Retention problem easily solved

[Frost1111]

The UK government is spending millions in trying to retain teachers. The solution is simple. When a teacher applies for a job the school should be able to apply to the goverment to pay that teacher's wages directly. This way if you are on UP3 the school will emply you instead of hiring cheap ECTs/NQTs.

No other profession in the public sector is so parsimonious. You're an experienced doctor? Great we will pay you. You are an expeienced nurse? Great we will pay you. You are an experienced teacher? No you are not valued and we will hire an ECT. Complete joke. When I was an NQT I could easily get an interview. Now I am an experienced and talented teacher I suddenly don't get interviews. I still stay with my current school but if I ever have to leave I will join a supply agency and ask for £150 a day. If no one is prepared to pay it then fine guess I will be another teacher leaving the profession.

I'm not sure what you mean by this. All funding for state schools comes from the government. Schools pay staff from the funding they receive.

Regardless, teacher retention is not a concern as the government has adopted a recruitment focussed model. As long as you can convince enough people to train as teachers and get 3 years or so out of them, you have a warm body in front of a class. This attitude is too hard to change as the UK has a culture that does not value teachers or a broad education. Schools are daycare so people can go to work.
There will be no political will to retain teachers and improve education without public pressure. This is very unlikely to occur in the current cultural climate.

Way back, schools would employ the teachers but the local authority paid the wage bill. So it didn't matter whether you took on an ECT (£28k) or someone on UPS3 (£43.7k).

When each school pays its own wage bill and has to balance the books, they have to consider the fact that they can get 3 ECTs for the price of two experienced teachers. Even if they want the experience, they might have to cut a class to get it.

Schools can end up in difficulties if they have too many experienced staff. I knew of a school where they could afford 4 classroom teachers, but only if at least two were near the bottom of the scale. They had to hope staff would move on before too long, because if they didn't, they would have to cut a TA.

I presume academy chains can balance things between schools, which may be one benefit (particularly for the small happy school where none of the staff want to leave).

TBF, I think the ECT system being a bit more onerous on schools means that schools don't want too many ECTs at once.

I think what you propose would help to some extent, but it in no way would solve the retention problems we are currently facing.

I totally agree. It might actually stop the bullying of UPS3 teachers by SMT as well. It’s ridiculous that experience is viewed as something negative in teaching but valued in every other profession.

Not to mention the lack of a portable pay scale. How insulting to pay a teacher what you (the employer) want! Again showing no regard for experience and expertise.

Be aware that £150 a day as Supply Teacher is equivalent to M1/M2 on the salary scale…also, no sick pay, teacher pension, etc,etc..

Most available Supply work is long term, so not much better in terms of workload….