Experience of leaving during NQT year.

[Tddnamechanger]

Does anyone have any experience?

My friend is in an unsupportive school which is making her feel miserable.

She is thinking of leaving and doing supply until September (induction will be 2 years).

Does anyone know anyone who did this?
Or did you leave yourself?
How did you/they explain to prospective schools?

Is she accessing support from the local authority? In our LA there’s someone who is an ‘Appropriate Body’ who is responsible for all the NQTs and will offer support. May be worth contacting them? Or speaking to their union for support? Leaving after a few weeks might make it hard to complete the NQT year and therefore, harder to get another job in the future.

It happens, it’s not the most terrible thing that could happen but nor is it ideal. I’d recommend hanging on if at all possible.

People do and many go on to be successful in other schools.

You mention a 2 year induction -is she in an area piloting the new ECF scheme? If so, she will still be assessed this year the same as all NQTs have been previously. It's just that she will do the RQT year scheme as well.

I would try to encourage her to make a list of what support she feels is missing. For example,is she having regular mentor meetings to discuss progress, ideas,training etc? Is it a particularly difficult group -if so, can she speak to other colleagues in the school who have experience of them to get some strategies? What about the person in school who oversees the induction process- could she speak to them? If all avenues have been explored and she is unsupported she needs to contact the local authority for advice.

I hope she finds a solution. It makes me so cross when schools appoint trainees/NQTs and then can't be bothered to give them the time of day!

Rather than leaving and doing supply, can she find another job to start in Jan and complete her NQT year? Sometimes things just don’t work out with a school and another school might take her on and help her fly.
Without knowing what it is she is not being supported with it’s hard to offer exact advice. I do second the advice to speak to the appropriate body though.

She does need to consider what support she needs and to ask for it. The NQT induction is supposed to be ‘owned’ by the NQT. I do appreciate that some schools (and mentors) really are unsupportive and feel horrible, but it’s a very difficult and unusual start to the year for everyone.
It’s possible to resign before October 31st and go on supply or take a short term contract. May cover? She can still do part of her induction.
She will, however, find people and situations she doesn’t like all through her career.

Mat cover

If she leaves before the end of her first term, nothing will be ‘banked’ and she’ll still have the whole of induction to do somewhere else. It’s not entirely clear yet, but it is possible when the new two year induction comes in next Sept that if you have done at least term, there will be some kind of transition period so you can still finish in a year.

That said, while induction is a hurdle, it’s not meant to be a punishment or a trial. Two year induction is coming in to give new teachers a longer period of support and a bit of extra time (5%) out of class in year 2, so actually not a bad thing!

Unless your friend is in an area with a glut of teachers, I would doubt that she will have any difficulty explaining she just wasn’t in the right school for her and felt her induction was too important so she moved.

If things are so bad that she will get a very negative report if she goes through to the end of term, then seeing if she can leave with a shorter notice period might be advisable as there should be no report if she does less than a term. But as PPs have said, talk to Appropriate Body and union before that.

I left after 2 terms in my NQT year. It didn't stop me getting another job, I just said in interview that there was a lack of support and asked about how they supported NQTs.
It didn't cause any issues with the new school, my first school tried ro sabotage me but just made me glad I left them.