I had to dust off a word from the past this week - flabbergasted. I used it in the context of hearing that a provider of DPO Services now required 12 months notice to leave their service!
A review of their Terms and Conditions and Notification of Termination revealed what my legal friend described as 'intentional ambiguity'. He used another phrase from the past - "coach and horses" - in respect to what you could drive through the terms of the contract.
In the interest of transparency and clarity I did approach the provider of the service but was told they negotiate directly with their clients independently and were unable to confirm the actual legal requirements around giving notice to me.
My advice would be that any schools facing a similar challenge may want to challenge the contract terms that applied when they started the contract, rather than rely on those currently being offered. It is not legal or ethical to change terms, without mutual consent, once the contract has started.
Being tied for a year to a provider you want to leave doesn't sound like fun.
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