Question to the Department for Education:

To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to address teacher burnout and turnover in special education schools due to low pay and temporary contracts.

There are now 468,693 full-time equivalent teachers in state-funded schools in England, but the department knows that there is more to do to ensure that there are sufficient teachers across the country in both mainstream and special schools. This is why the department has committed to recruiting 6,500 more expert teachers. The department’s initiatives are aimed not only at increasing teacher recruitment in key subjects and areas, but also at ensuring teachers stay and thrive in the profession, including by improving teacher wellbeing and workload.

Fair pay is key to ensuring teaching is an attractive and respected profession, which is why this government has accepted the School Teachers’ Review Body’s recommendation of a 5.5% pay award for teachers and leaders in maintained schools from September. The department is providing schools with almost £1.1 billion in additional funding in the 2024/25 financial year to support schools with overall costs. This matches what the department has calculated is needed to fully fund, at a national level, the teacher pay award in 2024/25 and the support staff pay offer in the 2024/25 financial year, after accounting for the overall available headroom in schools’ existing budgets.

The school teachers’ pay and conditions document for 2024 sets out that an additional special educational needs (SEN) allowance must be paid to teachers in a SEN post that requires a mandatory SEN qualification and involves teaching pupils with SEN. It is for schools to determine the specific amount, but this must be between £2,679 and £5,285 per annum. The school teachers’ pay and conditions document for 2024 is attached and can also be found at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/67165b0d9242eecc6c849b4b/School_teachers_pay_and_conditions_document_and_guidance_2024_.pdf.

The department has made available a range of resources to help address teacher workload and wellbeing and support schools to introduce flexible working practices. The department’s improve workload and wellbeing for school staff service, developed alongside school leaders, includes a workload reduction toolkit to support schools to identify opportunities to cut excessive workload, as well as the education staff wellbeing charter, which sets out commitments from government, Ofsted, schools, and colleges to protect and promote the wellbeing of staff. Over 3,900 schools have signed up to the charter since it was launched in November 2021.

Schools are ultimately responsible for the employment and make-up of their workforce, including the number of temporary staff they employ, as they have the best understanding of their needs and what is needed to ensure every child receives the best possible education.