“Teaching is a hard-earned and hard-learned skill, Labour will work to further raise its status.”

This line in Labour’s manifesto is one that, now they are in power, must be delivered on given the strain under which both the recruitment and retention of teachers is under.

Of course, turning that positive statement into on-the-ground practice will require careful and nuanced handling - so how are they planning to do this, and will it work?

1. CPD done with, not to, teachers

A big part of this promise relates to professional development, outlined as the following: “We will introduce a new Teacher Training Entitlement to ensure teachers stay up to date on best practice with continuing professional development.”

Again, welcome words - after all, ongoing high-quality professional development and support must be a cornerstone of teacher retention and job satisfaction if teaching is going to compete more successfully with other graduate professions.

However, learnings from the exploratory study I led for Gatsby and Teacher Development Trust (TDT), and the TDT’s own CPD entitlement report - both published earlier this year - suggest the profession needs to be better understood at the ‘affective’ level if a CPD entitlement and expectation is going to be implemented positively.

Specifically, both studies identified frustrations around a feeling of CPD being ‘done to’ them, where the highly prescribed nature of much CPD content delivery means professionalism and agency can feel somewhat lacking.

Certainly, if a CPD training entitlement for teachers is implemented in a way that makes professional development feel like a punishment for perceived underperformance, it could further exacerbate the problems we found.

Indeed, while many of the stakeholders we talked to fully appreciated the intentional coherence of standard curricula, they wanted more flexibility and a sense of choice to dive deeper into specific areas and see a direct link to their individual points of need.

Striking that balance between trusted professional judgement and a sequenced learning journey is paramount for sustaining motivation.

2. Building on the power of mentors

A second key element of Labour’s plan to improve the value and standing of teaching comes from its intent to look at the Early Career Framework (ECF) - stating in its manifesto it will, “update the Early Career Framework, maintaining its grounding in evidence, and ensure any new teacher entering the classroom has, or is working towards, Qualified Teacher Status.”

One key way they can do that is to improve the support given to mentors within the ECF.

After all, a review of the ECF I co-authored in March this year found the biggest game-changer for all stakeholders was the impact that high-quality, structured mentoring can have - with some calling it a make-or-break factor for many early career teachers. Many described transformative bonds with mentors who were adept at tailoring development to their unique contexts and needs.

Yet, that great mentoring can only happen when mentors are properly supported themselves, of course. As such, given this importance, it cannot be left to the personal generosity of individuals to act as mentors. Instead, we must invest in mentors to maximise their power and demonstrate a commitment to help all teachers develop and grow.

What’s more, if we support more experienced teachers in their mentoring, benefits are found elsewhere too, with many mentors saying their school and/or trust had seen clear improvements as result of a focus on practice.

As such, it would be good to see this recognised, rewarded and structurally built into the system.

Time to act

Looking ahead, any professional development entitlement can only realise its full impact when participants are treated as trusted partners in an ongoing process of refinement - balancing high standards with the flexibility to adapt to unique contexts.

It’s about creating a sustainable culture by promoting conditions for teachers to thrive.

I am hopeful the Labour government already knows - but the implementation will need very careful planning and must have the voice of the profession itself front and centre.

Professor Sam Twiselton OBE is an emeritus professor at Sheffield Hallam University, chair of the DfE core content in initial teacher training (ITT) group, and a founding fellow and former vice president (external) of the Chartered College of Teaching

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