How can it be fair that, having already been assessed as good by inspectors, local authority advisers and my headteacher, I have to jump through hoops - including having to spend time filling in a “short” (according to Ms Morris) form - to get my rise?

Members of my school’s leadership group can have the rise automatically to maintain differentials. If the leadership group contains people who are only adequate teachers, a likely scenario in many schools, then the system is bound to leave me feeling bitter

I cannot progress further on the higher scale because I work in a medium-to-small school and so my higher-scale salary is capped, again to maintain differentials.

Mind you, the governors would not have any spare money to allow me to progress on the scale without having to reduce staffing.

The extra work I have had to put in to make ill-thought- out reforms (Labour and Conservative) succeed over the past 12 of the 25 years I have been teaching, warrants a far bigger rise. Not “something for nothing” but a lot more for the lot more I’ve already given.

Ed Dolphin

7 Birches Road

Allestree, Derby