Award-winning headteacher banned after changing school term dates to go on cruise

Joy Ballard, the award-winning former headteacher who appeared on Channel 4's Educating Cardiff, has been banned from teaching after a tribunal found she changed school term dates to go on a cruise and used public money to buy a car for personal trips. The Teaching Regulation Agency panel heard that Ballard, 59, altered the 2023 Christmas holiday schedule at Ryde Academy on the Isle of Wight so that term ended on December 18 instead of December 15 and resumed on January 3 rather than January 2 – a shift that allowed her to board a cruise. The ship docked at Southampton on the morning of January 3, but Ballard did not attend school for the full day that day, the panel found. Staff were told about the change just a week before the holiday. Multiple witnesses gave “cogent evidence” that the dates were moved to accommodate her trip, and the panel ruled that she had “knowingly and dishonestly changed the dates of the term time for personal benefit”. The change had a “significant impact” on attendance, one witness said. The same investigation revealed that Ballard bought a Peugeot 5008 – typically costing upwards of £38,000 – using school funds without authorisation. She claimed it was needed because of high taxi costs on the island, but evidence showed she used the car for personal trips, including a ferry crossing to France during the 2024 Easter holidays. The car had clocked up 22,000 miles, and its registration was used to book a crossing between Portsmouth and Caen in Normandy. Ballard later admitted driving to France in the vehicle, for which she was not insured. The panel also found that Ballard wasted public money on camping equipment that was loaned to staff for family holidays, a karaoke machine ordered for “house competitions” that was not needed after the school invested in new technology, and two LG televisions bought for the gym that she raffled off. She also admitted to keeping cash from mufti days in her handbag instead of putting it in the safe, delaying banking the money. Ballard, who won a Pearson Teaching Award in 2015 and was praised for turning around Willows High School in Cardiff, provided around 50 character statements describing her as “an exceptional leader” and “the most caring and thoughtful” headteacher. But in her evidence she said: “I am not a rule follower, I like going against the grain to benefit the kids.” She admitted she would not do anything differently except using the school car for personal reasons. The panel found her guilty of unacceptable professional conduct and that her actions may bring the profession into disrepute. She retired from Ryde Academy in August 2024 after concerns were raised in March. She has been banned from teaching in any school, sixth form college, relevant youth accommodation or children’s home in England, but can apply for the prohibition order to be set aside in June 2028.