18 candidates chase top £80K job at Nailsea School
By Carol_Deacon | Monday, February 18, 2013, 18:57
Eighteen people have applied for the £80K per annum top job at Nailsea School .
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David New
The closing date for applications was last Tuesday during half term.
Governors at the Mizzymead Road comprehensive are now busy sifting through the forms from some very high calibre candidates.
Head of governors Sally-Ann Hancock said: "We've had 18 applications and I'm really impressed with the quality.
"We are short-listing on Monday evening and I'm confident that we will have some tough decisions to narrow down to six to seven people maximum.
"The interview process runs from Monday to Wednesday, February 25-27 and right now I'm feeling very positive that we will find an excellent new head teacher."
The Times education supplement had advertised nearly half a dozen headships in the West Country including the Nailsea School vacancy.
The comprehensive missed out on the top Ofsted rating from its past two inspections and its job spec asks: "Are you the one to take us from 'good' to 'outstanding'?"
It also asked for numerous qualities ranging from 'highly motivated' to 'enthusiastic' saying it wanted an 'effective, dynamic and inspirational leader who will work with students, parents, staff, governors and the local community to achieve excellent standards in all areas'.
After eight years at the school current head teacher David New shocked the community when he announced his resignation in December last year.
Mr New, aged 57, will officially stay in charge of the 1,300-pupil school until August 31 but the new head should be onboard by Easter, said Mrs Hancock.
Mr New said he was leaving to 'seek new life challenges' one of which includes working with Ofsted.
He has been head teacher at Nailsea School since 2004 and has been teaching for 32 years.
During his time at the helm the secondary has seen some of its best A-level and GCSE results.
Mr New has also overseen the development of a new £32 million school funded by the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) and in August it took on academy status.
Nailsea School which has technology and media arts college status opened in 1959 as a grammar school with 90 pupils.
It became a comprehensive school in 1966 catering for pupils aged from 11 to 18 years.
The school has 137 teaching and ancillary staff and an annual budget of £5.5 million.
Comments
Community publisher Carol Deacon said she wouldn't want this job for all the tea in China and asked: "Would you?"
Parents, staff and pupils posted 'like' status on the Nailsea People Facebook page and others sent emails to carol.deacon@thelocalpeople.co.uk or left the following social media messages.
Photographer and former Nailsea School student Jeremy Long said: "I'd do it for £80K pa - how hard can it be?
"I think I could enjoy it - you are expelled! you are fired! you are suspended! you are in detention!"
Emma Bisacre whose mother once taught primary school in Nailsea put in a plea to bring back former head teacher Robin Gildersleeve who held the fort once between Dr Trevor White and David New being appointed.
But mum Vikki Jones said: " You'd have to pay me double that to do the job.
"One child is bad enough to cope with at that age let alone nearly 1,500 of them.
"Good luck and I take my hat off to the applicants."
Another said they would prefer to keep there part-time school role in the library and some of the pupils chosen to take the prospective head teachers on tour next week said they were looking forward to showing the candidate around there fabulous school.
Any other comments may be posted in the box below.
By Carol_Deacon at 11:21 on 19/02/13
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