I REFER to your job vacancy for a pastoral assistant at a local school.

It is clear from the job description that there are seven to eight staff in total.

The costs of which must be well in excess of £150k per annum or more than £500 million for England and Wales.

These positions did not exist in my school days, and I can only surmise it is something that started 20 or 30 years ago.

I ask myself why is it needed.

Is it the result of old family values breaking down?

Can it really be justified, especially at a level of one post per 100 children when the old Royal Signals and Radar Establishment had more than 2,000 Ministry of Defence staff covered by one similar post.

NW Mundy

Whitbourne