Lancashire College Principal Resigns After Unfair Dispute With Governers

[DPS Computing]

Thought I would post this hear on the off chance that anybody went (as I did!) to the highly successful Holy Cross College, which has not only won countless awards and year on year goes up in the rankings and is currently in the top 10 colleges in the country for exam results (as well as having a 100% pass rate with (G)NVQs and vocational qualifications), or anybody else that is angered that such a successful and insperational principal such as Mr. Micheal O'Hare, who has helped countless thousands of students on there way in life, many of whom are now in some of the countries most sought after and important jobs (heads of comapnies, CEOs, government officers just to name a few!) has been pushed into a corner and ultimately been forced to resign by a petty board of governers!

The story has angered so many people it has been reported in the TES (Times Educational Supplment) as well as the Bury Times on more than one occassion and has started an uprising on Facebook! (which you are of course free to join - the group is called "Re-instate Mike O'Hare").

The Facebook group calls for the resignation that has been handed to the Board of Governers to be rejected and the entire board of governers to resign. Since the story broke 2 staff governers as well as 2 other governors, including a former principal and important part of the college, Sister Mary Kelly, have tendered their resignations to the board with immidiate effect.

Students rally behind principal

Joseph Lee
Published: 25 January 2008

Successful college boss resigns after disciplinary action for sharing his concerns about his proposed deputy

Internet-savvy former students of a sixth form college in Greater Manchester are using the social networking web site hosting Facebook to speak up for a principal who has resigned in a row with the chair of the college board.

More than a thousand students and former students as well as current staff are protesting after Mike O’Hare, 63, one of England’s most successful principals, resigned from Holy Cross Sixth Form College in Bury.

He had been given a written warning after being accused of a breach of confidence, having told nine senior staff that he opposed the proposed candidate for deputy principal.

Two staff governors, a teacher and a member of the support staff have also resigned in protest.

The college has the second highest exam success rates in the country, based on numbers of students who qualify after starting their courses. It is rated as outstanding by Ofsted and was named as one of the UK’s best small companies to work for by The Sunday Times.

The Facebook group supporting Mr O’Hare was started by former student Nick Andrews, who left the college in 2003 with five A-levels.

“We all knew he was going at some point, but we wanted him to go out in the right way,” he said.

“He’s a very, very well-respected man. He’s always there in the common room saying hello. He’s not the type of principal who just sits in the office and you only see him on open days.”

A letter to the governors objecting to the treatment of Mr O’Hare has been signed by 187 staff at the Lancashire college.

Mr O’Hare, who has worked at the college for 28 years, insists he could not have been expected to do his job without discussing things with his senior management team.

“I feel that I have been unfairly treated,” he said. “The idea that this was a breach of confidence – I just can’t accept that.

“In this day and age, when colleges are managed by teams of people, not by individuals, the idea of not communicating with my team is absolutely inconceivable. That’s how we’ve always worked.”

Mr O’Hare worked at the college as an A-level economics teacher before becoming principal 15 years ago. His resignation came at the end of a seven-month dispute, which started when he was overruled on the selection panel to choose his deputy.

He wrote to the governors to outline his concerns, but was accused of a breach of confidence when he shared them with his senior management team. His appeal before a panel of five governors against the written warning was unsuccessful and he resigned.

TES, 2008 - http://www.tes.co.uk/2568067

1,300 back campaign to reinstate college head
By Gaynor Clarke

A CAMPAIGN supported by more than 1,300 people is calling for the principal of Holy Cross College to be reinstated.

As reported exclusively in the Bury Times last week, Mr Mike O'Hare resigned from the Catholic sixth-form centre after a dispute with the chairman of governors.

The Bury Times has since learned that Sister Mary Kelly, vice-chairman of governors, has stepped down from her seat on the quality and standards committee, while two staff governors have also resigned from their positions.

The group calling for Mr O'Hare to be reinstated has been set up on social networking website hosting Facebook. Yesterday lunchtime, a total of 1,301 had joined up, and members were also calling for the board of governors to resign.

Current and former students, colleagues, and members of the community have inundated the Bury Times with praise for Mr O'Hare and their dismay at the situation. More than 135 comments have been left on the Bury Times website hosting in the past week.

The Bury Association of Secondary Heads has also expressed its "immense regret" that Mr O'Hare will leave the college on a negative note, rather than with "honour and celebration".
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Mr O'Hare will leave the college in August after 15 years at the helm, during which it has become one of the best sixth-form centres in the country.He said: "I have been overwhelmed and delighted with the support I have had. The support and friendship I have experienced over the last few days has been very moving. It is quite humbling to see how many people have supported me."

But Mr O'Hare says he is still planning to leave the college at the end of the summer term. He said: "I have been so taken aback by all the support that I haven't really thought about whether I would stay. At this stage, I really want to see how events pan out. With a written warning, I would not be happy to even contemplate staying at the college."

Mr O'Hare handed in his resignation this month after a dispute over the appointment of a deputy principal in May last year. He disagreed with the selection committee's preferred candidate and wrote to the chairman of governors, Anne Fox, to express his concerns. He also discussed the matter with staff at the college in Manchester Road. But Ms Fox claimed that he had breached confidentiality by speaking to the staff members and issued a written warning. An appeal was dismissed, prompting Mr O'Hare to resign.

Statement from college governors

A statement issued to the Bury Times yesterday by the governing body says: "The College's Principal, Mr Michael O'Hare, has recently tendered his resignation with effect from the end of this academic year. The governing body has accepted the Principal's resignation with regret, and thanked him for his contribution to the college's continued outstanding success.

The governing body is unable to comment on internal disciplinary proceedings, however the matter has somehow been placed in the public domain, and this has led to substantial inaccuracies.

Although the governors are restricted by their Code of Conduct from releasing confidential information, they do feel that they need to correct the following factual errors in the reporting of this matter: 1. The Principal was not disciplined as a result of any disagreement between himself and the Chairman of Governors, nor indeed any other member of the governing body.

2. The Chairman of Governors followed the college policies and procedures throughout the disciplinary process. The role of the chairman is specifically prescribed in the College Disciplinary Policy, and this does not allow the Chairman of Governors to preside over both an initial disciplinary hearing and a subsequent appeal.

3. Sister Mary Kelly, the college's former Principal and governor of many years has not resigned and she remains a valued member of the governing body.

The governors will continue to respect confidentiality in this matter whilst attempting to maintain a dialogue with staff and students to reassure them that all steps will be taken to ensure the college's future success."

Bury Times, 2008 - http://www.burytimes.co.uk/news/bury...llege_head.php

Note: - Since the publication of this article the groups membership has risen to over 2000 members.

On a personal note myself - what a legend he is and he will be sorely missed. It seems any type of "government" or "governers" in this country have gone completely bonkers!