Between the Prison and the Sewage Works - Maryline Suchley (read aloud books .TXT) 📗

about particle theory.

‘Is the space between liquids smaller or bigger than the space between gases?’ she questioned

‘Anyone? Anyone?’ she asked.

‘Give an example of a solid?’ she asked again.

‘Anyone? Anyone?

Exasperated she said to the class.

‘You know this reminds me of a line in that film sixth sense.’

‘What’s that miss?’ asked a boy who looked like he had a seeded potato for a head.

‘I see dead people!’

‘Ha, ha, very witty, you’re not allowed to dis us like that, I’m going to tell the headmaster and you’ll get the sack.’

‘Be my guest,’ Mara replied dryly.

Tuesday saw Joyce absent again and the secretary seconded to do her note writing job, which she took every opportunity to display her displeasure at; huffing and breathing loudly every second line as if Jim was going too fast and not making any sense.

Within the school the senior management team were busy going through the preliminary report given to them by the inspectors. They informed the staff that on Thursday after school they would report the findings to the whole school, and then each department would have a meeting to go though the department report. Jim also reminded teachers that parent teacher interviews were the following week and all staff were contracted to attend.

The school seemed to quickly fall back to normal as if inspectors had never visited. Roger was away sick for the week and Grace came in to replace him. Gordon looked tired and fed up. He seemed to have lost his appetite and was clearly losing weight. In contrast Jeremy appeared to be eating more; his clothes were tight and he had taken to wearing trousers with an elasticised waist. Mara hadn’t seen much of James; he had told her that he was snowed under and was working though break and lunchtimes. Knowing that James would not be in the staffroom at lunch time and the prospect of seeing Mat solemnly eating his sandwiches, she opted to eat in the prep room. The downside to this was that she had to content with Piles and Daniel, who would talk persistently about anything and everything that entered his head.

‘Piles what that crap you’re eating? ’Daniel asked shamelessly.

‘Tuna in tin, I had a heart attack a few years ago,’ he replied shoving more food through his beard.

‘Smells like cat shit! Mara interrupted insolently.

‘That’s what my wife says, I have to clean my teeth before I kiss her,’ he replied unaware of Mara’s rudeness.

‘With six kids under your belt you must do a fair bit of shagging?’ laughed Daniel.

‘Yeah, my wife’s a bit of a nympho’ Piles replied.

This was all the conversation Mara could listen to. She left to finish lunch in her classroom.

Thursday Morning Mara walked into school with her usual muted enthusiasm. Hearing a car she looked around expecting to see Daniel drive in behind her, but it was Joyce in what looked like a new Mercedes.

Joyce hobbled out of the car with the aid of a walking stick.

‘Good morning Mara.’

‘Morning.' New car?’ Mara asked.

‘Yeah, it’s an automatic; I can’t drive a manual easily because of my hips, so I thought I would invest in a nice automatic from the money I inherited from my father,’ she replied.

‘Oh I’m sorry to hear about your father,’ she apologised not realising that Joyce had had a death in the family, and perhaps that was another reason she had been off work a lot recently.

The anticipated staff meeting was eagerly attended by everyone. Mara had managed to bag a seat next to James, who was looking a little dishevelled, but in a sexy way. Alan despondently walked through the archway marked by Jim and Joyce. The expression on his face said it all; the news was going to be bad.

‘Afternoon,’ greeted Alan.

‘For the past few days we the senior management team, have been going through the preliminary findings of the inspection report. I’m afraid to say it’s not good. We indeed have been put into special measures. This means that although we have not failed, we have been categorized as severely under achieving. Needless to say some areas of the inspection were good but most were poor. The outcome of this is that we will be given objectives and goals to fulfil within a time frame. We will of course undergo another inspection, most probably at the start of term three,’ he paused. ‘We have been assigned an advisor from the Ministry of Education, Bob Parker, he will endeavour to guide and steer us in the right direction.

‘The whole report has not been finalised yet, so will not be made available to all staff until the final draft has been completed. However heads of departments have each been given a copy of their report. Which, as a group you will read and discuss. From this you will be expected to use the findings to construct goals and introduce changes. That’s all for now.’

Joyce had nothing to write and Jim didn’t even go through his list. Alan dismissed everyone and told departments to meet and go through their reports.

The staffroom very quietly disbanded. Mara followed a despondent Jeremy back to the science block. Looking at him from behind, she couldn’t help but notice that he was confidently bursting out of his clothes; the waistband of his trousers wounding his middle with huge rolls of fat trembling from side to side as he walked.

The science department, minus Roger met in Jeremy’s classroom. He gave them all a copy of the report. Quietly Mara read the document.

Department of science.

Thamesmead Polytechnic School.

 

Number of teachers in department: 6.

The department is made up of a mixture of beginning teachers and experienced teachers.

Mara sped read the document until she got to the Summary.

In conclusion, there are serious weaknesses within the science department, with flimsy leadership by the head of science.

The quality of teaching is varied. One teacher in particular showed a good level of teaching ability, while two were satisfactory. However the remaining teachers displayed unsatisfactory teaching with one teacher having showed a diabolical standard of teaching.

Moral within the department is low and newly qualified teachers receive little support in what can only described as difficult circumstances in a difficult school.

It is recommended that the science department receive serious assistance from the senior management team, to deal with rectifying such weaknesses.

The follow up inspection will endeavour to examine the areas outlined above, most significantly addressing the quality and standard of teaching.

Mara’s mouth had fallen open after the first line and stayed open throughout the summary. She knew it was going to be bad but not this awful.

Poor Jeremy! Mara thought. He really has come under fire and as expected Roger got a roasting. Mara now felt as despondent as the students in her cabbage science class.

Chapter Ten

10

 

It was Friday and she had her brother coming to stay for a couple of days. Ángelmí phoned to say he would get an armoured Cab from Paddington straight to Mara’s flat. They planned to go into the City and meet up with their cousin and two of Ángelmí’s friends from University. One of whom worked in the City doing something that Mara thought sounded exciting and had the word banking in it. The other was a Detective in the Police, while her cousin worked in IT for a financing company.

‘Hi sis, how’s things?’ asked Ángelmí.

‘Okay.’

‘Only okay?’

‘Things have been a bit wearing at work lately,’ Mara replied.

‘Of course, you had that inspection. How did it go?’

Over a bottle of expensive wine that Ángelmí’ had bought for her, she told him about what a pile of shit the science department was and why.

‘Sounds like you need another job. You know they’re always looking for teachers in the Hong Kong international schools, plus its good pay and conditions. Do you want me to look into it for you?’

‘Nah, I’ve got to finish my probationary year and qualify as a teacher first, and then I need to find another career, or marry someone rich.’

‘Careful now, use the word marriage and mum and Mo will have you looking for wedding dresses. At least you’ll put pay to her suspicions.’

‘What suspicions?’

‘That you’re frigid!’

‘WHAT. Why does she think that? It can’t be because I’m single. Ángelmí, have you been stirring?’

‘Course not. Anyway in that village if you’re not married with three kids by the age of seventeen you over the hill and in need of electric shock therapy!’

‘What time are we meeting the others?’ changing the subject before it moved on to her current love life, which Ángelmí’ always asked about.

‘Eight.’

Mara and Ángelmí caught the train to Soho and waited in a mock English tavern for the others to arrive. The friends greeted each other with a rugby tackle embrace followed by grunts and slaps on the back. They all sat at a table catching up on old times and drinking pints of beer, except Mara who stuck to the safer white wine option. While Ángelmí and his friends talked about that night they met up with a visiting Californian volleyball team in the student union bar, Mara chatted to her cousin.

‘How’s life in the big smoke Adam?’

‘Good, I’m being paid well but I’m working twelve hour days. I’m not sure it’s worth it. The cost of living is so high that earning more doesn’t necessarily mean you’re better off, and you spend more to live in a better area and there are all the trimmings.’

‘Yeah, I agree, although can’t say I get many trimmings. What exactly do you do with computers?’

‘To put it simply, I analyse data, financial and commercial.’

‘Hey Mara did you know that Mark here was investigating that body they found at your school and the sewage works?’ Ángelmí said, while holding his pint in the air ready to take a swig.

‘Really?’ Mara replied now focusing her attention on Mark.

‘I didn’t know someone else was killed close by?’

‘That’s actually not unusual in your neck of the woods, but I’m not supposed to discuss it, besides we never really found anything, no evidence or link to the body at the sewage works and the only connection with the victim at the school was an ex. The case is stagnant at the moment.

‘An ex?’ Mara asked.

‘I’ve probably said too much already.’ Mark replied now realising that this was probably unprofessional of him.

‘Enough about crime, who’s up for dinner?’ Ángelmí said boisterously.

They moved onto a restaurant which looked expensive, Mara was thankful that Ángelmí was paying. She was enjoying the evening but still itching to know what Mark could tell her, and at the back of her mind she wanted to tell him what she heard outside Alan’s office. They moved onto another bar in Soho for more drinks. Mara seized the opportunity, offering to help Mark carry the drinks back to the table.

‘Mark, I know you can’t disclose information about that case that we talked about earlier.’

‘What case?’ Mark answered, clearly drunk.

‘The body they found in my school, Thamesmead.’

‘Oh yeah.’

‘Well I overheard something in school which I think is connected to the body.’

She then explained what she had heard and consequently her treatment by Alan. Mark showed interest in what she had to say, but knew this wasn’t the time or the place and gave her his card saying that he would contact her again and talk to her properly.

Mara thought she would be cheeky and ask Mark if he could tell her who the connection was.

‘I can’t Mara, but if you really wanted to know you could find out by looking at past employees.’

‘How would I do that?’

‘Ask someone!’

With the topic of conversation closed the rest of the evening carried on until two am. Mara and her brother caught a cab back to the flat. Ángelmí pumped up the airbed and collapsed on it.

The next morning Mara was woken up by Ángelmí bringing her a coffee in bed.

‘Wake up sis.’

‘Uh, uh, thanks.’

‘Are you up for a little retail therapy this afternoon?’ he asked.

‘Yeah why not.’

‘Good cause I thought I would take you up west and