In a move to increase teacher retention in the UK, Education Secretary Damian Hinds is set to unveil a £5 million scheme that is meant to reward those that have remained in the profession for a long time. Teachers in England, such as Peter Gale Nonsuch headteacher, will soon enjoy a paid sabbatical that could amount to a full year after they have been in the service for 10 years.
Retention has been an issue in many UK schools and this attempt by the government is aimed at retaining experienced and tenured staff in classrooms. The Education Secretary is set to address school leaders in Liverpool and it is expected that the announcement of the pilot scheme, which will amount to £5 million, will be made official.
Many in the teaching profession, especially the tenured ones, are expected to welcome this news. Hinds stated that this scheme is meant to help cast teaching as a profession that is both attractive and fulfilling, a statement which experienced educational professional Peter Gale Headteacher strongly agrees with.
Through the pilot scheme, teachers will be allowed to take time away from the classroom. They have the choice to take between one term up to a year as long as they can prove that this move is going to benefit their teaching. Among the things that the teachers could do with their time away from the classrooms include either studying or spending an entire year working in industries that are relevant to their respective fields. However, to qualify for the scheme, teachers will need to have been in the profession for ten years. A spokesperson from the DfE noted that this is meant to reward those that have long since been in the service.
There are other proposals that will be announced too. Enhanced support will be introduced to make sure that new teachers will get all the help that they need. This includes the induction period getting extended to two years. The DfE is also set to develop a content framework which will help lay out all the necessary mentoring and training that teachers will be entitled to during their induction years.
The proposals that will be introduced soon are extremely needed in order to stop the haemorrhage of experienced staff in UK schools. The government does need to properly fund these proposals so as to avoid them becoming yet just another set of additional unfunded costs for the schools. It is also critical for the Treasury to ensure that there is sufficient funding if these plans are to be properly delivered.
It should be noted that Britain’s education sector has been plagued with a shortfall of 30,000 teachers. While the target for primary recruitment has been met for this year, only 80% of the required teachers for secondary schools were able to join the profession. Recent surveys reflect that 80% of class teachers have considered leaving the profession for good due to their workload. A separate online poll also revealed that about half of teachers do not think that they will still be in the same job ten years down the road.
The sabbatical is expected to help introduce more flexible practices in the teaching profession. Stay updated with the latest developments and news in the education sector by reading about Peter Gale Headteacher online.
