I listened in despair on our recent Inset Day, as Mrs Coupe tried to inspire us with a speech saying that Marton isn’t just great, but we are going to prove this year that it’s “the best”.
I am ashamed of the way in which I turned a blind eye for two years whilst Mrs Coupe ridded Marton of its best and longest serving teachers and support staff. I didn’t question the things Mrs Coupe told us about these teachers, who used to be my friends. Now we are reaping the consequences of those actions. How can Mrs Coupe truly believe Marton can be the best, when we are struggling to attract children to this school – only 15 in a Nursery for 56 children, and only around 40 in Reception, when there should be 60. The three teachers in Foundation may enjoy those small numbers this year, but next year it means loss of jobs.
How can Marton be “the best” when we have a Deputy Head who is nothing but a supply teacher covering constant maternity leaves (and with many more to come), and never playing any role in the leadership of the school, which is also now minus an Assistant Head?
Two more staff are leaving in October, one of whom has been at Marton since it opened – a familiar story for long serving staff.
I too will be deserting this ship before it truly sinks, as soon as possible. What has happened at Marton since Mrs Coupe came can’t be moved on from.
Alan Veale
Sinking Fast!
Reading Jackie’s post above, I find myself reflecting on how much the situation at Marton has deteriorated over the last two years. It is little more than twelve months since I first became aware of the fundamental impact Mrs Coupe’s arrival had had on the school, and I wrote to her over my concerns for my son’s education as a result of her actions. That was at the beginning of Matthew’s Year Five. He is now commencing his final year of primary education, and I thank God that we had the presence of mind to move him to Baines Endowed before the end of last term.
My son is happy there. We had a very animated conversation on the phone last night, talking about all the exciting things he has already started to do – and he has only been back there for three days! Next week his mother and I are invited (with other Year 6 parents) to attend school in the evening to discuss a joint approach between parents and teaching staff over Maths homework, as the school feels that an agreement over this subject is so important in the children’s final year. How sensible! How different an approach from what may be expected now at Marton.
I wonder how many more teachers from Marton (like Jackie) have looked back and realised just how bad things have become? It seems that some parents have become aware – and voted with their feet. The fall in pupil numbers is an appalling testimony to how the school is viewed from outside. If we were to believe the pompous statements of the school’s Chair of Governors, this view has been solely achieved because of the bad publicity broadcast by vindictive parents! Mrs Coupe is trying to rally her staff behind her with inane statements about the school’s fictitious status, and its ambitions for improvement. That is nothing more than a cruel joke at the expense of the Marton Staff who have genuinely done their best, in extremely trying circumstances.
We are not fooled, Mrs Coupe. The statistics speak for themselves. The teaching staff would LIKE to speak for themselves… (and some of them do, thanks to the facility provided by this forum). Marton Primary School started to sink into a sticky mess over the first year following the arrival of its present head teacher. Twelve months later, it has almost sunk without trace. Even staff members and governors who supported Mrs Coupe in her policies a year ago have since had cause to review their thinking.
Currently, the activities of Mrs Coupe and her Chair of Governors are under the scrutiny of the DfES, and I am also aware of at least half a dozen more official complaints pending – all of them lodged by people who tried their best in the school’s interests, but came up against intimidation, incompetence, libellous statements and harassment from people who clearly had no interest in seeing Marton Primary School become “the Best”.
How much more will it take before the school and its staff are thrown a life-line?
Answers on a postcard, please…
JACKIE
Bullying and Intimidation Continue……
I have to share the fact that my last post about the Inset Day was printed out and put up on the staffroom notice board with a message implying that if I didn’t like it at Marton, I needed to get out. This message has been said on numerous occasions to us as a whole staff, by senior LEA advisers, and Mr Lund himself. It is unprofessional to make such threats, and is a form of bullying in itself, which is now being allowed to be made in my staffroom, where I go for my breaks.
All of us unhappy staff know it isn’t as easy as that. Mr Lund warned us in July that we would struggle to move out of Marton (another threat), and in my post in July, I listed the teachers who had tried to leave last school year, but had all failed. Possibly no one is as unhappy as our deputy Mrs Brookes, supply teaching, and continually telling any staff who will listen how she is the last to know of any decisions, how she is never included, how she has not developed her leadership skills to prepare her for being a Head herself, and perhaps saddest of all, how she is powerless to act when anyone goes to her for help and support with problems, as she just shrugs her shoulders, afraid of the consequences of sharing staff concerns with Mrs Coupe, as others before her tried to do.
So who can I turn to?
Not my Deputy, not the LEA, who all know full well what is continuing to happen at Marton, not the Governors, who still don’t seem to have grasped the issues. I am stuck here, but this forum at least allows me to speak my mind, without fear of being forced out of Marton like so many before me. I do want to leave, but on my terms – not when Mrs Coupe finds a sneaky way to get rid of me, fully supported by Mr Lund. Now does Mr Lund understand why posters are afraid to identify themselves? If you speak up, you are moved out quietly.
mary
So, despite the disappearance from Marton of all those staff, portrayed as troublemakers, things haven't improved.
Surprise, surprise.
It sounds as though things are worse than ever.
Whatever happened to freedom of speech? Or are the staff at Marton now living in the equivalent of a police state? It sounds very much like it. I can't help comparing this with the openness that abounded in Mrs Lancaster's day. Amazing how quickly a whole school can change.
I find the whole situation very, very sad.
Lisa
Continuing Threats
It doesn't surprise me in the least there is still a 'small vindictive minority' group of staff who are mindless backing the actions of the last 2 years at Marton. And these people are continuing to bully staff. I would like to share with you a note that was passed out to staff during last school term. The notes were on A4 size paper and read like this:
FIRE EXITS
This morning the fire exit on the right
side of the stage was blocked yet again
with chairs and staging! This is a
serious breach of Health and Safety!
If this occurs again you will leave me
with no option but to take action
against those responsible.
You have been warned!
Ruth
(22/05/06)
I promise that the above was exactly as I have reproduced - bold letters and exclamation marks included. Draw your own conclusions. Would you be happy with this management style of dealing with health and safety issues if you were employed at Marton. Do you think the children are safer because of it? Draw your own conclusions.
WAYNE HEYS
Lisa,
Where I am employed we have a "no blame culture" quite simply people will make mistakes,but to get them to become more focussed and on board there are no consequences for mistakes so long as the incident is brought to the attention of the management at the earliest opportunity. They way Mrs Coupe dealt with this situation is something you would expect in the 1960,s, partnerships between staff and management are very much the way forward in this day and age,supported 100% by the trade unions,it works !!! and results are acheived,but you do need someone to "steer the ship" who is transparent,honest and understanding.
here maybe lies the problem, I think this is yet another example of poor management techniques, and lets face it who is going to tell Mrs Coupe that she's wrong,the Chairman of the Governors? Director of Childrens Services? i WOULDN'T HOLD YOUR BREATH !!
WAYNE HEYS
Lisa,
Where I am employed we have a "no blame culture" quite simply people will make mistakes,but to get them to become more focussed and on board there are no consequences for mistakes so long as the incident is brought to the attention of the management at the earliest opportunity. They way Mrs Coupe dealt with this situation is something you would expect in the 1960,s, partnerships between staff and management are very much the way forward in this day and age,supported 100% by the trade unions,it works !!! and results are acheived,but you do need someone to "steer the ship" who is transparent,honest and understanding.
here maybe lies the problem, I think this is yet another example of poor management techniques, and lets face it who is going to tell Mrs Coupe that she's wrong,the Chairman of the Governors? Director of Childrens Services? i WOULDN'T HOLD YOUR BREATH !!
mary
Wayne and Lisa, I agree with everything you say. Anybody with any common sense would not be attempting to manage people in this way. You don't have to be an expert to realise that this is not the best way to get people to do what you want. In fact, it is the best way to put their backs up, and make them want to do the opposite.
I despair.
Tracey
lets be clear on this. managing the staff is the last thing that mrs. coupe appears to be doing. I was always under the impression that managers took full responsibility for 'the business', whatever it may be, take on board any negative aspects and move forward to improve working life for all(staff and children). I have a very good working relationship with my manager, but have had many a difference of opinion regarding work. I AM ENCOURAGED TO DISCUSS not intimidated to agree or keep quiet.
I can also say that nothing would be put an a notice board at work in such a blatantly cowardly way, it would be said in open and discussed. How brave they must of felt sneaking it up onto the notice board before anyone came in.... how exciting they must of felt knowing they were going to cause distress to someone who turned to this forum to air their views without fear of retribution. BRAVO! how i would feel safe knowing they were backing me up if my life depended on it.
What next, are they going to hide behind a wall and flour and egg those who don't agree.
of course they wouldn't thats what CHILDREN do. and these people work in a school, how reassuring...........
Alan Veale
The Unions and Human Rights
It may be helpful for many of you reading these posts to understand a little why this situation is so difficult for the teaching staff at Marton in particular.
Normally, when there are difficulties arising in an employer/employee circumstance, one would expect the trade unions to intervene, and for some kind of structured negotiations to take place. In theory, that should have been the case here, but regrettably it is not as simple as that.
Where a member of a trade union wishes to be represented by them in a dispute against a manager, then that is a relatively straightforward scenario provided the member of staff is not in the same union as the manager. It is my understanding that Mrs Coupe is a member of the National Union of Teachers (NUT), so if any of her staff are in the same union, and they are in dispute with her, the NUT are put in a position of a potential conflict of interests. The only solution then would be for the member of staff to resign and join another union – but that also poses a number of problems in itself.
This is a national problem among schools. During the last year I have been amazed how many other schools have been affected with similar situations to this one. In each case the trade unions have had little effect or influence in the outcome – principally because of the “conflict of interest” clause.
I can only add, for Jackie and her colleagues’ benefit, that this latest development has today been brought to the attention of senior authorities, both locally and nationally. This extremely unpleasant situation is clearly aggravating what was already a desperate state for the school, and I am afraid it will be the staff and the children who ultimately suffer. No one should be subject to this kind of abuse, and I believe it is contrary to the Human Rights Act in any event. My advice to any member of staff at Marton Primary School today would be to contact a solicitor, and refer to that Act.
Alan Veale
Rob
Management style
When I was a deputy head in the early eighties we too had a new young head arrive, not many years older than I was, and he too wished to make changes. In those days it was accepted that the deputy head acted as a go-between, if the head had problems I would tell the staff but equally if the staff had problems it was my job to inform the head.
Many times we had differences of opinions, often very heated and in fact so loud and forceful that I was told later that staff were often too scared to enter the staffroom !!!
1990s I had moved on but almost 25 years later that headteacher and I are still the closest of friends. Why ? because our relationship was based on mutual respect. This is the basis of all good management.
Now, from what I have read on this forum Mrs Coupe entered Marton with no respect at all for what had gone before, no respect for staff, children or parents. Positive relationships are not possible with this type of outlook.
