Job advert for 'strictest school' wants worker to be 'wedded' to role
Job advert for Britain’s ‘strictest school’ leaves teachers thinking it was a spoof as it wants candidate to work ‘ridiculously hard’ and be ‘wedded’ to the job
- Mercia School for secondary pupils in Sheffield is known for its stringent rules
- The advert for assistant head also said candidates must ‘ooze leadership’
Britain’s ‘strictest school’ has taken no prisoners as it searches for a £62,000-a-year assistant head.
The advert for the role at Mercia School, a secondary in Sheffield, said the successful candidate must be ‘wedded’ to the job and work ‘ridiculously hard’.
It added: ‘We cannot carry anyone; we need a commitment from our assistant headteacher to stay until the job is done.’
The assistant head would also be expected to supervise detentions on Saturdays and attend meetings during the holidays, the job advert said.
They must also be ‘highly talented’ and ‘ooze leadership’ in a role that comes with ‘huge demands’.
Mercia School for secondary pupils in Sheffield (pictured) is known for its stringent rules
The advert, posted on the education website Tes, has since been taken down after provoking criticism online.
Mercia is known for enforcing some of the most stringent rules in the country. Pupils are required to stay in school until 5pm, there is a zero-tolerance approach to mobile phones and a strict uniform policy. But it has proven a hit with parents and is reportedly one of the most oversubscribed schools in the city.
So extreme were the job requirements that some people believed it was a spoof.
One teacher wrote on Twitter: ‘The advert is everything that is wrong in teaching today! It’s exactly why so many (myself included) are leaving the profession. Honestly, it makes me furious!’
Another added: ‘This job advert from a Sheffield secondary is reason #417 why I will never teach in England again.’
Niamh Sweeney, the NEU deputy general secretary, said: ‘It is unlikely that this approach will attract many applicants.
‘People in senior roles can certainly expect higher demands of their time, but we will never get anywhere in dealing with the workload crisis in this country by embedding it further in working culture.’
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