Article Category: Education – Insight & Opinion

Disciplinary investigations are the foundation of any disciplinary proceedings. The investigation needs to be both fair and reasonable, impartial and the accused must have the opportunity to comment on relevant documents and evidence. The recent case of Mr M Whittaker v Governing Body of Sutton Oak Church of England Primary emphasised the importance of these,… Read more »

Our requirements for a particular role have changed and we need someone with different qualifications. Can I redeploy the employee in that role to another site or make them redundant if they refuse?  This is potentially a redundancy situation; the employer’s need for a particular skill set has changed and the need for the kind… Read more »

Sickness absence can be extremely expensive, potentially disruptive and can have a significant impact on the productivity and welfare of colleagues due to increased workloads. A good Occupational Health (“OH”) specialist can be the key for the effective absence management to the benefit of the employer and, often the employee. What should you expect from… Read more »

You may have read my previous blog on the case London Borough of Lambeth v Agoreyo which considers whether a teacher could claim constructive unfair dismissal as a result of suspension. The case has been heard for a second time, in the Court of Appeal, and the ruling is one that teachers and employers need… Read more »

Following the cases of Mezey and Gogay, we are all aware that suspension from duty of a qualified professional, such as a teacher, is not considered to be a neutral act. It shouldn’t be used as a ‘knee jerk’ reaction and could ultimately lead to unfair dismissal claims. Does the suspension of a teacher breach… Read more »

Social media has now become part of everyday life with numerous apps and websites available for people of all ages to connect and interact. Since its inception social media has presented both opportunities but equally many challenges and in this regard the effects it has on schools has been no different. Not everything on social… Read more »

Smartphones in schools are a bug bear of many teachers and parents with pupils using their phones during class and becoming distracted from their lessons. Following, the recent news that France have banned mobiles from primary and middle schools, the question many are asking is: should the UK go as far as other countries and… Read more »

This issue of balancing childcare requirements with a teacher’s responsibilities seems to crop up more and more these days in schools, colleges and academies across the country. The recent case of Bradley v London School of English & Foreign Languages has highlighted the questions of what policies should be in place? Can these be challenged… Read more »

You’ll all be familiar with the DfE’s ‘Keeping Children Safe in Education’ and ‘Working Together to Safeguard Children’ documents. A recent update on, 3rd September 2018 has further strengthened the requirements for schools and academies and bought a new Keeping Children Safe in Education 2018 document into force. So what do these changes mean for… Read more »

I’m sure most people, like me, are fed up with hearing about the new data protection law which has come into force, the General Data Protection Regulation. We’ve all received plenty of messages via email, company advertisements on LinkedIn and warnings on the radio, it’s a difficult subject to avoid. It’s not all doom and gloom… Read more »