I discovered today to my great surprise that I had omitted -thus far- to include the letter below. This is the letter that I sent to the Chair of Governors to 'officially' set whistleblowing procedures under way on 22/07 once I knew that certain members of staff who had remained when I left would not be targeted by the head. Reading through it again, I am still outraged that nothing came of this at all. It is a clear indictment of how a good school had its sense of community crushed and a toxic culture established. The lack of any gesture, apart from washing its hands of the problem by passing it onto the council, in turn makes it an indictment of the Governing Body - showing little regard for staff being and SLT accountability.
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Dear [Chair of Governors],
I am writing to you to formally raise a whistleblowing
concern relating to [the head]: specifically her treatment
of staff at [the school] and the toxic culture she has created there.
I have waited one year after my departure from the school
to raise this as I judged that doing so any earlier would risk further
unprofessional treatment by [the head] to the staff who remained working there.
I initially raised a number of concerns with the governing
body in a letter sent on 20/07/20. In your reply you said that the issues
raised were 'duly noted', although what steps if any were taken are unclear.
In my own case, I had a nervous
breakdown in November 2019 triggered by [the head]’s unreasonable treatment of
me over a period of time. I was a union representative, and was repeatedly
victimised for trying to fulfil my role in raising concerns shared by the
majority of NEU members at [the school]. [The head]’s bullying of me took the
form of intense and sustained micro-management and criticism over several
months concerning my union activity, subject management, teaching and my
professionalism. After I fed back a number of particular concerns on 19/10/19,
relations worsened. The minutes of this meeting were sent to my
co-representative and myself. We both disagreed with the way many of the points
had been written up, but were told that the minute-taker agreed with her
version so no amendments could be accepted. The minute-taker left [the school]
this year, and is happy to confirm to you directly if wished that the minutes
were written up by [the head] herself and did not give a balanced account of
the meeting.
[The head] has a blatant disregard of unions and how they function. The school has
had active and collaborative union representation for years without any issue,
but because of the consistently unpleasant treatment meted out by [the
head]
to staff reps in recent years, the (…) NEU branch officers have noted that no
one has stepped forward to be rep in the 2021-22 academic year.
As you will know, I have
asked you in your capacity of Chair of Governors why I was not involved in an
investigation into my breakdown and you have yet to give a clear answer. Another
colleague, also a union rep, left [the school] in the same academic year – 2019-20
– following a period of absence due to work-related stress and anxiety, a
result of victimisation by [the head]. I am aware of at least three other members
of staff who were signed off work with work-related stress and anxiety; two of
these have since left the school.
This makes five staff
members, at least, who were signed off work with work-related stress and
anxiety in the last two years; occupational health reports will attest to this.
(It’s worth noting that in the 20 years of the previous headship, the number of
people signed off work with work-related stress was precisely zero.) Exit
interviews from these outgoing staff members, where these interviews took
place, would have included many details which should have been looked at and
acted upon.
I reiterate what I have
written before: it
feels very much as if there is lack of accountability within the management of [the
school]. The impression is that my mental health and that of my colleagues is
of little concern to the head and there appears to be little interest in
the excellent results that were achieved by my classes and the years of hard
work that all those of us who were “walked to the door” gave to the school. ([the head]'s modus operandi is to “walk
to the door” any member of staff that she did not want in post; she stated this
to other members of staff, one of which is happy to attest to this if required.)
I am raising these concerns with you openly. My previous
attempts to raise concerns with the governing body were acknowledged, but I am
not aware of any action that was taken as a result. I hope that this formal
whistleblowing will ensure a full investigation and I am willing to take part
in this; I am happy for my identity to be revealed and to provide more specific
examples of wrongdoing.
I worked at [the school] for many years, and one of the
school’s strengths was that the staff team was like a family. Everyone was
valued and everyone trusted each other. It is deeply upsetting to me and for
many of my colleagues, current and ex-employees alike, to see this change as a
result of one person’s need for (often coercive) control over staff. People are
now scared to speak up in case they are the next to be targeted – they have
seen what happens to anyone who does not toe the line. This is not a good way
to manage people and it does not create a pleasant working environment. For the
sake of the school, and for its pupils and community, I urge you to
consider the health and safety of its staff. If this is not addressed, there is
a strong likelihood that incidences of staff suffering work-based stress -
which I know from my first-hand experience to be both significant and damaging
- are likely to happen again.
I would like an assurance that these concerns will be
taken seriously and investigated promptly. I would also like an assurance that
I will be informed of the outcome of this investigation.
Best regards,
Alex Gwinnett
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Ladies and gentlemen, I'm still waiting...
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