Teaching Commission Focus Group Summary: What do early career teachers say about teacher recruitment and retention?

SSAT Leadership Legacy Fellows were invited to join this important discussion about the recruitment and retention crisis facilitated by Professor Mary Bousted, Chair of the Teaching Commission, and Commissioner Angelina Idun.

The Leadership Legacy Fellows (LLF) have all been nominated by their headteachers or principals to take part in a year-long SSAT programme which develops their leadership skills and supports their commitment to a long-term career in the profession. The Fellows, teachers in years 3-5 of their career, are often at the sharpest edge of the recruitment and retention challenge, balancing full teaching timetables with other responsibilities.

Introduction

Professor Mary Bousted, Chair of the Teaching Commission began by highlighting concerns about the experience of teachers in English schools, referencing the 2017 Tallis Survey and other recent research and data about the workforce.

• Teachers in England experience double the level of stress compared to their international peers.
• They work the longest hours outside the classroom and do the most unpaid discretionary overtime.
• They are less likely to be asked for their opinions within their schools.
• In the past year, 10% of working-age teachers left the profession.

Professor Bousted shared with the teachers some of the key questions the Teaching Commission, supported by the major unions and others, has been exploring as it investigates the root causes of the teacher supply crisis:

• What it is about the current system that drives stress and workload?
• How do teachers feel about their day-to-day working lives?
• Why are so many early career teachers leaving the profession and how they can be better supported?
• Why do so many mothers in their 30s step away from the profession?
• How does teaching compare to other industries in terms of workload, flexibility, and wellbeing.

2. Challenges of teachers’ working lives

Teachers representing diverse contexts, different phases, and regions shared rich insights into how recruitment and retention issues are impacting their working lives. The discussion included the following:

Workload and increasing responsibilities

• Absorbing the workload of teachers who leave, meaning class sizes increase instead of replacing staff.
• Trainee teachers become a more attractive option due to limited budget which can impact the workload of those providing support.
• Every year, there is more pressure and more tasks are added: marking, Ofsted preparation, and additional interventions
• Setting cover for supply staff is hugely time-consuming; teachers often have to pick up on behaviour issues from some of these classes.
• The teaching day is intense, leaving little time to manage personal needs like eating lunch, as interventions run through breaks and after school.
• Teachers report constantly feeling guilty about not doing enough, even when going above and beyond all the time.
• Teachers are expected to wear many hats, from teacher to provider of emotional and mental health support, second parent, and more.
• The workload feels immense, with more and more responsibilities each year.
• Family life and teaching are seen as incompatible, with both female and male teachers noting this conflict.

Structural and systemic issues

• ITT quality is perceived to be declining, and new teachers are not adequately prepared.
• SEND students often wait months or years for assessment.
• The threshold for support for many families in need is so high and schools, teachers and leaders are doing more to provide support.
• Staff shortages result in non-specialists delivering key subjects, especially in science.
• Since Covid, teachers deal more with societal and pastoral issues.
• Many feel they work harder and longer than peers in other sectors but are paid less and offered no flexibility or remote options.
• Schools care and try to support on wellbeing, but when a crisis with a child has to be dealt with and where there are systemic pressures, it feels like virtue signalling.

Parental pressure and public perception

• A strong sense that respect for the profession has declined in some communities.
• Teachers highlighted a growing lack of engagement and support from parents, giving examples such as blocked school phone numbers and instances of verbal abuse.
• Increasing pressure from parents, including unrealistic expectations about teacher availability and responsibilities.
• Instead of offering support some parents question the value of subjects or blame teachers for issues beyond their control.
• Despite schools doing all they can to support families providing drop-ins, workshops et

c, parental engagement is inconsistent.

• Some felt there is a culture that frames teaching as a thankless job.

Impact on identity and wellbeing

• There is a desire to teach excellent, inspiring lessons but there’s little time or energy to plan and deliver them.
• Teachers expressed guilt about never doing enough, even when already going above and beyond.
• Pastoral and form tutor roles need much more time than is available in current timetables.
• Teachers ask themselves whether vocation is more important than family.
• Several described seeing their students more than their own children or partners.

3. Why teach?

Despite the difficulties, teachers spoke powerfully about their motivation and commitment:

• Genuinely wanting the best for children.
• A sense of responsibility: “We want all the children we teach to do well.”
• For many, teaching is more than just a job — “it’s my life” in a way that feels distinct from other professions.
• The drive to create inspiring, high-quality lessons continues to motivate teachers, even when the reality makes it difficult to do so.

4. What keeps teachers going – and what would persuade them to stay.

Participants shared factors that sustain them in the role, as well as suggestions to improve retention and job satisfaction:

• Strong relationships with colleagues, a supportive staff culture and positive school ethos.
• Leadership that listens to staff through initiatives like focus groups and actively supports staff wellbeing.
• Open-door policies and feeling involved in and trusted to make professional decisions.
• Freedom to be creative in lessons “dancing around explaining why Henry VIII had 8 wives”.
• A belief in making a real difference to children’s lives, especially at a time when so many teenagers are experiencing difficulty.
• The human contact, the buzz, and the energy of the classroom which can be “addictive.”
• Having far more time for planning, marking, and assessment.
• Being given time for research or professional curiosity, even as little as six hours a year, is greatly valued.

A huge thank you to all the SSAT Leadership Legacy Fellows who shared their thoughts and experiences. Your insights will be invaluable as the Commission works towards shaping recommendations to improve teachers’ working lives.