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Original poster

Experienced teachers booted out to save money, replaced with NQTs

39 replies

noblegiraffe · 29/04/2019 11:29

So as school budgets become increasingly inadequate, the new wheeze seems to be to make your experienced teachers’ lives so uncomfortable so that they quit and you can replace them with a much cheaper NQT.

“A survey by Teacher Tapp of 3,568 school staff found that 10 per cent were “confident” that teachers on the upper pay scale at their school had been encouraged to leave or had been made redundant to clear space for cheaper staff.”

Replacing experienced teachers with cheap support staff was also a measure recommended to a school by the DfE’s cost-cutting taskforce.

In what other profession would experience be so undervalued? Encourage your experienced heart surgeon to leave so she can be replaced by someone fresh out of medical school? People would soon spot the flaws in that plan, but when it’s teaching? ‘Oh but NQTs have so much enthusiasm’ Hmm

As plans go, it also ignores the dwindling supply of NQTs. Teaching needs to hold onto its experienced teachers not get them to quit, because there aren’t enough teachers to go around as it is.

schoolsweek.co.uk/forced-out-the-experienced-teachers-losing-their-livelihoods-as-schools-cut-costs/

OP posts:
Original poster
noblegiraffe · 01/05/2019 22:07

We’re not talking about over 50s, Bubbles, were talking about over 30s.

We’ve got one of the most inexperienced teaching workforces in the developed world.

OP posts:
BubblesBuddy · 01/05/2019 21:39

Plenty of older teachers I know have been gagging to leave and my LA used to let them go at 55. 25 years ago! It really isn’t new! Just say you couldn’t cope and a generous retirement package was yours - paid early! They have actually stopped that now. It’s too expensive. MATs might think otherwise. Many an ex teacher took on coaching or tutoring with a nice pay off behind them, mortgage paid off etc. I don’t see all these over 50 teachers being desperate to work. Most are desperate to go. The deals are now probably not as good as they were! That’s why they are not happy! They could negotiate part time and stay working.

Also PM is now meaning years doing the job isn’t the same as doing an effective job. Schools do not have to keep ineffective teachers, whatever their length of service.

beeRB · 01/05/2019 19:36

Similar things are happening at universities up and down the country too. Experienced academics e.g professors and Senior Readers are being treated like crap and when they leave they are replaced with recent PhD grads or a standard "lecturer". All part of saving money Hmm

HoneysuckIejasmine · 01/05/2019 19:13

The NQT year is a probation year. If you fail it, no teaching for you.

I keep an eye on the job adverts near me. They commonly ask for MPS, some go so far as to say M1-M3 only. I'm UPS1, so when I go back to work I don't imagine I'll find it easy. (I'm a SAHM)

Jayblue · 01/05/2019 19:09

I'm not saying you're wrong and I don't disagree that experience is obviously important, but I'm going to be an NQT in September, and I've missed out on 3 jobs so far which have all gone to more experienced candidates. I'm in a "shortage" subject, although there seems to be plenty of applicants in the part of the word where I'd like a job.

I know anecdote is not data etc, etc.

I totally agree that this does happen in some areas, but it's not all schools and I think it's easy for people to blame missing out on jobs on being to expensive, or say they've been pushed out due to expense rather than looking critically at themselves. But equally I'm sure it happens in some schools too- and I'm aware the "cover by support staff" thing does happen a lot, especially in primary school, which isn't great.

Of course, that relies on the school still having some support staff employed!

Of course, the answer is to fund schools properly!

I do also wonder if some kind of probation year system like they have in Scotland would be good for NQTs?

QueenBlueberries · 30/04/2019 20:01

Yes, I have seen this in both primary and secondary schools. Experienced teachers at best being encouraged to take early retirement and at worst being bullied out of their jobs with impossible workloads and demands. It is absolutely shocking .

DippyAvocado · 29/04/2019 23:01

Yep, happened to me five years ago when my (primary) school became a MAT, despite consistently excellent performance and results. I am still in touch with some of the few remaining TAs and they tell me every year new student teachers and NQTs are brought in. They stay in post for a year or two and then move on and the cycle repeats. The academy chain pays big whack for a couple of "specialist" Maths and English teachers who are not in class and essentially do all the planning then the teacher is just the flunky at the front of the class who tries to deliver it. Such a poor model of education.

TalkinPaece · 29/04/2019 22:58

Noble
Yup, sorry, poor typing as I had the cat on me ....
MATs are exempt from all sorts and stand alones have perfected the art of subsidiary companies that are
it stinks to high heaven
(and I say that as somebody who is working my way through the NAO consultation on updating auditor guidance)

replacing skilled teachers with NQTs started when austerity did ... 2010

Original poster
noblegiraffe · 29/04/2019 22:54

Are they, talkin?

OP posts:
TalkinPaece · 29/04/2019 21:42

this has been part of the stand alone academy plan
exempt from foi

viques · 29/04/2019 19:51

Don't be silly giraffe quite a lot of those pupils will be being taught by the TA's that is if there are any TA's still available after they have been drafted in to cover PPA time..........

Smile

There isn't a tearful smile through gritted teeth emoticon is her?

Original poster
noblegiraffe · 29/04/2019 19:40

Just seen 634,000 more pupils in schools, so those 10k new teachers would have class sizes of over 60. Well done Damian.

OP posts:
Original poster
noblegiraffe · 29/04/2019 18:24

Damian Hinds has just tweeted that there are 10k more teachers and 40k more teaching assistants in schools than in 2010.

Neatly ignores the fact that secondary pupil numbers are increasing and teacher numbers are at best static.

But who has all these extra teaching assistants? Every school I know has had to sack most of them.

Experienced teachers booted out to save money, replaced with NQTs
OP posts:
MullofKintire · 29/04/2019 13:45

The same has been happening across the civil service for the past ten years. People then complain when mistakes are made.

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