It was revealed this week that a headteacher in Scotland wrote to parents suggesting the Union flag could be considered a sectarian emblem, but she’s now apologised for her comments and said she’s been a very naughty headteacher and won’t do it again. It’s a reminder of what flags can do: they drive us a bit demented, and we should be particularly careful about how we use them in schools.

The school in this case is Arthurlie Primary in Barrhead and in her letter to parents, the headteacher Fiona McDonald explained that the Union flag had been used in pictures of staff members at a leavers’ event. Ms McDonald said this had caused “upset” and that her school was one that promoted “inclusion and acceptance, actively working against potentially offensive or sectarian messaging”.

Ms McDonald also said in the letter that she’d spoken to her pupils and explained the symbolism and association of flags and symbols to different groups of people, and how using the pictures was contrary to the school values of respect and kindness. “I hope this helps everyone understand where mistakes have been made,” she said, “and we can move on enjoying the rest of the end-of-term celebrations.”

The language, the tone, the phrasing – “inclusion”, “acceptance”, “offensive”, “upset”, “I hope this helps” – is a good example of the way some people in the public sector have learned to talk, indeed feel they must talk: plaintive, patronising, passive aggressive. I also dread to think what Ms McDonald said to the pupils when she “explained the symbolism and association of flags”; if her letter’s anything to go by, she’s the last person who should be explaining it.

But as I say, the headteacher has now said........

© Herald Scotland