The head teacher at Scoill Phurt le Moirrey will continue on as acting head for Rushen Primary into the next school year.
Simon Murphy took on the additional role from July 1 last year after it was announced that Rushen’s head and deputy head were being seconded to other duties with immediate effect.
Their departure came only days after Rushen Primary took part in the pilot for the new school external validation process, with the inspection team having visited the school on June 27 and 28.
Suzanne Owens, who took over as head teacher at Rushen Primary in 2017, officially remains in that role - and her signature appeared on the students’ end-of-year reports.
In a message to parents in the school newsletter, Mr Murphy said: ‘I wanted to drop a quick note to say thank you for welcoming me into the community at Rushen and allowing me to be part of such an enjoyable year.
‘I’ve been asked to continue in the role going into next year and look forward to seeing everyone again after the holidays.’
In a statement, the Department of Education, Sport and Culture said: ‘Ms Owens remains the head teacher at Rushen Primary School. Therefore, in line with normal practice, her name appears on school reports.
‘Mr Murphy has been asked to continue in the role of acting head to ensure strong and stable leadership for pupils, staff and the wider school community for the time being.
‘School reports are written by class teachers and then quality assured by the head of phase. Where necessary, any concerns are reviewed with Mr Murphy and amendments made prior to release.’
Rushen Primary has still not published the results of last year’s inspection.
The DESC says at this stage there remains no timescale for the publication of the external validation, and says it will be published on the school’s website when the process is complete.
Rob Kelsall, NAHT’s assistant general secretary, has claimed there were examples of schools leaders being suspended for 10 months and then facing further ‘baseless’ allegations despite an independent investigation concluding there was no case to answer.
He posted on X (Twitter) that the NAHT would ‘not stand by and see school leaders forced out of their jobs and left crushed’.
It is understood that the position of Ms Owens and deputy head Miss H. Wardman is among the examples being highlighted by the union.
The DESC says it completely refutes the NAHT’s allegations – including suggestions of a toxic culture and abuse of policies.
In a statement issued back in May, the department said: ‘We believe the concerns stem from a matter that has been under discussion for some time and remains subject to ongoing internal processes.
‘While we recognise the impact on those involved, it would be inappropriate to comment further to ensure due process, fairness, and confidentiality.’