A teacher faces being struck off after pleading guilty to charges of serious professional incompetence in the first case of its kind in Scotland.
A teacher faces being struck off after pleading guilty to charges of serious professional incompetence in the first case of its kind in Scotland.
Susan Barnard, a primary teacher from Perthshire, admitted three charges of incompetence at a historic hearing in Edinburgh, which paves the way for more cases to be brought.
Until recently teachers could only be removed from the teaching register following criminal proceedings or misconduct, but a change in legislation in 2006 allowed the profession's regulator - the General Teaching Council for Scotland - to deal with incompetence. Yesterday, the GTCS disciplinary committee heard that the 55-year-old had already been sacked by Perth and Kinross Council amid concerns over her performance at Coupar Angus, Comrie and Arngask primaries between 2003 and 2006.
Robbie Burnett, lawyer for the GTCS, told the disciplinary committee that despite "significant management support over an extended period of time to address areas of concern", Mrs Barnard had failed to meet the standards required in her performance.
However, Andrew Gibb, a solicitor for the Educational Institute of Scotland union, representing Mrs Barnard, said she was currently employed as a supply teacher in another local authority area and hoped to keep her teaching registration. "Clearly she's extremely concerned about what the future holds for her and we will be presenting compelling evidence in mitigation, which we hope will enable her to keep her registration," he said.
A hearing early next month will determine whether she will be the first teacher in Scotland to be struck off for incompetence. Removal from the register prevents teachers from taking jobs elsewhere in the UK.
The case has highlighted concerns over the way incompetent teachers are dealt with.
There are currently three other cases being considered by the GTCS but with 63,000 active registered teachers in Scotland, there are fears that some incompetent teachers are not being weeded out.
A Freedom of Information request lodged by The Herald in 2007 revealed for the first time that just six secondary teachers and three primary teachers had been dismissed since 2000 by the 32 local authorities. Of these, seven were sacked by Glasgow City Council.
Gordon Smith, a former president of the Association of Headteachers and Deputes in Scotland, said that until now, if a teacher was deemed incompetent, he or she was merely moved to another school because of the "complex and sometimes Byzantine" process of bringing a case.
"I wouldn't wish this on anyone, but we have to realise this is an issue in Scottish education that perhaps we've ignored," he said.
A spokesman for Perth and Kinross said it was not council policy to discuss individual cases but that "appropriate action" had been taken.
