to be annoyed with the government about teachers being laid off

[noblegiraffe]

This news story says that teacher numbers have fallen by 10,000 in a year in England.

The DfE says something along the lines of it being because more schools are becoming academies and heads have the freedom to use their own professional judgement to decide staffing structure instead of having it foisted on them by the LA.

My experience is that my school had its budget cut drastically by the Tories, which forced us to convert to an academy just to stay afloat. Despite becoming an academy, we were still short of cash and had to lay off a load of teachers - including in core subjects. As a result of this, class sizes have got bigger and we have had to reduce support and intervention, for example to crucial C/D borderline students and students who come to school on very low levels. Sixth form provision has been reduced and is looking like it might be reduced further as there are more cuts planned in the next few years. These have been difficult decisions to make and are in no way seen as a good thing by the school.

The government trying to spin this as a positive result of their academy programme has really pissed me off.

[FullBeam]

An interesting article, noblegiraffe.

It also suggests that teachers employed by the L.A. have lost their jobs. Advisors and consultants maybe?

Also, in our school many roles have been taken by non-teachers which were done before by teachers on a light timetable. eg Head of Year, Exams Officer, timetabling, cover. This must have a knock on effect on the number of teachers employed. Also, there seem to be more TAs and fewer SEN teachers and more cover supervisors and fewer permanently employed supply teachers.

[noblegiraffe]

Wow, do people really not give a shit about the effects of government cuts on schools and the lies the government is spouting?

[FashionEaster]

Banging my head against a brick wall when it comes to getting students with SpLD support - no money is the message. Litigious parents are saying you are not meeting our child's needs. They are right.

Also know an academy that has gone about getting rid of staff in the most iniquitous of ways.

[roughtyping]

It is very tricky to get a job in Scotland just now. Councils are currently struggling to find supply teachers as they've slashed the rate of pay - for day-to-day, short term supply, a teacher is paid £50 after tax for a day's work, regardless of their experience. Understandably, many teachers are refusing to do any supply at the lower rate of pay. I don't have a choice unfortunately :( I've been working long-term as a supply teacher so paid at my "proper" scale point, but the contract finishes in a couple of weeks so I'm back to taking what I can.

[roughtyping]

Oh, and when head teachers raised the issue at a union meeting and the union reported to Mike Russell (Scottish Education minister), his reply was to train more teachers. The year I graduated, there were 450 of us graduating from a postgraduate course at one university. There are far too many teachers.

Argh, not going to type more as I'm getting upset now!

[FourEyesGood]

I care about this stuff. I really do. Our school is being threatened with academy status and I'm scared. They've told us it's either academy status or lose eleven teachers. I have a horrible feeling that once we become an academy (which is inevitable), there'll be more than just eleven teachers facing the chop. So as well as losing colleagues and lowering standards for our students, we'll be a bloody academy.

[EvilTwins]

Noble - your experience sounds frighteningly like mine. We're an academy- have been since January. Support staff were cut drastically- everyone from TAs to admin staff. Teaching staff have been cut. Those of us left have more to do than we can cope with. A quick flip through this week's TES jobs section tells me that I am paid a hell of a lot less than I would be for doing the same job in another school. There's no money. I have no idea how we will stay afloat. It's scary and depressing.

[Sarcalogos]

Until Gove is gone it won't improve.

But you are all right. It is shocking, just appalling.

[2kidsintow]

When I started teaching in the 90s, there was no ppa, supply teachers were employed by the school from a list of supply teachers kept by the County, there was plenty of funding for attending courses.

Since then, PPA was brought in, which initially gave a rise in teaching positions for those happy to work in the role - often part time.

Since then, budgets have been repeatedly cut and standards of who is required to teach have fallen in that many supply and ppa jobs are now covered by cover supervisors or HLTAs leaving little supply work out there. There isn't the money to pay for staff to attend courses, which cuts down again on the work for supply teachers. And there is talk of PPA disappearing soon as it is expensive. When we do get a supply teacher in, they are provided by agencies who pay less than the doing daily rate compared to a teacher's salary point.

I'm glad I got my job when I did as there just aren't as many out there as there were.
And I'm not England, I'm in Wales.