Superhead Mo Brennan guilty over attendance accusation
A superhead and two teachers were today found guilty of unacceptable professional conduct after attendance records at a Dudley school were altered.
Dame Mo Brennan transformed failing Hillcrest School and Community College, in Netherton, with the help of vice principals Shelley Derham and Linda Westwood.
But a disciplinary hearing heard "inappropriate" alterations were made to attendance registers for some pupils between 2004 and 2007. Today, a Teaching Agency professional conduct panel ruled all three had acted "dishonestly" by changing records.
The panel also ruled: "The misconduct is of a serious nature falling significantly short of the standards of behaviour required of a teacher." Panel members dismissed allegations that records were manipulated to suggest a false improvement in GCSE grades.
Panel chairman Susan Netherton said: "The panel finds that the practice of making inappropriate alterations to attendance registers were misleading as prospective employers and colleges would have an expectation that the information would be accurate and reasonable."
Dame Mo has denied all allegations. The panel will continue to hear mitigation before a decision on action is made in the coming weeks.
