While newly-qualified teachers in England scramble for primary jobs, those in Scotland have a rather more relaxing summer.
Instead of having to apply to dozens of schools, NQTs in Scotland are guaranteed a job for their induction year.
They simply fill in a form listing their five preferred local authorities and wait to be allocated a position in one of them. Efforts are made to meet their preferences.
This guarantee, which applies to teachers trained in Scotland or whose training was paid for by the Scottish executive, was introduced in 2001 as a result of the McCrone reforms.
Now, with workforce reform under way in England and Wales, the NASUWT would like to see the benefit extended to the rest of the UK. But this on its own may not be sufficient to solve the problems in England.
Professor John Howson, a recruitment analyst, estimates that a 10 per cent cut in the number of places for primary trainees is needed to prevent any growth in the mismatch between the number of NQTs and the number of jobs.
