Running memories...

I was running yesterday. At my current school, we had a health and safety review recently. It's funny how the mind works: halfway through my run, I remembered a particular incident at my previous school linked to health and safety. 

One day, an unannounced fire drill took place.

Nothing unusual there.

Knowing where pupils are at any given time is something that teachers take very seriously. The alarm went off: I followed procedure to the letter. I quickly got the children ready and realised that I was a child short. She had gone to the toilet, or so I thought... Time is of the essence in an exercise like this, so I led my class out to the playground.

And then I got quite cross. Said child eventually turned up on the playground too and the poor thing got quite the telling off.

“Where have you been?”

“Do you not realise what this could have meant if there had been a real fire?”

Etc.

The poor child was crestfallen. It was at this stage, and only at this stage that I was informed that she had in fact been intercepted and taken to a member of the leadership’s office as part of the fire drill procedure. To test us. To see how staff would react.

Or was it just to try to catch me out?

I went from cross to full on enraged and made it extremely clear that I found such practices completely unacceptable. As far I am concerned, it was a form of gas-lighting. Nothing unusual there – in our toxic school...

The head’s response was that it was common practice. That it happened in all other schools that took safety seriously. I still think this is complete bullshit and what is more have never heard of any similar trickery at other schools.

To me, it was a mind game pure and simple. An attempt to catch me out and to then use this in a disciplinary. As she had done with other members of staff and would appear to have continued to do so up to the present day – take note oh venerable governing body and council…

Ooh, the anger just will not go away! Rest assured friends that I am actually in a good place. This is cathartic and I believe needs to be out there. Love to you all. Except for… well, you know…