Secondment opportunities could be the one of the solutions to plugging a gap in the lack of quality teachers at challenging schools, according to the Department for Education.

In a report out today, the DfE says secondments would allow teachers in schools rated “good” or “outstanding” the opportunity to experience life in a challenging school first-hand, without the risk associated with making a long-term commitment.

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The report highlights research among teachers at “good” and “outstanding” schools, who said the incentives that would encourage them to move to a challenging school were, in order of the most popular:

• Less contact teaching time.

• The chance to shadow a senior SLT member. 

• Temporary salary increases for teachers who commit to a year or more.

• Financial support to complete leadership CPD.

• Support with childcare.
   

The report states: ”Those schools with persistent underperformance and/or in areas of particularly low teacher supply generally find it harder to recruit good teachers.

Getting teachers into challenging schools

“The DfE’s recruitment and retention strategy acknowledged that there are too few career incentives encouraging good teachers to work where they are most needed.

“One key approach to address recruitment challenges in schools in challenging circumstances could be the incentivising of teachers with excellent track records to move to such schools.”

The research questioned teachers, headteachers and NQTs through in-depth telephone interviews as well as focus groups.

Barriers to moving schools included:

• Existing job satisfaction due to ethos and support.

• Increase in workload.

• Perception that a work-life balance would be difficult to obtain in a challenging school.

• No financial reward for moving.

• Perception that working in a school with a low Ofsted rating would reflect negatively on their teaching ability.

But other potential incentives for moving included:

• Reimbursement of travel costs for commuting.

• Retention payments.

• A relocation package.

• Help with moving costs.

• Support for accessing affordable housing.

• An option for additional annual leave.

The report states: “Shadowing and secondment opportunities were most appealing, as they offered immersive experiences in schools which the majority of respondents had not previously had. Ultimately, this experience may not need to be particularly long; what teachers are looking for is a way to understand what the job would actually be like, so short visits to spend time in target schools may be a useful tool.”

It adds: “Headteachers reported needing interventions that build their belief that supporting mobility would be worthwhile. The scenarios which best achieved this were based on secondments, as these were seen to provide funding and enable staff development.”

The DfE said the findings in the report will allow the government to make informed decisions regarding strategies to address “this particular teacher mobility challenge”. 

The recent Teaching and Learning International Survey (Talis) of 48 countries revealed that novice teachers were more likely, and experienced teachers less likely, to work in the most challenging schools.