THE headteacher of one of East Lancashire’s largest primary schools is to step down at Christmas.

Kendra Allen, who has been in charge of Heasandford Primary School, in Burnley, since 2002, will take early retirement at the end of the autumn term.

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Mrs Allen said that the main reason for her departure from the three-form-entry school, which has 650 pupils, was to travel the world with her husband.

She cited the range of reforms that are coming in, such as changes to assessment and the squeeze on school budgets, as motivations for why she might start to hate the job if she stayed in her post for much longer.

Mrs Allen said: “One of the main reasons that I’m leaving is because me and my husband Terry have a bucket list as long as my arm and we want to visit as many places as possible.

“I also want to leave because I absolutely love my job and, with all the changes that are coming in the profession now, I don’t want to lose that.

“There is a new assessment regime and Ofsted regime coming in, and budgets are becoming increasingly tightened.

“I don’t want to be one of those headteachers who ends up hating the profession. It was a very difficult decision to take early retirement as I love my job and I love the school.”

Mrs Allen has been the headteacher at the school for 14 years and was headteacher at the now defunct Todmorden Road Primary School in the town for three years before taking up the post.

She was also the headteacher at St John and St Michael’s Primary School, in Rochdale, prior to that appointment.

Deputy head teacher Jackie Hall will run the school during the spring term until a replacement is found.

Mrs Allen, 56, added: “I’m proud that the school building has been refurbished twice in my time and that it looks almost completely different from when I started.

“The children are delightful and the staff are fantastic too, and we are very well supported by the parents as well.

“Running a school of 650 primary school-age pupils is a unique challenge and I have really enjoyed it.”

The deadline for applications for the post is noon on January 4, 2016, and the successful candidate is expected to start on May 1.