Plans to tackle Moray’s teacher shortages by sharing the head role between different schools will be discussed at full council tomorrow.
The local authority believes that by cutting the number of individual head teacher roles and increasing the number of “paired headships” – which involves one head teacher being in charge of two schools – will help tackle the crisis in rural areas.
Last month, councillors on the children and young people’s services committee backed the proposal and it will now go before the full council for a final decision.
Director of education and social care, Laurence Findlay, submitted a report to councillors recommending they adopt the policy as a means of solving recruitment issues for “hard to fill” rural posts.
It says: “It can prove very difficult to recruit head teachers to small rural schools for a variety of reasons, and this policy aspires to create a more attractive and progressive career pathway for aspiring school leaders, which may alleviate some of
our current recruitment challenges at senior management level.”
The scheme was supported at last month’s meeting after councillors heard rural schools had struggled to attract head teachers in recent months – with some vacancies attracting no applications.
Committee chairwoman and Forres councillor Anne Skene said: “This plan offers a new, progressive approach to management and leadership arrangements in our primary schools.”
The move, which would also mean that all heads in the region are non-teaching, was supported despite some concerns that the smaller school in some pairings could suffer.
Presently Tomintoul and Glenlivet, Inveravon and Knockando, and Portknockie and Portgordon primary schools all share a head teacher.
Speaking last month, Portgordon and Portknockie head teacher Karen Murray said: “Some of the initial doubts we had as we moved into this model have been allayed, and everything seems to be working very smoothly.”
Under the new plans Portessie and Findochty, Logie and Dyke, Alves and Dallas, Rothiemay and Crossroads, Newmill and Botriphnie, Burghead and Hopeman, Aberlour and Rothes, and Mortlach and Craigellachie would all share a head teacher.
If approved, the proposal will go out to public consultation and could be rolled out at the start of the 2016 school year.