NEU comments on EEF review on Flexible Working

Commenting on a review of flexible working as part of the solution to the crisis of teacher recruitment and retention, written by the National Foundation for Educational Resource and published today (Wednesday) by the Educational Endowment Foundation, Daniel Kebede, General Secretary of the National Education Union, said:  

"Better flexible working arrangements along with better pay and workload reduction will make education a more attractive and fulfilling career. 

"Decades of underfunding by the government, unsustainable high workload and below inflation pay increases are driving teachers, leaders and support staff out of the profession.  A resurging labour market and new ways of working since the pandemic also means education is looking less attractive to graduates. 

"If the government is serious about reversing the current recruitment and retention crisis it should be encouraging schools to have a flexible working policy and to share good practice of flexible working arrangement within education.  If the government is serious about reversing the current recruitment and retention crisis, it should read this report very carefully and improve flexible working arrangements for our members working in schools and colleges."