Coronavirus update: Throughout this crisis we're here to provide mental health and wellbeing support to all education staff. Find out more.
Commenting on the government’s proposals for schools to begin reopening from 1 June, Sinéad Mc Brearty, CEO of Education Support said:
“As keyworkers, teachers and other education staff have responded remarkably to this unprecedented crisis, showing enormous determination, adaptability, kindness and care. Many continue to work at physical school sites; the rest are working hard to teach and support our children remotely.
Over half of primary school teachers (59 per cent) and 49 per cent of secondary teachers have expressed higher levels of stress and anxiety at the beginning of this summer term than usual. The findings come as uncertainty and media speculation around schools re–opening continues unabated.
Research by the charity Education Support in partnership with YouGov has revealed that 75 per cent of the region’s teachers describe themselves as stressed because of their jobs.1
Half (55 per cent) said they had experienced insomnia/difficulty sleeping in the past year and 50 per cent had difficulties concentrating.
Leading education organisations are meeting today (30 Jan) to discuss the emotional support which could be offered to staff involved in the national rollout of compulsory changes to relationship, sex and health education in England.
Education Support, the UK’s only charity dedicated to supporting the mental health and wellbeing of all education staff in schools, colleges and universities, has appointed five new trustees, as the 142-year old charity embarks on its ‘most ambitious strategy to date’.
Work-related stress in the teaching profession has increased for a third consecutive year, with sharp rises in tearfulness, difficulty sleeping and irritability amongst education professionals across the UK.
Education Support has expanded its free and confidential helpline service to include access for all trainee teachers.
A charity that supports teachers and other staff working in education has experienced its highest number of calls ever to its emotional support helpline in the past 12 months.
In a speech today (15 March 2019) at the Association of School and College Leaders’ (ASCL) annual conference in Birmingham, the Secretary of State for Education, Damian Hinds MP, will announce the creation of a new Expert Advisory Group, chaired by the Department for Education, to advise the Department, Multi-Academy Trusts and local authorities on the wellbeing of school and college leaders and teachers.
We are demanding urgent action be taken by the government and sector to address a stress epidemic and rising mental health issues across the entire UK education workforce following the release today (22 October) of our Teacher Wellbeing Index 2018, conducted in partnership with YouGov.
