Why did school situation go on for so long?

IN my years as principal in an English school I was only too aware of the financial benefit that attached to each student because, like all other schools, my school was funded according to the exact number of students on roll.

With governors it was my responsibility to employ and pay teachers and support staff according to the budget generated by these students.

With no children, our 100 staff would have been made redundant and we would each have applied for jobs elsewhere. If I had been principal of an empty school for seven weeks, I most certainly would not have been paid.