OVERHAUL NEEDED TO STOP TEACHER EXODUS

Schools need to provide better access to well-being services to prevent a mass exodus of teachers

That’s the warning from leading school business manager, Tracey Gray, who argues that the main factors driving the exodus are being neglected:

Two in five teachers ‘expect to leave the profession within the next five years’ with stress and an excessive workload cited as core drivers behind the departure.

It is absolutely vital that schools widen their understanding of the factors that are leading to long term absences.

It’s clear that the current system needs a complete revamp. A pro-active approach is required to support staff well-being and access to well-being services needs to be drastically improved.

Our most expensive resource are our teachers and they need investment to feel valued – we need to consider the impact on retention.

Worrying statistic revealed that more than half of teachers surveyed by the National Education Union believed their work-life balance had got worse or much worse in the past year and one in five said they predicted to leave the profession within two years.

The malign of the education system is partly down to simple economics – rising pupil numbers and budget cuts – have seen a real term reduction in school spending.

According to analysis by the Institute for Fiscal Studies, the amount spent per pupil in England’s schools has fallen by 8% since 2010.

A survey by the National Union of Teachers, revealed the roots of the problem run deep with one in five schools being so strapped for cash they have had to ask parents for financial contributions.

However, Lord Agnew, the government’s academies minister, believes that the first step to solving the crises is to find and eliminate wasteful spending.

One initiative looking to help cash-strapped schools save money that has already received the public support of Lord Agnew is Education Mutual.

Established the organisation in 2018 alongside a group of other education professionals, the service gives schools the autonomy to manage their own staff absence and healthcare, supporting a journey of continuous improvement enabling an open culture around absence – particularly around mental health. us to successfully meet our duty of care and develop

Education Mutual has been set up ‘by schools for schools’ and looks to give educators the flexibility to design their own staff absence cover to match each school’s exact needs.

Tracey Gray, Founding Director of School Healthcare and Absence Cover Provider, Education Mutual