A perfect storm of Omicron related absences, schools’ finances
drained by Covid, and a crisis in supply of substitute and supply
teachers has left schools facing unprecedented staffing
pressures.
In a last-minute move, Education Secretary, , has written to school
leaders urging them to encourage ex-teachers to return to the
school workforce currently strained by understaffing. Yet the
letter, issued the day before most schools close for the term,
may be too little too late to address the serious issues schools
are facing.
According to the NASUWT-The Teachers’ Union, the
supply teacher market crisis is being compounded by supply
agencies offering low pay and significant delays in obtaining DBS
clearances, which are preventing supply teachers from being
deployed in schools to help solve the current staffing crisis. In
some parts of the country, clearance can take as long as two
months to be obtained, leaving classrooms without staff and
supply teachers without income.
Responding to the Education Secretary’s letter to school leaders,
Dr Patrick Roach, General Secretary of the
NASUWT-The Teachers’ Union said:
“Asking former teachers to return to the profession may have some
publicity merit, but it does not address the immediate and acute
staffing pressures being faced by schools. This gesture will
simply not guarantee that all schools will have the teachers they
need when they reopen at the start of next term.
“Far more action is needed to improve the current market for
supply teachers, which is nothing short of a national
scandal. The Government must address the delays with DBS
clearances and meet the costs of DBS certification so those
teachers who do return to the profession are not left paying the
bill.
“It is also staggering that the Government believes that supply
agencies offer the solution to current teacher supply shortages
when they are a key part of the problem. Supply agencies are
creaming off substantial profits at the expense of schools and
the taxpayer whilst employing teachers on the cheap. Many supply
teachers have left the profession simply because they don’t feel
valued or respected for the work they do. These are urgent
matters that the Government must deal with.
“Due to additional Covid pressures, schools across the country
have run out of the cash they need to employ more supply
teachers. School leaders will need assurances that in order for
them to cover staff absences and remain open to pupils, the
Government will guarantee to provide financial reimbursement when
schools deploy supply staff to cover for any Covid-related staff
absences.
“If Ministers are sincere about minimising disruption to
education, they must urgently look to establish alternative
arrangements which will deliver a better deal for all supply
teachers and respond effectively to local needs.
“Without guarantees from the Government on teachers’ pay and
working conditions, the teacher supply crisis will continue for
some time to come.”
