'Schools should make tackling teacher stress top priority' says NASUWT
Commenting on the Teachers TV survey on teachers' wellbeing, Chris Keates, General Secretary of the NASUWT, the largest teachers' union in the UK, said:
"The Teachers TV survey results come as no surprise. They confirm the results of similar surveys, including those undertaken by the NASUWT.
"What is needed, however, is not a plethora of surveys but urgent action by employers on the clear evidence that teachers are suffering high levels of stress.
"The critical issue is to tackle excessive workload and working hours and to secure the contractual entitlement teachers have to a satisfactory work/life balance. The changes made to the teachers' contract over the last six years have all been designed to do just that, but still too many schools are not ensuring that teachers receive these benefits and entitlements to protect their health and enable them to work effectively.
"I welcome the fact that the Government is currently putting legislation through Parliament to enforce compliance at school level with the teachers' contract.
"Teacher wellbeing and tackling stress should be a top priority for schools as they impact on teaching and learning and raising standards.
"The NASUWT workload audit conducted in 2008, to which over 16,500 teachers and headteachers responded, identified lesson planning and assessment as the top drivers for workload. The Teachers TV survey also highlights this.
"It’s about time that schools and local authorities made a concerted effort to stop burying teachers in paperwork that is designed to provide a paper trail for inspection rather than support teaching and learning. This alone would radically reduce the stress on teachers."
