Workforce

The latest news and analysis on the school workforce in the UK and at international schools, including teacher recruitment, retention and shortage subjects

Tuesday

2nd Sep 2025

Part-time training opportunities ‘could add 1,000 teachers’
Rate of successful applicants for part-time teacher training far outweighs the number starting the course, data reveals
Scales with clocks
Exclusive
Teaching ‘an unattractive outlier’ due to lack of remote working
School leaders’ union says job has never been harder, and warns of need for more flexibility
Monopoly board with car

Monday

1st Sep 2025

Early years recruitment could hamper childcare expansion
Pay and recruitment issues persist in early years workforce despite funding boosts, warns a new NFER report
Small child playing a game

Wednesday

20th Aug 2025

Fixing teacher recruitment and retention - lessons from other countries
Three academics outline key insights from their research looking at how Australia, Sweden, the US and the UK are trying to tackle a teacher shortages
Fixing teacher recruitment and retention: research on what works around the world

Thursday

14th Aug 2025

Scottish school leaders’ workload ‘unsustainable’
Budget cuts, staff shortages, lack of support for ASN students – as well as ‘harassment from parents’ – are leaving heads at risk of burnout, finds School Leaders Scotland
Workload concerns flagged in SQA trial of exam script access

Friday

8th Aug 2025

4 ways to make this a great year for Scotland’s new teachers
Too often new teachers suffer unfair pressures in their first year, says Nuzhat Uthmani, who recommends ways schools can better support them
Rocket taking off

Sunday

3rd Aug 2025

More new teachers quitting in Scotland
Since 2018 more than 1,500 teachers have stopped working in Scottish schools within five years of entering the classroom
The number of new teachers leaving the profession in Scotland has increased

Friday

1st Aug 2025

New NASUWT boss: ‘I’m shocked at what teachers put up with’
Speaking to Tes after his election win, former Fire Brigades Union leader Matt Wrack reveals the issues he will make a priority, from teacher workload to poor behaviour and Ofsted’s planned inspection changes
Matt Wrack

Thursday

31st Jul 2025

7 key findings from the DfE’s latest teacher training data
The DfE has released data for the 2023-24 initial teacher training performance profiles
Magnified numbers

Wednesday

30th Jul 2025

Teacher recruitment ‘back to pre-pandemic levels’
Analysis of the latest data shows an improving picture for ITT recruitment, according to NFER workforce lead Jack Worth
Recruitment has improved this year and is now as close to targets as levels since before the pandemic.

Friday

18th Jul 2025

Primary falling rolls leading to staff cuts, DfE survey finds
Leaders say they have had to cut non-teaching staff, reduce the use of supply teachers and some have not replaced teachers when they have left the school, poll reveals
Primary falling rolls leading to staff cuts, DfE survey finds

Wednesday

16th Jul 2025

Swinney threatens councils to cut class contact time
But local authorities say that government funding to date does ‘not come close’ to the true cost of delivering the policy and it could have ‘a detrimental impact’ on pupils
John Swinney