Mercia School Sheffield: Headteacher behind 'unhealthy' job advert told schools 'are not a dictatorship'

Mercia School in Millhouses posted a job advert for an assistant headteacher on February 16 demanding any applicant should be ready to work “ridiculously hard”, be “wedded” to the job and even give up Saturdays to haul children in for detention. The militaristic posting, calls on applicants to be “alert 7am through 6pm” and allow the role to “dominate your life on occasions”.

Now, an education union in Sheffield has criticised the listing as promoting an “exploitative” culture in schools. Secretary for the National Education Union in Sheffield and Green Party candidate Toby Mallinson told The Star: “Our bread and butter is the health and wellbeing of our members and having highly motivated staff in classrooms leads to better outcomes. Unfortunately this advert appears to highlight a management culture that looks quite exploitative. It is well beyond their contractual expectations.”

The advert was published online on February 16 and asked applicants to apply by March 10 – but it was taken down within a day after it went viral. While some defended the advert as “honest about the roles of an executive leadership role”, many readers online decried it, with some describing it as “toxic” and “everything that is wrong with teaching today.”

Several also noted how the 11-page posting, written by headteacher Dean Webster, speaks in the first person in several parts.

“I am seeking a highly skilled and talented individual, with a thirst to learn,” the job advert reads. “We are very protective of our culture and want a likeminded individual who will work ridiculously hard to deliver for our pupils. When I state ridiculously hard, I mean it!”

Union representative, Mr Mallison, said: “The first lines of the job advert are in the first person as if the writer owns the school, which is, I would say, very unhealthy. It’s not a dictatorship. The writer doesn’t own the school. It’s unprofessional.

“How can anyone who’s just had kids or planning to apply for this? It seems counter-intuitive to everything we know about health and wellbeing. It affects anyone who’s got caring responsibilities but also, it would seem, discriminates women under the Equalities Act.

“And if that is the culture, when students and staff can be expected to attend on Saturdays, that can lead to a very unhealthy environment. Whether they push out good exam results or not, teaching is about respect, and treating staff and students with respect. This is an education establishment and they should be leading by example.”

Labour’s candidate seeking election as MP for the Sheffield Central ward in the next election, Abtisam Mohamed, said the advert “shouldn't be the kind of leadership we seek to promote in our schools”.

Mercia School and Mercia Trust did not respond when asked to comment about the language used in the advert and whether it was exclusionary against young families or people with dependents.