‘When the night has come and the land is dark…and the moon is the only light you see...’ 

 

It appears that this blog is destined to be scattered with songs from my favourite collection.  That will not surprise those of you who were part of the schools I have had the pleasure of teaching in.

 

 

‘Whenever you’re in trouble won’t you stand by me?’  Those of you who did and were not afraid to do so in December 2015, I thank you for your loyalty and courage.  It could not have been easy.  Many people found it difficult and the fear of what was taking place numbed them into silence. 

 

I maintained that I would tell the truth about what had happened.  Compromising on the standards for our children was something I could not, and would not, contemplate. It was impossible to comprehend.  Why was this being entertained by those who could in fact make a difference or even those who had had so much support from the school and me, personally?  Do you make a judgement for yourself on how you have been treated and what you have witnessed?  Or do you believe the gossip and hearsay?  Blowing the whistle can result in you being discredited.

 

In January 2016, there was much speculation about why I had left and the reasons given.  I was astonished to later read the reasons, as they were simply false.  My resignation letter detailed my frustrations at not being allowed to speak as well as the abuse being stoked on social media and not being addressed.  As painful as it is to read back on the social media posts, it has given me an insight into what I believe was an organised campaign.  Secret Facebook groups and meetings.  Why would some 'professionals' post using false names yet reveal who they are once I had resigned?  Why would 'professionals' be posting or be part of these groups at all?  For some it became a full-time job, adding posts hourly, intensifying the 'feeding frenzy'.

 

What is completely beyond me is why someone would post that they wanted to ‘punch me in the face’ because ‘no one could be that happy and sing every day without hiding something.’

 

I can safely say I do sing every day, I am happy and I cannot hide the fact that I love teaching children!

 

While today it is not uncommon to hear people all over the country say “the school down the road has turned into an academy” (as though it has magically changed and gained wings!) when we converted, we were in fact the first Church Primary Academy in England.

 

It was 2010 and we had a choice to convert.  Even then, I could see that the educational horizon was changing.  This was an opportunity for our children and I have no regrets.  The decision to convert Trinity into an Academy was a decision made by the Governors with the transformation having been completed in 2011.  This is when I was accused of ‘dismantling state education’ and having a political agenda.  To this day it staggers me the assumptions that were - and still are - made.  No-one knows your story but you.

 

I grew up in inner city Bristol as one of five children to immigrant parents.  The levels of deprivation and struggle in Easton were high.  I remember my mum and dad working hard, sometimes two jobs at a time.  I also remember the financial hardships they experienced and what they gave up.

 

Sometimes it simply wasn’t possible to partake in activities or trips and I know that I am not alone in this.  As a Free School Meal (FSM) pupil who received uniform vouchers I understand the importance of a good school, and the difference it can make to children, and their opportunities in life. All I have ever set out to do is teach children that learning is important, education is key and that we can have oodles of fun at the same time - it really is possible! 

 

Making regular trips to the capital to creep up behind the guards at Windsor, archery sessions, street dance and subscribing to quality maths websites for all children in the school were activities that we made happen, often for free or at a fraction of the cost.  No child was ever left out or discriminated against because they could not afford to take part.

 

Activities such as weekly cooking, swimming and clay classes with our resident artist were free for all children in our school.  They should be! It is important to me that every child is helped to discover their talent and potential, as opposed to merely being part of a tick-box exercise which is what we, as educators, are told to do.

 

Enriching the lives of so many children was my priority.  I saw the school as an extension of my family and I was there to offer support in all areas of a child’s life. 

 

Academically, our children did well and made excellent progress.  By this I do not only mean in terms of what Ofsted and the DfE measured.  Why is it that when children do well in areas of the country where it is least expected, as ours did, some people assume and spout that this must have been achieved through some underhand method?  I believe these thoughts are a genuine reflection of those making the assumptions, and that they represent a lack of expectation towards the children in these communities.  To treat the children in this way is a disservice to them and all that they stand for. 

 

I know, parents know, and in their hearts, everyone knows that our children defied the odds and flourished.  No data can measure what we nurtured.  Confidence cannot be defined by a number.  You have to believe in children if they are to achieve.  In Radstock we did…“wooden schools where your dreams are made of…”

 

Over the last two years I have met many children, staff and parents from my former schools.  Some of these have been by complete chance.  I have yet to bump into anyone that I am unable to remember or place from my twenty-five years in teaching.  The immense sense of love and support from so many people has been overwhelming. 

 

I started teaching in Birmingham at the age of twenty-two and moved back home to Bristol when my mother died very suddenly in 1991.  My sister was four years old at the time and I came home to teach her at Whitehall Primary in Bristol, my very own Primary School as a child!  It was a real honour to literally go back to my roots.  My own head teacher went on to become my boss!  I had a wonderful time at the School, and subsequently at Ashley Down Primary and Hannah More Primary in Bristol, and in Pucklechurch in South Gloucestershire. 

 

Making Egyptian mummies come to life, dressing as Henry VIII bellowing “off with her head!” or climbing Jack’s beanstalk to the tune of Yazz’s The Only Way Is Up, without exception, I have had the time of my life in all of these schools!  To this day I still have memories of the itchy beard I donned for the role of Henry…

 

Meeting people from all walks of life who remember their school days with such fondness is reward enough to know that what I set out to do when I qualified as a teacher has served its purpose. 

 

I enjoyed welcoming new children into the fold but one particular event is emblazoned in my memory.  A child was starting for the first time and insisted on bringing a duck into school.  ‘Of course,’ I said as I smiled, why ever not?  The following morning, as I made my way onto the playground to welcome children and parents alike, as I did every day, I heard squeals of delight, mayhem and excitement!  What awaited me? 

 

As I turned the corner I was greeted by the sight of a real life duck attempting to spread its wings while tucked neatly under the child’s arm! (Perhaps it was true, you really did gain wings when you turned Academy?!)  And my, what a beautiful creature this duck was!  White, with a golden yellow beak, ready to join the numbers of children on roll that day. 

 

A risk assessment was put together and an announcement over the school tannoy was made that today the whole school would learn about our guest friend, the duck!  The children were quite literally wild with excitement and anticipation.  A makeshift pen was quickly assembled for our new guest using the PE benches!  I relished this rare opportunity and turned it into a learning experience.  I will never forget the sight of the teaching assistants timetabling class after class, taking them into the hall as if it was all in a day’s work!  And it was!  That same day, the school cook had a visit from a food inspector (you really couldn’t make it up, could you?).  Upon opening the door from the kitchen into the hall, she was unexpectedly met with the duck waddling around to exclaim ‘Oh!  He wasn’t there yesterday!’ and quickly shut the door.  I can still hear the countless jokes of ‘duck à l'orange being off the menu!’ 

 

You can never underestimate what a child brings to your school, even when it is spontaneous. Not just the children, but the staff and I learnt so much from that one extraordinary lesson the child taught us that day! In fact, it was this event that inspired me to set up our very own Trinity Farm! Anything is possible when you put your mind to it. Learning was always meaningful and I know many of those children carry fond memories with them today as adults.

 

Prior to Trinity becoming an Academy, the School had been under the control of Bath and North East Somerset, the local authority.  Those of you that remember this will also recall that we went through a period of considerable disruption with the layout of the building and the necessity to relocate all classrooms and the hall. The whole of the school roof had to be completely overhauled.  Many heads will appreciate the reassurance we have to convey to our communities when confronted with these types of issues that do not form part of our teacher training. 

 

As in the story of Chicken Licken, rumours quickly spread about the roof.  It truly was a time when good old Chicken Licken and her many companions Goosey Loosey, Henny Penny and Turkey Lurkey made an appearance to reassure everyone that the sky was indeed, not falling in!  It was a testing time, perhaps equipping me for what was to come…

 

During the roof repair work we fought for, and succeeded in, getting the children and staff to have toilet facilities within easy reach of the temporary classrooms, access to water coolers and the continued provision of hot meals.  This was despite being told it would not be possible and all provision would have to be heavily reduced.  I insisted that builders could only work when children were not on-site as the noise and disruption would not be what the children would be accustomed to. 

 

When informed that clubs would have to cease, I insisted that all after-school clubs would continue and building work would commence when the children had left.  I would not allow the roof repair work to affect the education of our children for a period of eighteen months.  I fought for, and managed to have, our very own ‘royal’ marquee erected which acted as our school hall during the building work period.  It felt like ‘a right royal occasion’ hosting all of our school events in such a grand setting but our children and community deserved nothing less.

 

It was not the fault of the children that their brand-new school was not fit for purpose and I felt compelled to ensure that we turned a negative into a positive.  Again, out of darkness came light.  I was told on a daily basis ‘other schools just put up with it’.  I did not and could not.  We could have used the roofing issues to water down what we offered the children, instead we rose to the challenge and it was shortly after this we also received an ‘Outstanding’ Ofsted inspection.

 

I learnt a lot during this period as did the children…’Always look on the bright side of life’…

 

Why do people say I cared too much?  I will always care. 

 

The Governors were brave and made the right decision for our children in taking the school out of local authority control in 2011.  It is these very same Governors who were later rated as ‘Outstanding’ in their leadership by Ofsted in 2013, again in 2014 during the Church inspection and endorsed when we were selected by the DfE to become a Multi-Academy Trust in September 2015.

 

Many of the Governors had been at the school for ten years and their own children attended the school and were taught by me.  I was, and still am, deeply disturbed at the governance review conducted in January 2016 as it is in no way a true reflection of the work and commitment they gave to the school.  In fact, it is a disgrace.  The report is completely at odds with their past track record of success and commitment.  I for one will never be afraid to say this.  As any governor knows, their unpaid work often goes unnoticed and unappreciated.  I developed strong professional relationships with the Governors and they always had the interests of the children and staff at heart.

 

I raised my concerns during the review and later at a higher level.

 

I was receiving very mixed messages.  I am unsurprised that for many people the “facts” just do not seem to add up. 

 

The trauma that I had already experienced was about to take an alarming and very unexpected turn.

 

It was six months after my resignation from Trinity that an article appeared in the local newspaper that a recommendation to make a referral was to be made to the National College for Teaching and Leadership (NCTL).  This referral was subsequently made by Bath and North East Somerset Council.    I have no real words to explain how I felt at the time or how I still feel about this and therefore will not attempt to do so.  This referral was dismissed by the NCTL for a number of reasons including a “tight knit group who had all contributed to a Facebook group and therefore had reduced credibility”.  There was also a tremendous amount of support for me and the work I had carried out over the years from children, staff and parents.

 

During this time, I was made aware of more vile social media posts and activity that continued long after I had left the school.  More closed Facebook groups.

 

Many of the posts caused me immense distress and I was left with no option but to take legal action against one individual. This resulted in a court appearance in January 2017 where the individual was represented by the National Union of Teachers (NUT).   At the time, this was reported in the national press as a ‘landmark victory’ for me as a head teacher.  However, there can never really be any winners.

 

Since I had left in December 2015, other than the aforementioned defamation case through my lawyer, I had no involvement with the NUT.  I was issued with a public apology in court on behalf of the individual by the NUT.  This was reported by the national media, including the MailOnline.

 

Having gained the justice that I had fought so hard for, I believed that my dealings with the NUT had come to an end. 

 

Five weeks after the article was published in the press about the successful legal action I had taken in January 2017, I learnt that a new referral had been made to the National College for Teaching and Leadership…this time by the National Union of Teachers...

 

‘You may not control all the events that happen to you, but you can decide not to be reduced by them.’  Maya Angelou