Seven head teachers are splitting their time between multiple primary schools, Education Minister Daphne Caine has told MHKs.
These include Willaston, Laxey, Manor Park, and Dhoon, among others.
When asked by Jason Moorhouse whether this was a departmental priority, Minister Caine replied, “I wouldn’t say it’s a priority. It’s a movement. I think it’s important to recognise the changing society in which we live, and the changing role of a school within that society.”
She confirmed that Scoill Yn Jubilee and Victoria Road will have a shared head teacher from September 2025 but declined to predict numbers for 2030, stating, “I don’t have a crystal ball.”
Lawrie Hooper pressed for clarity, asking whether federated schools were the “direction of travel” for the island.
Mrs Caine told members: “When the role of head teacher is advertised, applicants are able to apply to be a head teacher of that individual school or to be a head of more than one school.”
Julie Edge raised concerns about policy and funding, questioning whether the model was formally assessed but Mrs Caine said that schools are “assessed on the three-yearly external validation visits,” adding that she had heard no complaints about the arrangement.
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