Reducing Teacher Workload

What the government is doing to reduce unnecessary workload for teachers, including details of the workload challenge.

Documents

Reducing teacher workload: action plan

Ref: DFE-00076-2017PDF, 212KB, 9 pages

DfE protocol for changes to accountability, curriculum and qualifications

Ref: DFE-00114-2015PDF, 108KB, 2 pages

Details

Information on the government’s policy to help remove unnecessary workload for teachers.

The reducing teacher workload action plan sets out the steps we will be taking following the findings from the teacher workload survey 2016.

We developed the DfE protocol in response to the 2014 workload challenge survey. It sets out our commitment to:

• introduce minimum lead-in times (the times schools have to prepare for the changes they need to make) for significant changes to accountability, the curriculum or qualifications
• do more to consider the workload of staff in schools when introducing such changes

Published 2 October 2015 
Last updated 20 March 2019 + show all updates

1. 20 March 2019 Updated for March 2019.
2. 5 November 2018 Updated with details of the Teacher workload advisory group report and the joint letter from the Secretary of State for Education and sector organisations to all school leaders.
3. 24 July 2018 Added ‘Working together on workload: planning’ video to ‘Reducing teacher workload’ policy paper.
4. 21 July 2018 Updated policy page to include details of the ‘Workload reduction toolkit’.
5. 30 May 2018 Updated to include summer regional events and details of the Secretary of State’s speech about the importance of removing unnecessary workload.
6. 10 March 2018 Updated ‘Reducing teacher workload’ policy paper with latest actions.
7. 17 January 2018 Register for events in Manchester, Sheffield, Exeter, London and Cambridge.
8. 10 November 2017 Updated policy paper with information about the workload reduction toolkit that’s in development.
9. 24 February 2017 Updated policy paper with details of latest actions and research. Also published DfE action plan.
10. 26 March 2016 Added links to reports from the 3 teacher workload review groups.
11. 5 February 2016 Added information about the teacher workload survey which will run from 29 February 2016.
12. 2 October 2015 First published.