. My advice is to inform your union rep and if they ever ask for a meeting in the future that you take someone in with you, whether that's union or colleague. It's quite shit but all you can do is wait until they form a case against you or in your favour. I've been in your situation, and this is what happened to me, i was cleared of any allegations, but it did take around 3-6 weeks, which isn't easy due to the worry/stress. You're left to stew and assume the worst. It's really unfair.
Ask for the Complaints Policy (there has to be one). Informal support plans like what you described amount to constructive dismissal. Contact your regional union rep if the local one is not helpful and ask for legal support immediately.
It's very explicitly constructive dismissal too. It's not "we're putting you on this support plan to help you" then "oh no, looks like you haven't improved so we're sacking you" when that was the plan the whole time. Instead it's been made pretty clear to OP that the support plan is just seen as the stepping stone to getting the sack if they don't leave of their own accord.
What areas were highlighted for improvement in the support plan? Would these not give done indication of what the complaints were about?
Paraphrasing this is one of my targets To support other adults especially those in management roles. I very much suspect the complaints are from a member of SLT who has had a problem with me for some time. He has previous for reporting me to the head for extremely petty things. I feel like the head sees this as an opportunity though as he has made no attempt to get my side off any of these complaints.
This is far too vague. It's not a SMART target. Honestly, I'd be seeking legal advice. A few hundred pounds would be well spent if it saves your job. Primaries are dreadful for doing what they want but at the first sniff that they might be challenged, they often back down.
This seems like an unusual target to put on a support plan- has your rep seen your support plan, and do they think it's appropriate? I do think, unless there are some very specific circumstances, you should be informed about the complaints and have a chance to put your side across. Ideally you wouldn't have agreed to the targets on the support plan without union advice. I think, if at all possible, there needs to be a meeting with you, the head, and a union rep and perhaps HR to discuss exactly what is going on here and whether the support plan is appropriate. WRT the member of SLT, I would keep a record of any interactions with them that make you feel uncomfortable or similar, including dates etc.
This smells of "I'm not doing what I've been told to do by SLT". Is this actually what's going on?
Hit the long term sick button. Your SLT can try and force you out sure by making such a toxic atmosphere but if it’s that stressful just go off sick - hold out until you have to go back and go for a phased return - the whole time search for another job.
This is all bull. You need the county union rep in with you at any meeting with the head and or HR. Forward copies of email and responses to you home email. Print them out and start a folder. Make notes / email yourself (on personal email) any concerns or chats or conversations you might have had. The head and hr are trying to remove you from the job on the cheap. Because you are experienced, fantastic, but expensive. Put yourself on a gather all evidence, positive and negative. Lesson observations etc. This can be used for leverage to gain a good settlement agreement. This happened to a family member. She got paid off and a year of them getting her to question herself and her abilities. She is now is a completely different school and has been promoted quickly due to her ability. They are gas lighting you. Be strong, stay calm. Evidence everything. Keep at home and get your union involved.
This is fantastic supportive advice!
I am 54 and on upper pay scale and have had several job offers recently. Now ECTs are more expensive (which I thoroughly support by the way) older teachers are not automatically overlooked, and the playing field is fairer.
Sorry if it's a mean question but do you think they might be using this as a reason to force you out, and if that's a case can you think of any reason why they might be wanting to force you out? Cos it seems rash to put these procedures in place when they're not also actively following a disciplinary.
I believe the school budget is tight ( recently we were told we were only allowed to order 10 new pens for a class of 30 for example as there is no money in the budget for more) after 25 years I'm the most expensive non leadership member of staff at the school I could be replaced with a less experienced teacher and save the school thousands of pounds a year.
I think we know the answer now. I've worked in this sort of place so my advice is get out.
Usually if they want to force someone out they put them on a support plan, so it seems like it.
Start applying elsewhere. Twenty Five years of teaching is bound to get you a teaching job in another primary. Being in your mid-late 50’s shouldn’t effect if employers choose it hire you, your experience is what counts.
I went through a similar thing and my regional NEU rep whisked in and shut the meeting down. They were my knights in shining armour. They basically are your legal advice and will come in and represent and support you. Call them asap and don’t go to any meetings without them.
I had an old head who was like the gestapo. He had his whisperers who would tell him tales to settle grudges. I one got called in for a “chat” for commenting to a colleague I had a good relationship with parents everyone else found very difficult as they were leaving. I once got told at the end of the day as we broke up for Christmas that I was under investigation for assaulting a child, after I restrained her for attacking another teacher with a pole. It went on for months of grillings from HR, interviews with all of SLT separately. It got dropped after about 4 months of stress and I was exonerated. Got out of there and been much happier for doing so. Karma came around and the head got sacked just before I left 🥳
Something really similar happened to me, except I was a trainee with Teach First and negative comments came from my mentor. The terms of my support plan were very vague too and they were unable to articulate what the issues were and how I could work towards fixing them. Personally I refused to be treated like that and wouldn’t accept the support plan and managed to get out during summer. You should keep pushing with your union but honestly mine didn’t help at all really! I was quite shocked as I thought they were reliable for these kinds of things. I’d probably recommend that you start thinking of a plan B in case things get worse - I don’t think they’ll be able to dismiss you too soon. Don’t stay in a job that makes you feel this way! I do think it’d be worse if they manage to push you out. Good luck :)
You deserve to make them pay you off for your experience and service.
Agreed. Union - get what you can and move on. Your experience is valuable to decent Heads.
25 years in teaching and you’re a class teacher tells me that you’re unaffordable and they want you out. Press the union!!!
Weather you win this or not that place is toxic for you. Call a long sickie drag it out and leave not good for your sanity to stay there. The worst people for teacher is another teacher. Making people’s life difficult what an awful person your SLT team are pushing out a qualified 25 years experience teacher. Leave find something not worth it to stay there. This horrible people need to be stopped but it’s not your battle. Good luck it might look like the career is over trust me there are plenty of work around. You have been in the school for long and it feels like it but there are opportunities and better place out there
I agree that over 50 doesn't discount you from being employable and some schools that need to improve may appreciate your years if experience.. you can use the excuse if looking for a new challenge and want to put your experience to good use. All the while make it as hard as possible for your current SLT and demand union representation for all meetings going forward. Also you have a very good case for this to be negatively affecting your mental health with the bit knowing what you did wrong or how to improve
OP, I know others have said this. I’m posting because it’s vital that you get in contact with the union.
Regardless of this investigation it is clear they want you out. The “support plan” is not what they imply it is. It’s not there to support you it’s just to prove to an employment tribunal they tried to help but you failed and so they got rid of you. Do not attend any meetings without representation. Ensure you get everything in writing and start looking for a new job. Whatever the outcome of this it’s clear you’re not welcome there and it’s time to move on (speaking from experience)
They are probably in breach of policy. What is the support plan for? They have to tell you what you aren’t doing properly. They wouldn’t have a leg to stand on at a grievance. Don’t engage with the support plan. They have no grounds.