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The school caretaker on £50,000 a year: He picks up double what a newly-qualified teacher earns



A primary school is paying its caretaker £50,000 a year – double the wage of a newly qualified teacher.

The caretaker, named only as Mr Wootton, receives a basic salary of £38,000. But the school has topped that up with an extra £14,500 for overtime and groundsmen duties which he carries out.

By contrast qualified primary school teachers in the same area can expect to start on just £25,117.

Despite education budget cuts, Mr Wootton has been enjoying the same generous basic salary for the past five years in his role as 'site manager', it was revealed yesterday.

His pay is £13,000 more than the amount set aside for special educational needs at the school, Ravenscroft in Clacton-on-Sea, Essex, according to its budget for 2010-11.


Clacton MP Douglas Carswell yesterday strongly criticised the huge pay package and called on the school's management to 'get a grip'.


Tory Mr Carswell, who has been governor at a neighbouring school, said it was unheard of for a caretaker to be paid so much and said it showed a 'weakness' of leadership.


'I think the senior management team need to get a grip,' he said. 'This money should be spent on special needs and maths teachers.


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'Most mums and dads will ask how can it possibly be right that a large sum of money is going on a caretaker rather than on raising standards or literacy.

'There has been a weakness in senior management at the school for several years. This school is screaming out to be made into an academy.'

Mr Wootton joined the school 31 years ago after leaving the Royal Navy.


High pay: Local MP Douglas Carswell says senior management at the school must 'get a grip'

It is the responsibility of the school governors to hire caretakers and decide their pay. A spokesman for the school defended the payments, claiming it was cheaper to top up the caretaker's salary for his extra duties and information and communications technology work than it would be to bring in an outside contractor.

He said: 'The site manager has been in post at the school since 1982. Since 2007 he has not received any pay increases.

'In addition to his basic pay, the site manager also receives overtime pay which incorporates delivery of the grounds contract and ICT support.

'It is better value for money for the site manager to provide this service rather than using an external provider or employing more staff.'

Essex County Council said the salary had been set by the governors but an outside body had now been appointed to run the school's finances.

'The governing body of Ravenscroft School has recently been replaced by an interim executive board as part of a programme of improvement developed by the county council,' he said.


'Part of the remit of the IEB is to review current staffing costs established by the previous governors and a meeting has been planned this month to discuss this.'A primary school caretaker is being paid £50,000 a year - which is nearly double many teachers' salaries.

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