I have not managed to get my first teaching job 2 years after qualifying

[theirt5]

I qualified as a primary school teacher in 2023 and still have not managed to get a job in a school yet and therefore have been on supply ever since. Can I ask whether this is a usual occurrence or not?

I think it is entirely area dependent. How flexible are you about moving location?

And where are you looking for vacancies?

gov.uk currently shows 488 primary teaching vacancies - though some are part time and some maternity cover.

The situation in Scotland is horrendous
Lots of NQ teachers retraining so they can get permanent jobs/ mortgages etc
My friend’s daughter has been doing supply since qualifying 2 years ago
She lives at home so can do this , but she can’t move on buy a flat etc

In my opinion London benefits so much from the diversity of the demographic it has. I taught in London for almost a decade and the children all got good results and were a pleasure to teach and this is a regular comprehensive with lots of GAP groups and high percentage FSM. There was lots of immigration and kids from various ethnic backgrounds who want work and want good jobs etc and they in turn drag up the groups that do not do well national eg White british boys from poorer backgrounds.

Outside London there is less diversity and many families do not value education and more of a benefits and/or angry “reform”culture prevails and this just brings everyone down and does not make for a positive teaching and learning environment. Lots of malaise. Race to the bottom.

I also found this when I was teaching in London over 30 years ago. Newly arrived immigrants, particularly, had high expectations.

Absolutely agree. Have spent most of my career in London and the mindset of kids and parents here as opposed to when I worked in a more deprived area of the Home Counties is stark.

In London kids see that hard work pays off in the environment around them. They see a myriad of employment opportunities and they see endless possibilities for their futures if they work hard. They mix with peers from across cultures and backgrounds and are exposed to different ideas and inspirations and role models. They have aspirations because the people around them do and the world around them shows them where aspiration can lead. Moreover, people who choose to live in a busy multicultural capital city are often movers and shakers in a way people who choose to live somewhere quieter aren’t. They have different values and these get passed on to their kids.

If you live in a small town with a load of shuttered shops and the majority of people on benefits, you’ve got nothing around you to inspire you and no evidence that education gets you anywhere. It’s a more homogenous environment amongst students, staff and parents, so fewer new ideas and sources of inspiration, and it’s tough to motivate students to succeed when they see no point in doing so. I taught in a former industrial town a 45 minute train ride from London for a few years and I was shocked that none of the children I taught in the sixth form had ever been to London. And most showed no interest in doing so. It’s a very different mindset outside of London and you really see it when you teach.

More kids in London have private tutoring

www.suttontrust.com/our-research/tutoring-2023-the-new-landscape/

In Scotland that is the norm.

I don't think there is a problem recruiting decent teachers in London. I am an inner London teacher and I have no experience of this. Results are so good in London because standards are incredibly high and the local authorities are scrupulous about their school checks with lots of Mocksteds. Also, lots of immigrant families who want a better future for their children and are educationally supportive.

To be fair, 15 applications in 2 years is not a huge amount, but it can seem so when you have to do bespoke applications. When you see a local job, ring up and ask to visit the school. Read it's latest Ofsted Report and browse the website so you can ask appropriate questions and show you have done your homework. Make sure you tailor your personal statement to the job spec and teaching standards, make it personal to your vsit and show the experience you have gained on supply in a good light. Lastly, you did not say if you were doing day to day supply or long term roles. Take a long term contract so that you can put that you have been a year x teacher and fulfilled all aspects of a class teacher. This puts you ahead of the newly qualified who have less experience. Look for one year mat leave contracts at Xmas and Easter too - once you are in a school they will most likely make you permanent. PS: This is what I did. I had a 3 day a week long term supply role, where I planned some of the subjects, and could get a teaching observation, then applied for a fixed term contract that became permanent.

I am 10 years in. I am now working as a peripatetic advisory teacher for the LEA which I love - however, despite having been doing this for 3 years, I am on a temp contract which (🤞) gets extended depending on funding. School teacher vacancies are few and far between and many schools in the area are now in financial deficit and in redundancy situations.

I have been on school walk rounds with 30 or so others - knowing that 2 or 3 others are being put on.

I suppose my area is quite nice, but affordable. I think it might be easier to find work in inner city areas or conversely in very well heeled areas where teachers can't actually afford to live.

It's shit. I wouldn't recommend teaching to my DCs.

What A levels and degree do you have OP? This can be a factor.

@Bringinguptherear

London pupils have also been better funded than other areas of the country. . More money per pupil means more staff, more experienced staff etc.

https://arc-nenc.nihr.ac.uk/news/new-analysis-finds-schools-funding-imbalance-risks-widening-regional-childhood-inequalities/

Get some more experience at a school and ask someone to look at your cover letter. Maybe that’s what’s tripping you up.

Probably a consequence of a falling birth rate and closing primary schools. However, it’s also true a lot of teachers leave the profession. My guess is there are probably just applicants with more experience.

Paradoxically nursery staff are in massive shortage and you could probably get a job at any nursery you wanted.

What do you mean by this year?

This academic or calendar year? 15 applications isn't many.

This current season for the next academic year - 15 applications so far would be average, and I'd understand the disappointment at only one interview.

Does your application demonstrate meeting all the points in the job description and person spec? Sounds like you need to revisit.

Supply teaching is one of those things that I think every teacher should do at least once in their career. It can open many doors and give you so many experiences and adaptability if you let it.

Read today's teacher tapp article about the feedback that isn't always given to candidates who aren't shortlisted

A lovely village school near me has only had one applicant for 0.8 FTE role. Maybe worth looking at part-time roles to gain experience. Also SEND schools often get fewer applications, I started in a special school years ago and learnt a huge amount there.
Maybe you need to fill out more applications though; 15 doesn't sound many for a year.

Its really regional. In areas where a teachers wage still affords you an ok lifestyle there can be quite an oversupply of teachers. In london and the south east there can be massive shortages.

Oh yeah also the birth rate fall. If you look in areas with a younger, ethnic minority population (especially cities) there are more children and thus more demand for teachers.

This is kind of why the government didn't give a shit about private school kids moving due to vat though. They knew the lower birth rate would have a massive impact and there'd be space in schools.

Its also why they aren't desperately throwing money at teachers. They know that even if a few leave we still have enough.

Where I am, most of us got job offers whilst still training. I think schools like ECT because they can mould them. Sadly I think the schools I've worked in are suspicious of anyone who didn't get a job direct from training and went into supply. They actually like something must be wrong with them. It isn't fair. I'd look for positions that start in January, or are maternity cover, just to get rid of the stigma of being in supply.

Also — I got my last job through an agency. The school didn't advertise through the County website at all. There were two positions and three interviewees. So join agencies if you can.

If you aren’t getting interviews you need professional help with your CV and letters of application.