Secondary teachers ‘want more flexible working patterns’
A report by the National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER) says there is an “unmet demand” from secondary teachers wanting to reduce their hours.
A lack of part-time and flexible working opportunities is an important factor contributing to some secondary teachers leaving the profession, and is preventing others from returning.
With the number of secondary school pupils in England set to increase by 15% between 2018 and 2025, the NFER’s report says attracting and retaining enough teachers is “a key challenge”.
However, the report also highlights four main concerns voiced by school leaders when a member of staff asks to work part-time or flexibly:
- Ensuring continuity for pupils and timetabling different working patterns;
- Constraints on other forms of flexible working;
- Communication issues – with other members of staff as well as parents; and
- Additional costs.
Despite this, the co-founder of Flexible Teacher Talent which supports teachers and schools with flexible working requests thinks the benefits far outweigh the disadvantages, saying “in-term absences and general sick days decrease”, “staff retention is higher” and “schools spend less on recruitment”.
Click here to read the full story on the BBC’s website.
Further reading:
Schools week – NFER: 1 in 6 teachers want to reduce their hours