School reps who are giving up the post (for whatever reason) are asked if they could notify the SSTA office even if they have not managed to find a replacement. This can be done by telephone, post or by email. The contact details are below.
Members who need advice should generally contact the General Secretary by email, by letter or by phone if the matter is urgent. The initial contact is not necessarily with the school rep except in the circumstances referred to below or unless the rep has previously agreed to advise or support. The reasons for this are clear: the matter may be confidential or the rep may be unable or unwilling to become involved in the member's problem. The ability of the SSTA to swiftly and professionally respond to members' questions is second to none.
The Association is delighted that any member volunteers to distribute bulletins and other materials to other members in the School but is particularly happy to welcome those reps who can give more assistance at school level. In this regard, reps should use the direct email (info@ssta.org.uk or the email of any official which has been passed to them for their own use). Any reps calling the Association offices are asked to immediately identify themselves as the school rep in order to allow a speedy response. The Association normally expects that this would be within 24 hours during the working week.
All reps who do wish to become more involved in the work of the Association will be offered training. The training may be given over the phone initially. Advice on dealing with any issue is available to Reps at any time. Please email your contact, or info@ssta.org.uk, and we will respond a.s.a.p. Formal training sessions for reps are held in school time every two years. Many Districts have local agreements with the teacher unions that accredited school reps are allocated an additional element of "non-contact time" if the school membership exceeds a certain figure.
While the vast majority of members' questions are dealt with by the General Secretary, there are three particular issues which do require to be dealt with at school level:
- Representation on the School Negotiating Committee: it is not essential that the school rep undertakes this duty. Many schools have a member or members who act as "negotiators".
- The school should appoint a Health and Safety representative who has certain powers at law. The H&S representative can also be the school rep.
- General concerns: the rep may represent members over issues of general concern. This should generally happen only after a meeting of members (convened by the rep) which would establish the nature of the concerns and a strategy for dealing with them. The rep might also contact the General Secretary for advice before taking the matter forward.
In short, the post of school rep need not be onerous; nor will it cause the rep to be frequently troubled by individual member's problems. The reps themselves determine their degree of involvement. The work of our reps is valued and all members are encouraged to consider taking on the role.
Download a PDF of this advice note
Role of School Representative
Presentation by Euan Duncan and Catherine Ross on the Role of School Representative.
Recording of online training session for SSTA School Reps on 12 November 2020
