David Evans, secretary of NUT Cymru, says that he is concerned that some local education authorities are using school mergers as an opportunity to cut down on the number of headteachers and deputy headteachers they employ.

David Evans says, “Any re-organisation of schools involving closure, merger or clustering must be done for the good of the children and with sensitivity and respect for the professionalism of the teachers.

“Until recently, having a cluster of schools under one headteacher has been largely a rural solution to the problem of very small schools. Recently, however we have seen the idea of one head for a number of primary schools being seen as the way ahead in more densely populated areas.

“We suspect that this is a way of saving money on the salaries of headteachers and deputies. It does not make educational or administrative sense. Schools are not factories producing identical products from a conveyor belt. They are living communities where the inter-action between the learner and the teacher is all-important.

“If a parent arrives at a school angry, distressed or worried it may not be on the day designated for the headteacher to be at that school. Headteachers do not just manage the curriculum and the budget. Good headteachers motivate their staffs and inspire their pupils. They work with governors and parents for the good of the school.

“Local education authorities have a duty to make sure that teachers who aspire to headships have the appropriate in-service training. If there is a shortage of potential headteachers in an authority, the answer is not to cut back on the number of headteacher posts. Rather, it is to encourage, train and support teachers to take up the leadership role.

“Sadly however, we have had an example where an infant and a junior school amalgamated. Both schools were served by excellent headteachers. Yet, the new school formed by the merger has appointed a new headteachers leaving the two sitting headteachers without a job. Re-organisation of schools must be done in a way which maintains the confidence of the teaching staff and is seen to be fair to all concerned.

“Saving money must not be the main motivator in school re-organisation. Respect for existing staff while providing pupils with the best education with qualified teachers and headteachers must be fundamental to the organisation of schools within a local authority.”