THE reign of Catherine Dobson as head at St George's Primary has been highly successful except in one area - her relationship with the vicar.

When she arrived three years ago, St George's was failing and she knew there were difficulties with the Rev Richard Lindsay, who lives opposite the school.

But despite that, Mrs Dobson, 49, devoted herself to her task and was confident she could build bridges with him.

She was particularly pleased to be at a C of E school, because she firmly believed in the value of a church school education.

Today, the Mossley school has glowing reports after she and her staff turned around low test results and poor learning.

Ofsted praise

In June, the head, who has been in the profession for 27 years, was praised by Ofsted inspectors for her leadership skills and the progress she had made in the classroom.

She expected her achievements to be supported and valued by the school's governing body, of which Mr Lindsay is a member.

But she says no matter what she did, she could not please the minister and the bridges she wanted to build have fallen short.

Mrs Dobson, who is expected to take up a headship at another Tameside school, said: ''St George's is a wonderful, successful school with lovely children and I've had a lot of support from staff, parents, the LEA and the Diocese. But I no longer feel I can run a school in this situation.

''I was aware of the difficult situation with the church, but I was determined to build bridges and did everything I could think of to foster good relations.

''However, problem after problem has arisen. Every time I tackled something and solved it, a new problem would occur. It has been a constant battle.

No alternative

''My decision to leave was not reached lightly, but I feel I have no alternative.''

Mrs Dobson has clashed with the vicar over how religious education and worship is covered at school. They were also in dispute about access and maintenance costs at their adjacent sites.

Deputy head Maggie Mathers is also leaving the school to become a literacy consultant.

Mum Ionie Charles, whose six-year-old daughter attends the school, said: ''Everyone is upset that we're losing two great teachers. This is not just a clash of two personalities - a long line of teachers have had problems''.

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