THE chief operating officer of Beaulieu Convent School has resigned 18 months after taking on the role – and is set to serve her notice period on gardening leave.
A letter to parents announcing the resignation of Pippa Davidson-Coleshill confirmed that “all her responsibilities have been delegated to other members of staff on an interim basis, with immediate effect”.
Sent on Friday, the letter, signed by trustee Chris Walters, described Mrs Davidson-Coleshill as “an invaluable member of our community” who played a “key role in steering the school through a period of transition over the last 18 months”.
Mrs Davidson-Coleshill was appointed to the newly-created chief operating officer post in June 2022.
She faced a backlash at the end of last year after numerous Beaulieu parents voiced concerns about the sudden departure of head of school Andrea Firby and a subsequent controversial restructuring of the school’s senior management.
This sparked a petition calling for the reinstatement of Mrs Firby and a vote of no confidence in Beaulieu management – including former head teacher Chris Beirne and Mrs Davidson-Coleshill.
The NASUWT teaching union also issued a strongly worded statement warning that it had no confidence in Beaulieu’s management structure, and voiced concerns over the “unusually high” staff turnover and an “increasingly difficult” working environment at the school.
The union questioned why a school of Beaulieu’s size needed both a chief executive (Chris Beirne, who was also headmaster) and a chief operating officer.
An Independent Jersey Schools Review Framework report on the convent school was conducted in November 2022 and made public in January.
Among its findings were observations that some Beaulieu staff had been “over-generous” in their self-assessment, and that recent changes in senior leadership and poor communication had led to “a lack of accountability and a dip in educational standards”.
This was shortly followed by a restructuring of the school’s senior management, and the stepping-back of Mr Beirne, who was headteacher.
Mr Beirne, who was due to retire at the end of 2024, was asked to continue helping with “less visible” elements of the school’s management and teach a “limited number” of religious education lessons.
A follow-up report published in May this year found that the school was taking “effective action” to remedy its problems, including prioritising improving communication with parents, developing a new strategic vision for the school for the next 18 months, and transforming their record keeping systems in relation to the checks that are made on staff.
Mr Beirne’s retirement was announced in September – a year before initially planned, and just nine months after stepping down into the executive director role.
Beaulieu confirmed that deputy head Paul Robinson would continue as acting head teacher until September 2024, when Matthew Burke will take over as permanent head teacher.
