Council education directors in Scotland are warning that headteachers could use new “untrammelled powers” to exclude more pupils and turn away children with special needs.

The Association of Directors of Education in Scotland (ADES) has hit out at the Scottish government over its plans to devolve more power to headteachers, saying the proposals have not been properly thought through or costed.

They also warn that money once spent on learning and teaching could be redirected to pay for the business managers headteachers say they will need if they are to manage bigger budgets, and for higher headteacher salaries.

They say: “It is of serious concern to ADES that funding which should be directed to supporting improvements in learning and teaching could be redirected to business support and enhanced salaries for headteachers.”

They add that the power the government plans to confer on headteachers to appoint their own staff teams could lead to “claims of unfair or constructive dismissal, and grievance procedures, all of which would be a distraction from managing learning and teaching”.

The ADES made its comments in its response to the Scottish government’s consultation on the law it intends to introduce to give headteachers more power, the Education (Scotland) Bill.

The ADES says that, whilst it strongly supports many of the principles contained in the proposed legislation, such as empowering headteachers and engaging parents in school life, it disputes the idea that these should be addressed by the “force and compulsion of legislation”, warning that this approach carries “significant risk”.

A key part of the proposed bill is the Headteachers’ Charter, which sets out the duties and the responsibilities that the government thinks heads should have.  

The ADES “advises strongly against the introduction of the Headteachers’ Charter through law”.

However, if the charter is introduced, the ADES calls for it to “state beyond doubt that schools are to be inclusive”.

It says: “The practical implications of some proposals present real risks to children’s learning, inclusion and Getting It Right For Every Child (GIRFEC). Vulnerable children are particularly at risk.”

‘Risk of more pupil exclusions’

The ADES continues: “Giving headteachers untrammelled powers outwith the framework of local authority policies could result in a significant increase in the number of pupil exclusions from school, as is the evidence from other parts of the UK.”

Last year Tes reported that in some areas of England - where school leaders had more autonomy - permanent exclusions had shot up by as much as 300 per cent in a year. Meanwhile, in Scotland last year permanent exclusions were all but wiped out, with only one recorded.

The ADES suggests a better way forward would be for it to work with inspection body Education Scotland to help to address the perception that in some areas “headteachers do not have sufficient freedom”.

It says: “ADES will work with Education Scotland to share good practice and bring about change using regional improvement collaboratives, as appropriate.”

Responding to the comments, Jim Thewliss, general secretary of secondary headteachers’ body School Leaders Scotland, said headteachers saw the bill as an opportunity to respond more directly to the needs of the young people in their communities.

Secondary headteachers were fully committed to comprehensive and inclusive education, he stressed, and would be seeking an increase in their salaries whether they were handed more power or not.

Mr Thewliss said: “Workload has gone up at the same time as the number of people doing that work has gone down, and expectations have increased. Like everyone else in the profession, headteachers want a review of their salary structure.”

A Scottish government spokeswoman said: “Our reform proposals are based on sound evidence of how high-performing education systems work.

 “We intend to give headteachers a clear, firm legal basis for their right to make key decisions about learning and teaching in their schools, including decisions about staffing and management structures. In doing so, headteachers will be expected to work collaboratively with parents and local authorities and ensure pupil participation.”

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