BEAULIEU has urged parents to support the school after some vowed to keep their children at home on the first day of term in support of a member of staff who has recently left.
The departure of Andrea Firby, who had worked at the school for about a decade and who was regarded by many parents as the ‘face of Beaulieu’, is understood to have caused concern among parents.
Pippa Davidson-Coleshill, chief operating officer, said that Mrs Firby, who was head of school, had agreed to voluntary redundancy.
Ms Davidson-Coleshill described Mrs Firby as ‘the face of Beaulieu for many years’, saying she had ‘led the interaction with parents’ but that she ‘did not teach secondary lessons’ and therefore her departure ‘will not have an effect on pupils on a day-to-day basis’.
The school confirmed that the departure of Mrs Firby, together with other changes at Beaulieu, was designed to ‘streamline the senior leadership team’ to ensure it could invest in frontline teaching. It said such changes were essential at a time of increasing costs, which include a forthcoming pay award for teachers in 2023.
Mrs Davidson-Coleshill added that the school was aware some parents had indicated they would keep their children off school on the first day back as a protest, and added: ‘We would urge them to support us, as what we are doing is in the best interests of the pupils and parents. Our commitment to them is to invest in front-facing teaching, and so something has got to give, as like all businesses we cannot have it all.’
Beaulieu head teacher Chris Beirne said: ‘The board of directors issued an announcement to our parents last week following their desire to support the wishes of Mrs Firby. Matters pertaining to this are confidential and legally privileged.’
The announcement from the board of directors outlines that Mr Beirne has confirmed his intention to retire, but has agreed to wait until the end of December 2024 to ensure a suitable handover period with his successor.
A recruitment process to find a new head teacher is due to begin around Easter in the hope of having someone in place for September 2024, the announcement to parents stated.
The board also explained that it was felt that Mr Beirne’s current role as both headmaster and chief executive of the school should be amalgamated with the head of secondary role.
‘A redundancy review was therefore considered with respect to the head of secondary role and Andrea Firby volunteered to take redundancy.
‘We thank Mrs Firby for her commitment and dedication to Beaulieu during her time with us and wish her well for the future,’ the announcement continued.
The letter went on to explain that ‘no redundancy of teaching staff is being considered’ and that the school was focused on ‘delivering investment in our teaching capabilities’ through ‘the streamlining of the senior management team’.
Parents and guardians of students at Beaulieu Convent School have been invited to a meeting on Thursday 26 January at which the senior leadership team will give a presentation and answer questions.
