Teachers offered lie-ins and WFH options to join the profession

by · Mail Online

Teachers are set to be offered lie-ins and work from home options as part of a drive to encourage more people to join the profession. 

The incentives are designed to encourage a better work-life balance in order to attract new recruits and prevent teachers from leaving the classroom all together.

Other proposals include giving staff two free periods a week for a lie-in and a nine-day fortnight. 

The report published today by the education charity Teach First hopes that by providing teachers with a 'flexibility' entitlement they might attract Gen Z workers into the profession.

A survey of 3,000 16-24-year-olds published by Teach First found that while 73 per cent regarded teaching as a job with purpose, 42 per cent thought it looked stressful and 36 per cent thought it was poorly paid. 

All Saints Catholic College in Kensington (pictured) is one school which has already started offering incentives to make teaching more attractive. Every teacher enjoys a double period off one morning a week
Russell Hobby (pictured), the CEO of Teach First, has said that changes in the workplace are needed to in order to inspire the next generation of teachers to join the profession
Andrew O'Neill (pictured), the headteacher at All Saints Catholic College, told The Guardian : 'Teaching is a performance profession. You need to be on your A-game every single day of the week and that's difficult'

Russell Hobby, the CEO of Teach First, has said that changes in the workplace are needed to in order to inspire the next generation of teachers to join the profession. 

Mr Hobby said: 'For too long conditions in the teaching profession have failed to keep pace with what the next generation of workers crave in a career – and what they can find in other sectors.'

'This means that, despite having huge respect for teachers, Gen Z are simply not signing up in sufficient numbers. This is holding back the education of our young people, especially from poorer backgrounds.'

The new Labour government included in its manifesto a plan to recruit 6,500 new teachers and in order to reach that goal Education Secretary, Bridget Phillipson, intends to put measures in place to make it more convenient for staff to work from home.

Under the plans, headteachers will be told they can let their staff do marking and lesson preparation from the comfort of their own home.

The plan would give teachers the option to take their free periods in blocks at the end or the beginning of the day, enabling them to work from home while looking after children, or to complete the school run.

Meanwhile some schools across the country have already started offering incentives to make the job more attractive. 

The report published today by the education charity Teach First hopes that by providing teachers with a 'flexibility' entitlement they might attract Gen Z workers into the profession
A survey of 3,000 16-24-year-olds published by Teach First found that while 73 per cent regarded teaching as a job with purpose, 42 per cent thought it looked stressful and 36 per cent thought it was poorly paid

At All Saints Catholic College, a state school in Kensington, every teacher enjoys a double period off one morning a week. 

Read More

Teachers to be allowed to WFH under plans to tackle recruitment crisis in schools

The headteacher at the school, Andrew O'Neill, told The Guardian: 'Teaching is a performance profession. You need to be on your A-game every single day of the week and that's difficult.

'My approach has always been that we need to treat teachers like elite athletes. They are given the best treatment. They are looked after and they're cared for.' 

Staff use the extra hour before work to take their own children to school, exercise or enjoy a lie-in. 

Shocking date from the Department for Education revealed that almost as many people left teaching as entered it. A staggering 43,522 left the profession last year as 44,002 joined. 

To prevent to continued hemorrhaging of staff from the profession, Pepe Di'Iasio,  the general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders has said she will support any measures that make teaching more attractive, 

The new Labour government included in its manifesto a plan to recruit 6,500 new teachers and in order to reach that goal Education Secretary, Bridget Phillipson (pictured), intends to put measures in place to make it more convenient for staff to work from home
Teachers are set to be offered lie-ins and work from home options as part of a drive to encourage more people to join the profession. The incentives are designed to encourage a better work-life balance in order to attract new recruits and prevent teachers from leaving the classroom all together 

Ms Di'lasio told MailOnline yesterday:  'We support anything which helps to make teaching more flexible and improves the attractiveness of the profession as a career choice amidst an ongoing recruitment and retention crisis.

'There will be a lot of detail that needs working out on this proposal and we look forward to discussing this with the government.

'This initiative may help to a certain extent but it is important to understand that it will not be enough to solve the problem of teacher shortages.

'The only way to do that is to improve pay and conditions.'

A Department for Education spokesperson told MailOnline: 'Teacher recruitment and retention is in a parlous state. That is why the Education Secretary has already begun a reset of the government's relationship with the sector, with the intent to re-establish teaching as an attractive, expert and ultimately go-to profession for graduates.

'We are taking steps to support teachers' wellbeing and ease workload pressures, including clarifying that that teachers can carry out their planning time at home, improving flexible working for staff.

'This is on top of the confirmed above inflation 5.5% teacher pay award and the range of published resources to help schools address teacher workload which will work to ensure that teachers not only stay in the profession, but thrive.'