‘Opportunity of a lifetime’ for rural primary headteacher Given the shortage of headteachers in primary schools governing bodies could be forgiven if a note of desperation crept into their advertisements.
Governors at Leverington Community Primary school in East Anglia aren’t desperate, but like other seekers of the holy grail they’re keen to be noticed. The head’s job of the small village primary school is described as the “opportunity of a lifetime”, which might be gilding the lily ever so slightly.
The Group 2 primary has 171 children on roll and nestles cosily in the middle of Leverington, just outside Wisbech. Teacher recruitment isn’t an issue just in the inner cities; rural areas suh as East Anglia can also find it hard to attract staff. This school is already one teacher below complement.
Lovers of rolling vistas shouldn’t apply; this is fen country with a flat horizon and the remote possibility of the North Sea as an unwelcome visitor to large areas of the county.
Despite its rural location, the school serves a challenging catchment area and an Office for Standards in Education report in 1998 identified serious weaknesses. A spokesperson said that the school was well on target to meet OFSTED’s concerns and a reinspection which could remove the serious weaknesses tag was imminent.
Further details from EPM, tel 01480 436937; closing date November 17.
