Scottish Borders Local Association

Councillor says teachers could need counselling

Published Date: 25 June 2009
By Andrew Keddie

A CALL has been made for counselling to be offered to senior teachers whose requests to end their careers in the Borders have been rejected, writes Andrew Keddie.
It was confirmed this week that more than 100 school staff responded to the invitation of Scottish Borders Council education bosses last year and applied for enhanced early retirement or voluntary severance packages.

But, meeting in private session last week, Scottish Borders Council approved the departure – on July 31 – of 27 teachers, leaving upwards of 73 unsuccessful.

The trawl for potential early leavers was authorised a year ago, ahead of the approval, in December, of the controversial Transforming Children’s Services (TCS) programme, designed to cut the annual long-term running costs of schooling in the region by £4.5million.

TheSouthern can reveal the 27 includes eight primary heads, who will be replaced by class teachers, with the balance made up of secondary depute heads and principal teachers. The departure of the latter has seen subjects, such as computer studies, dropped at some secondaries.

Twenty of the successful applicants took early retirement, being over the age of 50 and with at least five years’ service. There was no age or experience barrier to those accepting voluntary redundancy.

SBC has declined to comment on pay-outs to individuals, although it is understood principal teachers will leave with sums ranging from £66,000 to £80,000. It has been confirmed, however, that the total one-off costs to SBC’s central budget is £1.626million.

But Councillor Sandy Aitchison of the Borders Party, which opposed the TCS proposals, expressed concern over the implications of the process on staff morale.

“I have personal experience of applying for early retirement and not getting it, and it is a real knock,” he told us.

“The stress of teaching, which is not always understood by people not in the profession, takes its toll, especially for older teachers. To be given this opportunity and then have it refused is a real blow.

“I hope they will be given the full support of the council and that available counselling services are both highlighted and offered to minimise the effects of refusal.”

His comments echo warnings of “morale issues”, highlighted last year by Kay Miller, Borders secretary of the EIS, Scotland’s main teaching union.

TheSouthern has learned there is disillusionment amongst retained teachers.

“They feel it unfair that those considered expendable should be so lucratively rewarded,” said one school insider.

Councillor Catriona Bhatia, SBC’s executive member for education, said the choice of who should go, particularly in secondaries, had been agreed in conjunction with head teachers “to achieve the best structure for their schools to deliver the new curriculum”.

And she felt the implications for staff morale were being overstated.

It follows the revelation in TheSouthern earlier this month that Selkirk, where there is a falling school roll, was the latest secondary to shed a computer studies principal teacher and, along with Peebles, Jedburgh and Eyemouth, would not offer the subject in years five and six, while Standard Grade qualifications would, from next year, no longer be available.

A spokesperson for the council cited a range of factors, including a reduction in uptake, for some individual schools removing the subject.

Last week, Councillor Sandy Aitchison (Borders Party), who is a college lecturer, met Mrs Bhatia to raise his concerns.

“There is no doubt this is a result of TCS and the decision by headmasters is taken from the necessity to cut costs which reduces choice for pupils,” said Mr Aitchison after that meeting.

“While not all computer training will be removed, it is true that the use of computers within other subjects is hardly taking computer education to a very high level.

“From my extensive experience of further education, I know computers are something which students with all abilities can use to their advantage. Even those with learning difficulties become creative with computers if given the time and opportunity to use them.

“These are difficult times for everybody and funding is going to get even tighter, but we need to educate to the highest standard to give our pupils the tools to compete, not only with students from this country but increasingly from around the world. Eradicating computer science from our schools is not the way forward.”

TheSouthern has since been contacted by a computer studies teacher who, as a council employee, does not wish to be named.

“Computing is a core part of the technology outcomes and experiences document published as guidance on the Scottish Government’s Curriculum for Excellence,” said the teacher.

“Scotland and the UK as a whole suffers from a serious shortage of programmers and computer scientists.

“The blame for the abondoment of computer studies within the Borders can be laid fairly and squarely on the doorstep of the TCS programme.”

Mrs Bhatia said the savings from TCS this year were the equivalent of one full-time depute head post per high school.

“However,” she added, “head teachers asked for flexibility in applying this saving rather than having it dictated centrally. Thus, they are assessing demand for subjects and deciding what to offer pupils.

“It should be noted that while some subjects, such as computing and Latin, have declined over the past three years in terms of demand, vocational courses – for example in construction, hairdressing and land studies – have been increased. Clearly head teachers have to balance these additional demands with academic subject choice.”

Mrs Bhatia admitted school budgets were also affected by rising or diminishing pupil numbers.

She said: “A falling school roll will equate to fewer full-time equivalent teachers and the heads again have to decide which teaching posts to remove. This can have a disproportionate impact on small secondaries.”

“Teaching is a stressful job at the best of times, especially during periods of change which are outwith the council’s control, such as the implementation of the Scottish Government’s Curriclum for Excellence and the axing of Standard Grade exams by 2012. Those who applied to go but were retained could look upon it as a vote of confidence in their roles and abilities.”

She said the estimated revenue savings to SBC of the cull was £529,000 per year.

“I have to say it has been a major achievement in such a relatively short space of time to get this all sorted out in time for next term,” she added.

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