martonschool.myfreeforum.org

HM · Something to Say Joined: 16 Oct 2005 Posts: 48

UNBELIEVABLE
I have just received a copy of Mr Turner's Christmas newsletter to parents (no I do not have children in school but care very deeply about the quality of education being provided in the school for future generations and am a council tax payer !).
Statistics can mean all things to all people - and how well this letter proved this. Mr Turner kindly points out that results are published on the DfES website, so PLEASE visit it and look for yourselves :- http://www.dfes.gov.uk/cgi-bin/pe...mp;Year=06&Base=p&Num=890
There is a very simple graphic on this site which shows very clearly how Marton is developing - and cuts right through everything in Mr Turner's letter.

This clearly shows Marton's progress falling compared to Blackpool schools and schools nationally. Something which would have made a colourful addition to the Christmas Newsetter.

I wonder how Blackpool councillors justify the expenditure over the last two years on Marton, in the light of this fall in attainment in comparison to other schools. Especially bearing in mind the report in the Gazette just before Christmas, announcing loss of jobs in an attempt to save £300,000 - it must have cost something near to this figure to settle the matter of the 2 teachers who left Marton school last summer when the payout, the year's salary, the supply cover and all the legal fees were added together !
All those moving on from the CSA because of job cuts will be pleased to have received recognition in Mr Turner's statement in the Christmas Newsletter. I quote :- "A number of difficult issues have been resolved during the year".

Lisa · Reaching Full Speed Joined: 06 Oct 2005 Posts: 69

The man is a joke! The school is on its knees. Thank God my children are receiving a good education elsewhere.
_________________
Unthinking respect for authority is the greatest enemy of truth.

Albert Einstein

Tracey · Reaching Full Speed Joined: 16 Oct 2005 Posts: 69

i would like to know what these difficult issues were? were they possibly the large number of staff that have left Marton? perhaps they were parents who had asked questions and ended up removing their child/children? perhaps it was the suspension of a the assistant head and subsequent exhoneration of Bev Alderson?
Perhaps it was something that wasn't of significance to marton? I have no idea on this, as with the majority of Mr.Turners newsletters there appears to be little substance but plenty of wind! sorry hot air....

WAYNE HEYS · Posted: Fri Jan 05, 2007 3:53 pm Post subject:

Perhaps its a chairman of the Governors who does not seem to have the ability to hold this post
Perhaps its the council to which he refers,lets face it they have buried their heads so far into the sand the next time they come up for air they will be in Brisbane !!
Perhaps its the Action Group, after all we simply wont go away, perhaps the statisistics shown above are fabricated, perhaps Mr Lund has been right all along, perhaps perhaps perhaps
OR perhaps many mistakes have been made, ridiculous decisions taken, yet no one from the council or senior management team at Marton has the honesty to answer the many many outstanding questions posed by parents old and new

Ronald · Fledgling Poster Joined: 25 Oct 2005 Posts: 3

I would just like to point out one thing the results under Mrs Coupe are still better than the appalling result in 2003 under Mrs Lancaster.

Also in one of the posts above they have stated that Mrs Alderson had been exonerated, where is your proof she has been exonerated as far as the Gazette report (Beverley Alderson, assistant headteacher at Marton Primary School, has had her suspension lifted – 11 months after it was imposed. Her shock departure last July came amid "certain allegations" which have never been revealed. After months of negotiation a deal has been struck between the school, Blackpool Council and Mrs Alderson through her union, the NASUWT. A joint statement says the situation "has been resolved to the satisfaction of all parties".) and the joint statement released a deal had been made thats all she has never been cleared or exonerated.

Tracey · Reaching Full Speed Joined: 16 Oct 2005 Posts: 69

hi ronald, yes a deal was apparently reached by both parties. obviously part of this deal was that there couldn't be any disclosures of information from either party. this can be viewed differently depending on your viewpoint.
I believe that i look at the information available in a logical manner, it appears to me that if there had been any substance in the allegations made against mrs. alderson then no such deal would of been made. Would it also be accurate to say that any 'serious' allegation found to be in any way substantiated would ensure that mrs.alderson would never be employed in education again. I believe that this is not the case and that she has been able to pass her teaching experience onto other children.
you are correct that it took some time for the suspension to be lifted but i believe this was down to the length of time it took the current headteacher (mrs.coupe) to put any case together.
obviously if you have any further information on the deal that was made please feel free to post more information on this site.
yet again ronald, your help is greatly appreciated.

WAYNE HEYS · Posted: Sat Jan 06, 2007 1:01 am Post subject:

Ronald please read the rest of this board !!, if Mrs Alderson had been guilty of anything at all, do you honestly believe that the proganda machine which relates to Marton would not have been put on overtime to get the message out.
To date neither Mrs COUPE, Mr Turner nor good old Mr Lund has offered any explanation just why this teacher was banished from the school with a week to go before the end of term.
Do you think a deal would have been reached if the authorities had a case to dismiss her for whatever reason in the first place ?
To exonerate Mrs Alderson may not be correct ( I do not know) but the failings of the disciplinary panel to find a case against her raises significant questions.
In many other walks of life there are many ways to skin a cat, to get rid of an unwanted employee you can promote them,sack them or pay them off, either way Mrs Alderson was not sacked, so I turn the question round Ronald, why wasn't Mrs Alderson sacked if she was guilty of wrong doing ? My child was in her class at the time so I have a vested interest, I WAS TOLD SHE WAS OFF SCHOOL FOR THE FINAL WEEK IN FRONT OF APPROX 100 PARENTS DUE TO PERSONAL REASONS, most of us in the hall new she had been suspended, I have spoke to a parent who confronted Mrs Coupe earlier that week to clarify this point and asked her directly if she had been suspended, yes guess what, the parent was again told Mrs Alderson was off for personal reasons. So whether or not she was exonerated isn't really the issue is it, wake up smell the coffee and ask more direct questions of the authorities that are slowly suffercating the life out of Marton !!

WAYNE HEYS · Posted: Sat Jan 06, 2007 1:09 am Post subject:

Sorry Ronald, in your last post (Last October i think) you go out of your way to tell us all how happy the staff at Marton are and how no one is stressed and put out a happy family impression, I would be interested to know your views on the current exodus of staff leaving the school and the difficulty finding quality permanent teachers to work there.
Look back at YOUR post, it appears to be way off the mark would you not agree ?

Ronald · Fledgling Poster Joined: 25 Oct 2005 Posts: 3

Thank you for your points Tracey, but my main query was that Mrs Alderson was not exonerated or cleared, you say "it appears to me that if there had been any substance in the allegations made against mrs. alderson then no such deal would of been made." If there was no substance to the allegations why did she deal at all, surely you would fight to the end to clear your name, I would.

I would still like to point out one thing the results under Mrs Coupe are still better than the appalling result in 2003 under Mrs Lancaster.

I would like to know how many of the people registered actually have children at the school now.

billandben · Mildly Opinionated Joined: 06 Oct 2005 Posts: 29

I'm really glad to see some stimulating discussions taking place on this website again. It never fails to amaze me how narrow sighted some people are.
Now I'm not well up enough on the stats to explain the 2003 results fully. But I seem to remember something about this particular figure being a blip. Look further back and you'll see what I mean. Perhaps someone else can expand on this. Mrs Lancaster's record of achievement is second to none. I'll dig out my old paperwork and come back with the stats.
The 2004 results are down to Mrs Lancaster as Mrs Coupe didn't join the school until September 2004. The SATS results for 2004 are based on the results of children who had been educated under Mrs Lancaster's management. I know because my son was one of the children who was a statistic within the 2004 results. The standard of education during 2004/05 went downhill rapidly. It was abysmal. The way that sets were changed for lessons was ridiculous. Thank goodness for me that my son was in Year 6 and had two fantastic teachers - Mr Farley and Mrs Alderson. Despite the ridiculous changes that Mrs Coupe made to the sets and lessons, those 2 teachers managed to hold things together. But look what's happened since.
Wake up and smell the roses!
Oh and another thing - do you honestly think it's OK to have children's standards of education reduce 2 years on the trot as long as it's not as bad as one-off low figure you pluck up from several years ago? We are supposed to be in an ever improving society.
I am soooo glad that my children don't have to suffer the Marton education.

HM · Something to Say Joined: 16 Oct 2005 Posts: 48

Thank you for your input, Ronald.
I am the one who posted the graph above and saw immediately that the 2003 results were included. I could have chosen to remove them but did not because I am aware of the history of the achievements of the staff at Marton over recent years.
Yes 2003 was a disappointment (putting it mildly) as was 2002 actually. Looking back over the years at results (which is probably easiest to do from the BBC website, which I use, but also through the DfES site which is a bit trickier) you can find that previously Marton's results were much higher than the average for Blackpool schools - which they have not been for 2005 and 2006 since Mrs Coupe took over e.g.
1999 Marton 224 Blackpool aver 198.8
2000 Marton 233 Blackpool aver 217.2
Results are expected to go up and down - so it will be interesting to watch results if Mrs Coupe stays at Marton.
However, I did not post my original message to begin a debate on league tables - I am sure that I am as sceptical as many people about them - BUT to point out the fallacies of what Mr Turner was trying to say. Whatever the reason, achievement in the last two years has been worsening and his Chrsitmas newsletter cannot disguise that fact.
Following the scores of 2003 the staff worked extremely hard to turn the WHOLE set of results round and achieved that admirably in 2004. Yes we must be grateful that Maths was turned round this year following the appalling drop in 2005 - but this, as we know, was due in no small part to staffing and money put into the school by the CSA and hours and hours of maths each week for Y6. The other two subjects dropped again. It was also to the detriment of other subjects during the last year - until then Marton had always believed in an all round education for the children and not a school simply 'chasing targets'. This is an ethos which seems to have disappeared and is, I think, of more importance than a discussion of league tables. It will be interesting to see this year if all subjects are improved or will one subject only be targetted again - and will the CSA once again help the school out ?

Finally I have to answer your question, Ronald about children at the school. I feel very strongly about your question because I believe that any person in a society should feel able to join any debate about anything which affects the society in which we live. I do not have children at Marton BUT how do I know my children, friends or neighbours may not have children in the future and need a good quality primary school ? I do not hunt foxes, have no direct connection with fox hunting but still believe I have the right to object to it. Iraq is not affecting me personally - other than the enormous funding being spent by the current government - but I feel I should have the right to hold an opinion on our presence in that country. Should I leave the country then ? I have no doubt that many registered on this site no longer have children at the school - that does not prevent them from having the right - as you do - to express an opinion on education locally - something which affects deeply the local community both now and will in future generations of our children.

R. Thornton · Reaching Full Speed Joined: 13 Oct 2005 Posts: 99

I too am pleased that Ronald has posted and raised points which have not been aired for a while - namely the situation regarding Mrs Alderson. This featured on this forum for a long time and answers from the authority or school were never forthcoming. Ronald - you ask why Mrs Alderson did not continue to clear her name - as you say you would have. The agreement was reached through ACAS - isn't it possible that she felt her name had been cleared through this process ? As you say details have never been published.
I have just checked the ACAS site and it states clearly its aims :-

Acas has a statutory obligation to promote the resolution of claims to the Employment Tribunal under most jurisdictions. This core function accounts for the largest single element of Acas' resources.
Why choose conciliation?
You can get a clearer idea about the strengths and weaknesses of your case, and ways of resolving it.
You can avoid the time, expense, risk and stress of going to a hearing.
Any settlement will be on terms agreed by you, not imposed by a tribunal.
Everything can be kept confidential - tribunal hearings are public.
The settlement can include things not available at tribunals (for example, a reference).

Their success is measured by the number of settlements reached without the use of a tribunal. You ask why Mrs Alderson did not refuse ACAS and go on to a tribunal ? I can think of many reasons - thinking of her family, being out of work for so long, being a reasonable person who wanted the dispute settled, the authority accepting at the ACAS hearing that she had done nothing wrong and so were equally agreeable to settle by paying out a large sum of money on condition that Mrs Alderson took it no further (yes this last is pure conjecture but as you point out, Ronald, results were never fully publicised).

As you ask, why Mrs Alderson did not take it further to clear her name - we might equally ask why the Authority and Mrs Coupe did not continue to a tribunal to sack her. If Mrs Coupe felt she had the right to suspend her for a year then why was this not continued unless there was no longer a reason for her suspension - i.e. she had been cleared of whatever was the reason in the first place.

What is clear is that, as once again you rightly point out, the public has never been given any real answers or explanations to what went on. I may not be connected to the school now but am a tax payer. Blackpool council members have NEVER explained how the payment of a suspended teacher's salary, a supply teacher's salary to cover that suspension, legal fees incurred by the CSA, fees incurred by governors and meetings, the final payout to the teacher can be justified when, as you so rightly point out, we do not know if she was exonerated or cleared, we do not know fully why she was suspended. (yes I have checked - suspended teachers' salaries are not met by insurance as supply cover for sickness is - it is met by school budget). Are councillors asking questions of Mr Lund or Mrs Coupe ? Has it even been discussed in the light of the cutbacks announced recently in the Gazette ? Are councillors happy to allow headteachers and the education chiefs to fritter away money in this way when people are losing jobs ?

sandi12 · Fledgling Poster Joined: 07 Jan 2007 Posts: 1

For Ronald……….

I am a Headteacher and a colleague and a friend of Mrs Alderson. Recently I was able to read the excellent reference written by the Director of CSA, Mr Lund, about Mrs Alderson’s professional skills and abilities as a teacher and leader. It is a fact that there can be no greater exoneration for Mrs Alderson than having an excellent reference from Mr Lund.
It is also a fact that Mrs Alderson has worked full time since mid September, in Blackpool and now in Lancs. This too could not be the case had Mrs Alderson not been completely exonerated and free to pursue her career.
It is amazing that a vindictive minority continue to attack an excellent teacher's professionalism in an attempt to cover their own inadequacies.
It is a fact that most teachers in Blackpool and Lancashire are intelligent and educated and understand that a party only offers a deal when they have something to hide.
We are aware of what has really happened in this sorry affair.

AR · Something to Say Joined: 12 Feb 2006 Posts: 31

Sorry Ronald,
I must pick you up on your comment "I would still like to point out one thing the results under Mrs Coupe are still better than the appalling result in 2003 under Mrs Lancaster"
I am afraid that you have taken that score on the graph out of context. If you look at the graphs you will notice that results have fallen whilst in Blackpool and nationally results have improved. In 2003 results generally were pretty bad - or they were marked differently. Either way this year (2006) finds Marton school at its lowest ever position in the Blackpool primary tables - 2003 was not as bad because in context Marton's scores reflected Blackpool's.
Look at the tables on the DfES site for 2006 - here are the bottom positions :-

1. Sorted by value added.
Marton
Baines Endowed
Moor Park

2. Sorted by aggregate scores
Marton
Hawes Side
Baines Endowed
Devonshire
Mereside
St. Cuthbert's
Claremont

In 2003 or any year, Marton has never been so low down the tables. So you see - 2006 really are the worst ever results. Think of points in the premiership league table. A team might have more points now than it did in 2003 BUT be in a worse position - in the relegation zone even, because the other teams also have more points.

Alan Veale · Master of Posters Joined: 07 Oct 2005 Posts: 118

Statistics have never been something about which I would like to argue. All too often one side of an argument can be turned on its head by someone “manipulating” the same set of figures. This is a favourite trick of many managers in industry when faced with awkward questions, and those self-same managers will often employ professional statisticians to ensure that the results can always read in their favour! Far be it for me to accuse David Lund or Ruth Coupe of any wrong-doing(!), but I do note that, despite frequent requests, Mr Lund has never produced any firm answers regarding the money spent by the LEA on Marton Primary School. Mrs Coupe’s version of last year’s SATS results (issued recently to parents) is also a radically different version to the ones referred to in HM’s graph above.

Also, while I note that “Ronald” has come in for some ear-bashing as a result of his earlier post, may I remind you that this forum is open to ALL – no matter what their point of view. I, for one, welcome his contribution as it has stimulated a lively debate so far. That is to be encouraged, and I would welcome any further “pro-Coupe” postings so that it is clearly seen that open debate is what this forum is about.

I have often heard it said that this is “the Action Group website”. Nothing could be further from the truth. While there have been many postings here from those who may support our views, the forum is independently controlled by admin, and I myself have previously fallen foul of that anonymous administrator! I am aware that the site is visited by Mrs Coupe, Mr Lund, Blackpool Councillors, our MP’s and even the DFES. Anyone is in a position to post here, anonymously if they wish, just like all the many other thousands of similar sites on the World Wide Web.

There is one thing about this particular site, though: certain persons whose names appear above are desperate to see this forum closed down! They cannot abide “having their dirty washing aired in public” – and will jump at any opportunity they can to complain to admin if the content becomes defamatory in any way. I therefore ask all who use this site to respect the rules referred to by admin, and to express their views honestly, without any recourse to personal abuse.

But keep making your voices heard!

Alan Veale