Exactly 25 years ago, my mother said to me: “You should become a teacher because of the great holidays and pensions teachers receive.”
I have been reflecting on this insight during this festive period. I thought at the time that these did not seem good enough reasons to go into that world of work – or any work for that matter. And 25 years on, I now think how right she was, but also how much has changed since then.
In recent years, the idea of “great pension and holidays” has been turned on its head. TPS is under scrutiny in most schools and 17 weeks’ holiday (in the independent sector) is far less when you deduct results days, planning and getting ready for the new school year and each term. Not only that, so much goes on in the term time the sheer number of additional hours would shave a lot off this generous-seeming holiday.
“There is also a small army of people working behind the scenes to keep the school thriving.”
I have written over 150 words and not mentioned administrative/support/non-teaching staff. It is a truth universally acknowledged that many people are generally unaware that these members of staff exist.
As an example, ask a Year 7 student embarking on a careers programme what occupations you could apply for in a school and most will say teacher, dinner lady… and stop there. But there is also a small army of people working behind the scenes to keep the school thriving.
Generally, people are surprised when you say you work during the holidays (and have commercial holidays only ie: 25 days plus bank holidays). They think that when the school is closed, there are no staff around.
So, what is it like working in an independent school as administrative staff post-Covid and in the light of the trend towards flexible and part time working?
Many schools under-invest in their administrative/support staff as all the investment tends to go towards pupil facing support. Support staff are also often expected to go beyond their core roles, manning reception in an emergency and looking after sick children, for example.
“Covid has not changed the lack of parity between teaching and support staff.”
Consequently, most schools across the sector and throughout education (this is not just independent schools) have a two-tier system with regard to teaching staff and support staff. Covid has – I am afraid – not changed this lack of parity.
Furthermore, the changes in flexible and hybrid working since Covid have yet to reach independent schools. Even though marketing, admissions and fundraising staff across the country showed that they could both continue to recruit students and successfully raise money throughout all lock downs, flexible working has not come into play in any real way.
Many organisations are shocked when you say as a member of the administration staff that you have been in the workplace 100 per cent of the time for most of the last eighteen months. Schools feel that staff should be in, even if they are not directly in front of a student as part of their role. The key argument is that “teaching staff and cleaning staff have to be in, so it is unfair otherwise.”
“Many organisations are shocked when you say you have been in the workplace 100 per cent of the time.”
But teaching staff have been working in a hybrid fashion for many years now as they usually write their reports and mark work (activities that form part of their contract) at home, as they do not need to be in front of a student to do this. Inset days revert to being online, as teaching staff again do not need to be in school to take part.
Working in an independent school has its perks though. Many schools offer the use of their gyms for staff along with free parking, free lunches and refreshments. If you have children, many offer fantastic fee discounts for staff children to join and benefit from the education at the school you work in, anywhere from between 10 per cent up to 70 per cent off the fees which is a hugely attractive incentive. Some schools offer staff the use of their medical centres if you are unwell and some have attractive health care provision. Many have beautiful grounds to enjoy all day every day, as well as the opportunity to enjoy a lunch time walk. Most offer fantastic pensions which completely outstrip normal pensions outside the school’s world.
However, 25 years on from my mother’s advice, I realise that holidays, perks and that precious gift – time – are key parts of job fulfilment, not money as many people think. It is like my mother knew that money and the career ladder were not as key as time and a long, happy and healthy future that should be enjoyed.