Councillor backs ‘move on’ remarks despite high school’s damning Estyn report

A Cabinet member has defended an education chief after they told high school staff to ‘move on’ during an industrial dispute over bullying and behavioural issues.

The comments were made by Flintshire’s Chief Officer for Education and Youth, Claire Homard, to the authority’s Education and Youth Overview and Scrutiny Committee in October.

At the time, staff at Flint High School were involved in a series of strikes over workplace bullying, and fears over pupil behaviour and safeguarding.

Two weeks ago a damning Estyn report was published which upheld staff greivances and placed the school into special measures.

But this week Cllr Mared Eastwood, the Cabinet Member for Education Welsh Language, Culture and Leisure, told Flintshire County Council that the comments made by the Chief Officer were ‘the only way forward’.

At the committee meeting back in October Ms Homard said: “Governors at Flint High School have appropriately followed procedures in relation to the grievances brought forward by NEU members at the school and these were not upheld. NEU members need to accept that this process has concluded and move on.”

However the Estyn inspectors saw things very differently. It found that the senior leadership team ‘failed to provide Flint High School with adequate leadership and as a result ‘the school does not provide its pupils with an acceptable standard of education’.

It also stated: “Systemic weaknesses in leadership, teaching and well-being provision mean that too few pupils, including those with additional learning needs (ALN), feel safe in school, enjoy their learning or make sufficient progress in the development of their knowledge, understanding and skills.

“Senior leaders have failed to secure a culture of safeguarding. Although many staff are committed to improving the well-being of pupils, overall the school does not support pupils’ behaviour, attendance or engagement in their learning well enough.

“There are significant shortcomings in how attendance is recorded and monitored, how disruptive behaviour and bullying are managed and how well the school ensures that pupils are safe. As a result, the safety of pupils is a serious concern.”

Flint High School now has a new interim headteacher and is currently in special measures as it looks to improve.

Flintshire People’s Voice Cllr Sam Swash asked Cllr Eastwood whether she supported the comments by the Chief Officer towards striking teachers in light of the Estyn report.

“Does the cabinet member stand by comments made by the Education Department in which staff taking industrial action over the dangerous failures at Flint High School were told to move on by the council, now that a damning Estyn report has backed up the union’s concerns?” he said.

In response Cllr Eastwood supported the chief officer’s comments.

“The members of staff did need to move on because strategies had been implemented and the only way forward was forward,” she said.

“It is not appropriate for the local authority to substitute its own view for that of the governing body. Having said that, we are aware that a collective grievance was submitted by staff in relation to the working environments concerning pupil behaviour, unreasonable management practices, bullying and intimidation by the head teacher.

“We facilitated a very positive and constructive meeting arranged by ACAS and the NEU officials.

“A collective grievance had been submitted and had not been upheld by the governing body and a range of proposals to address the concerns were raised in the meeting.

“We hoped for it to be accepted that those strategies needed time to be implemented and for standards to improve. This was rejected by the NEU members who did not feel that anything had changed sufficiently and without them accepting the strategies, we were at a stalemate.”