Rt Hon David Cameron MP Prime Minister No.

10 Downing Street London SW1A 2AA 6 June 2011 Dear Prime Minister As representatives of the vast majority of school and college leaders in the UK, we are taking the exceptional step of writing to share our analysis of the pensions dispute, which we believe jeopardises our shared aim of successfully implementing the Coalition governments education policies. Representatives of those who work in schools and colleges have expressed their detailed concerns elsewhere about the changes to public sector pensions currently under consideration. Whilst there may be differences in the specific approaches adopted by different associations, the level of agreement is complete. The strength of concern and frustration amongst school and college leaders is unprecedented. Quite apart from this, ASCL and NAHT believe that a prolonged dispute will undermine the ability of our members in schools and colleges to make the policies of the Coalition government succeed. You have a number of radical reforms which will require the full engagement of school leaders to implement and show impact - from phonics and the pupil premium to teaching schools and new approaches to behaviour and the curriculum. This engagement is at risk. For example, large numbers of schools are in the process of academy conversion. This is one of the most far reaching changes the education service has undergone and has had to be managed sensitively at school level, often in the context of significant opposition from classroom unions. School leaders have had to reassure staff about their pay and conditions and manage a climate of great uncertainty. At a time where schools are concentrating on ensuring that the change of status is a success, the last thing they need is a prolonged dispute about pensions which will further distract them from the priority of raising standards. ASCL and NAHT, along with other associations are advising members not to make hasty decisions about early retirement until the full picture is known. However, there is a significant cohort of senior leaders who are poised to take early retirement if they believe that the government is not prepared to protect their pensions. This loss of expertise and experience could derail the academy movement, as inexperienced middle leaders are catapulted into senior positions without the necessary background in dealing with the complexities that come with more freedom and autonomy.

We believe that the teachers pension scheme has a number of features which distinguish it from other schemes in terms of affordability and risk. In addition our associations represent school leaders such as business managers who are not qualified teachers. These professionals have a central role to play in the leadership of autonomous schools and colleges in the current economic climate. We need to be able to recruit and retain the best people to these crucially important positions. We also believe that a number of the proposals disproportionately affect senior leaders in the public sector and that professional associations such as NAHT and ASCL, who are not affiliated to the TUC, have so far been neglected in consultation and consideration. The current proposals for pensions also threaten education standards; an outcome that will ultimately be far more expensive for our country than pensions. In the first instance, the changes will seriously demotivate school leaders and alienate the profession. Nobody is queuing up to be a head teacher at the moment - 40% of primary vacancies go unfilled at the first advert. A pay cut, which is the ultimate effect of the pensions proposals, will exacerbate this situation. You cannot have great schools without great leaders, and so these changes will harm standards. Second, a deterioration in working conditions will signal to the profession that the government is not committed to its stated and welcome aim of making teaching a high status profession. This is a goal which, although subtle, may well have the greatest impact on results in the long run. It was pay not behaviour, for example, which was cited as the single greatest deterrent to becoming a teacher among graduates of the Russell Group of universities and recruits switching from other careers. Third, as the retirement age is raised, we will be faced with an ageing workforce unable to cope with the physical and mental demands, day in and day out, of managing and teaching groups of pupils young enough to be their grand- or even great-grandchildren. This will have a negative effect on the quality of teaching and thus on standards. The Coalition Government and the professional associations representing school and college leaders should be natural allies in the process of education reform. We sometimes disagree, but we share the same ambition, and both our associations have worked closely with the Department for Education on the national funding formula, the reform of performance management, the implementation of the pupil premium and the development of academies. We offer these concerns in the context of our full commitment to the governments aim of making our school system match the best in the world. We need the full and explicit support of the government to achieve this. We would welcome the opportunity to discuss this with you and your Ministers at an early opportunity. Yours sincerely

Brian Lightman ASCL General Secretary

Russell Hobby NAHT General Secretary

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Rt Hon George Osborne MP, Chancellor of the Exchequer Rt Hon Michael Gove MP, Secretary of State for Education