Teacher stress needs addressing

70 percent of teachers and lecturers feel their health has suffered as a result of their profession and believe that there are insufficient policies in place at schools to address the intense pressures of the classroom.

In a survey conducted by Teacher Support Network and the Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL), only 20 percent of those questioned knew of a policy in their schools relating to stress. Amongst this group, just 3.5 percent believed it was ‘robust’.

Patrick Nash, Chief Executive of Teacher Support Network, said: “Schools and the government must work together to ensure that a climate exists where teachers can ask for help when they need it.

“We speak to many thousands of teachers a year and have seen just how much stress now affects teachers. Through counselling and coaching we try to help individuals.

“But it is down to the authorities to address the wider picture and introduce wellbeing programmes and better policies to look after the health of their staff.

“Staff absence through poor health caused by stress is highly disruptive to the classroom. The high tensions experienced by teachers frequently hamper their ability to educate their pupils.

“Unless addressed, high stress levels may drive worrying numbers of teachers away from the profession, making the burden on others in schools even greater and having a highly damaging impact on British education.”

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