ASCL calls for remote working solutions to tackle recruitment struggles

The Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL) has called on the government to enable more flexible working practices in teaching as education has become an “unattractive outlier” in a world of remote working. 

In its ‘A roadmap for a sustainable education system’ report, the ASCL said the education sector is “increasingly struggling” to compete against other industries when it comes to recruiting in light of this lack of flexibility.

It comes as post-pandemic, flexible or hybrid working has “become the norm” in many industries, with the National Foundation For Educational Research finding that 65% of UK graduates working outside of education work from home at least one day a week. 

However, the DfE’s annual Working Lives of Teachers and Leaders survey found that remote working is “largely unavailable” to most teachers, with only 2% of primary and 1% of secondary teachers reporting that they had a formally agreed arrangement to work remotely.

The ASCL argued that flexible working “presents an opportunity to improve retention, but implementation remains challenging” in the education sector. 

It noted that timetabling constraints can make it difficult to accommodate variable work patterns, while traditional leadership roles “too often demand full-time availability”, limiting options for senior staff. Additionally, it said “cultural resistance” can mean that flexible arrangements are often seen as “impractical or indicative of reduced commitment”. 

In light of this, the ASCL has proposed that the government does more to encourage job sharing, including for senior staff, as well as trialling innovative work patterns and expanding remote collaboration opportunities.

It proposed that job-sharing leadership models, where senior roles are split between two professionals, could provide alternative pathways for leadership retention while reducing workload intensity. 

It added that adjusting scheduling to trial innovative work patterns, including part-time teaching and flexible leadership roles, can also “provide relief while maintaining operational efficiency”. 

Finally, it said that expanded remote collaboration, which enables leaders to manage certain administrative and strategic functions outside of the traditional school setting where feasible, can help. 

In its report, the ASCL said: “By embedding flexibility into workforce planning, education systems can support diverse career pathways that cater to evolving expectations without compromising school functionality.

“Our current education system is creaking at the seams. The expectations on schools and colleges, and those who work within them, have expanded significantly over the last decade, while real-terms funding has shrunk. At the same time, societal and technological shifts have left teaching looking like an unattractive outlier in a world of remote working and flexible opportunities.”