Primary school teacher making request for flexible working

[Cherryysu]

I am a primary school teacher and am currently in the process of completing my form to request going from 5 days to 4.
I am struggling with the question ‘I think the change in my working pattern will effect my employer and colleagues as follows…’.
Has anyone who has completed this and had their request approved help please??
thank you

Hmmm, well firstly I'd change the word 'effect' to 'affect', but I'm a fully signed up member of pedant's corner.

Other than that I can't help .

Affect

Exactly, pretty poor that a school can't get spellings correct

That doesn't sound like flexible working as I understand it, it sounds like going from full time to part time. Where does the flexibility come in?

Asking to go part time does come under a flexible working request. If it's any help the law is changing to make it easier to ask and from April this year then you won't be asked in a flexible working request how it will impact the business.

Yes, that correct. Part-time working is flexible working.

Not from a school perspective but I have approved requests for staff members.

You'll need to be realistic about the negative affects to the school ie finding cover but try where you can to think of reasonable and actionable mitigations for those.

So could the days you're not working be shared with another teacher who works the opposite schedule in the same year or anything like that

I’m amazed it doesn’t ask what the impact on your pupils will be! Sure they are more important in this instance than your employer?

I did this recently. I compiled it as a table, with 2 columns. In the left I wrote bullet points about what I thought would be the effects, and in the right how there might be any changes, and how that could be addressed. Try to give a solution. When I started doing it, there was actually more than I thought there would be.

E.g. Safeguarding role- DSL
I can continue this role in September. I check at least once each working day on the software for any developments and I will liaise with other safeguarding leads on working days too. I will be available for any emergency consultation on days when I am not at work, as I am now. The effect should remain positive.

If you send me a PM with your email, I would be happy to share the table.

Hi, that’s actually given me some good ideas about what to write and been very helpful thank you. If I get stuck I will PM you ☺️

Hi, I am going through the same process of requesting reduced days from 5 to 4 too. I am having trouble thinking how it would benefit the school too. Do you have any further tips or examples to help with this, please? And out of curiosity, was your request granted?

You need to go through what will happen on the day you are not there, someone to cover that day , but make sure you ask for Jo share if possible so whoever covers plans their own work and marks it and gives 1:5 towards class tasks. Don't offer to plan and cover absolutely everything else as they may just get people to step in and you are not getting paid for that day . Be cautious not to offer the world to get that day or you might end up spending it working for free

Hi, yes my request was granted so going back 4 days in Sept 🙌🏼 I contacted my headteacher with my plans and the council I work for has a form which has statements about how my change of hours will affect the employer then how they can be dealt with so was slightly different to what I initially thought. I just wrote headings such as staff workload/parental contact/children’s progression/planning etc and how my day off would affect these and then how I would get round it (eg not leaving unfinished work, working closely with my colleagues, not planning meetings/parents evenings on my day off etc). Hope this helps and you manage to get your four days!!

Sorry just realised this is an old thread with a recent update.