Under-fire Saltus Grammar School head Claire Charlemagne is urging disgruntled parents to contact the school with their concerns.

And the recently-installed head has also been given the backing of her Parent Teacher’s Association and Board of Trustees, which praised the school’s recent track record and achievements.

Ms Charlemagne spoke out following media reports that a group of dissatisfied parents was circulating a letter listing a catalogue of complaints about how Ms Charlemagne — who became the school’s first woman head in its 126-year history on her appointment last year — was running the school.

Although The Royal Gazette has not seen a copy of the letter, it is understood that issues raised by ‘The Concerned Parents of Saltus’ include a high turnover of staff, trips overseas for teacher training programmes, and an atmosphere of “fear and intimidation under Ms Charlemagne’s leadership”.

In a newsletter circulated to parents on Wednesday, Ms Charlemagne said the school took all concerns “very seriously”.

“We make every effort to meet with parents and address all concerns that have been raised, but in this case it has proven difficult due to the anonymous nature of the group and the fact that it was not sent to us,” Ms Charlemagne said. “I encourage all parents to bring any concerns they may have to the school so that we can work together to make this the best school possible for our children.”

A member of the school’s PTA, who asked not to be named, defended Ms Charlemagne, pointing out that she was implementing policies that had been devised and approved by the Board of Trustees.

And the PTA member also questioned why parents had circulated complaints among themselves without approaching the school in order to get them resolved.

“The school is in the fourth year of a seven-year transition programme that was put together by the trustees,” the parent said, adding that she was not speaking in an official capacity for the PTA.

“Ms Charlemagne is simply implementing those changes, and is perhaps being criticised simply because she is the public face of the school.

“But if parents are not happy with any changes, or have any other issues, there are proper channels through which they can be addressed.

“They can contact the PTA, which will put those concerns to the head and get a response. If they’re still not happy, they can approach Ms Charlemagne themselves.

“If they’re still not satisfied, they can go directly to the Board of Trustees.

“And if all else fails, we should remember that, as parents, we are all customers.

“Saltus is a private school and if we don’t approve of the way it’s run, we can shop elsewhere. Nobody is forced to send their children to Saltus.

“But I don’t think anyone on the PTA is aware of any of these concerns because we haven’t been approached and we haven’t seen the letter.

“We can only address these problems if we are told about them. You can’t expect change if you don’t get involved.”

Last night Board of Trustees Chairman Gil Tucker said many of the complaints were “normal operating issues that can be dealt with if they are communicated through the many channels that we have available”.

Mr Gil said the school’s financial position was “excellent”, faculty turnover was at its lowest in four years, and overseas teacher training trips were necessary “if you want your teachers to have the best tools for teaching the students”.

“At Saltus, we have channels in place and welcome parents, faculty and staff to voice their concerns.

“Both the PTA and Head of School have met with parents and faculty on a number of occasions to discuss and resolve issues that have arisen.

“I have also met with several parents. It’s all part of the regular operations of a busy school.

“Our Head of School encourages open dialogue and provides opportunities for parents and staff to share concerns and bring forward suggestions and has met with them on a regular basis.

“We meet with anyone who wants to air their grievances. As a part of addressing concerns, we also met with every single department before school closed. We also conducted an employee relationships survey.

“We remain committed to listening to the concerns of our parents, faculty and staff. An example of this is the hiring of two teaching assistants for the Upper Primary department, which is a direct response to parental and faculty concerns.

“The school’s leadership team works very hard to nurture communications with parents and faculty.

“We encourage all parents and faculty to bring any concerns they may have forward via the many channels that are in place at the school.”

The Royal Gazette understands that Ms Charlemagne has organised one-on-one meetings with every parent once the new term starts in order to discuss any issues they may have. Similar meetings were held last year.