Moray Council updates Federation Head Teacher Policy for schools
Moray Council’s Education, Children’s and Leisure services committee has today (Tuesday 26 November) approved updates to the Federation Head Teacher policy for schools to help address ongoing difficulties in recruiting Head Teachers.
The revised policy will come into effect from 1 January 2025.
In the last academic session (2023-24), a number of Acting Head Teacher posts were advertised, many of which had to be re-advertised, with one of these still being vacant.
The original Federation policy, agreed upon in March 2024, made modifications regarding school sizes for pairings and a shared Head Teacher from the original Paired Headship Policy. However, as these challenges have continued, the council has made further changes to make the policy more flexible and effective.
The updated policy will prioritise pairing schools within the same Associated Schools Group (ASG). Alternatively, if repeated attempts to fill a Head Teacher post fail, schools from nearby ASGs may be paired, provided the schools are close enough and the arrangement makes sense for both schools.
Additional support will also be provided to Head Teachers managing more than one secondary school to help them balance their workload.
Full details on the updated Federation Head Teacher policy can be found in the committee papers.
Chair of Moray Council’s Education, Children’s and Leisure Services Committee, Cllr Kathleen Robertson, said: “Recruiting Head Teachers has been an ongoing challenge, particularly in our primary schools. This updated Federation policy will offer more flexible leadership options, provide new career opportunities for Head Teachers, and help create a more stable and supportive environment for pupils across Moray.
“We’ll continue aiming to have one Head Teacher per school wherever we can, while working closely with the parent council at each affected school.”