Why are teachers so stressed?
They experience some of the highest levels of work-related anxiety. Closer investigates the changes needed to stop school teachers suffering burnout
I’VE LOST £7,000 A YEAR IN SALARY BUT I COULD NEVER BE A FULL-TIME TEACHER AGAIN
When primary school teacher Laura Braun lay in bed one Sunday night with her heart racing and tears pouring down her face, she knew something had to change.
The mum-of-two was having a panic attack at the thought of returning to her arduous teaching job the following day.
She was signed off with stress and now she’s left full-time teaching altogether.
Laura, who became a teacher in 2004, says, “I was working 11-hour days and putting in extra time at the weekends, too. Because we get the long holidays, people assume the job is easy. But it was awful.”
WORKLOAD
Worryingly, Laura’s experience is becoming increasingly common. During 2013 to 2017, teachers took 1.3 million days off for stress and mental health issues. Education is consistently in the top three occupations that have the highest levels of work-related stress and, shockingly, 139 educational professionals died from suicide between 2011 and 2015. The suicide risk for primary school teachers is nearly double the national average.
Chemistry teacher Laurian Bold was just 31 when she killed herself in February 2016. After being promoted, her workload increase had left her so stressed that she barely slept, and started losing her hair. And father-of-two primary school teacher Andrew Jones set himself on fire in February 2018 after suffering pressure at work.
Many teachers and unions blame pressure from the government for increased stress. Exam results and school data are collected, which can be used to punish school leaders if results are poor. The overhaul of A-level and GCSE exams has also seen new courses and curriculums introduced.
Teachers are also expected to fulfil multiple roles – from “parent” to “nurse” to “counsellor”. Earlier this year, a primary school in Walsall, West Midlands, was even forced to hire a nappy changer.
Sinéad McBrearty is the CEO of Education Support Partnership, a charity dedicated to improving the physical and emotional welfare of education staff in schools, colleges and universities. She says, “We’ve seen a steep rise in teachers struggling to maintain good well-being and mental health in extremely challenging times in the profession. Workload, over-scrutiny and hyper-accountability are often cited as contributors to their feeling undermined. We want to see more schools offer staff access to counselling, and the Department for Education needs to make mental health and well-being a central part of early career support, to nurture resilience at the outset of teachers’ careers.”
Laura, 38, from West Sussex, had always wanted to be a teacher. She says, “I got my first teaching job in 2004, teaching year 5s at a primary school. I’d be in school by 7.30am and leave at 6.30pm, before working at home in the evenings and at weekends. I wanted to do whatever was needed to be a good teacher.”
A STRUGGLE
But in 2012, after the birth of her second child, Laura struggled. She says, “I barely saw my children. I worked for a day-anda-half each weekend, too, as well as during the holidays.
I had to submit plans for each week of lessons in advance, and mark up to 120 books a day, in addition to planning trips, assessments and running extra-curricular clubs.
“It was way too much to cope with. I was answerable to the head, the governors and the parents – who would think nothing of dropping in at inconvenient times – and most of all, the children.
“My husband was really supportive, but I never talked about how overwhelmed I was feeling.”
However, one Sunday night in 2017, things came to a head. She recalls, “I lay in bed trying to sleep, filled with dread. The next morning, I couldn’t get out of bed, my heart was racing and I was crying.”
After a visit to her GP, Laura was signed off work for a week with stress. She says, “I felt
so guilty, so I researched and found the Education Support Partnership helpline, and spoke to someone who understood my situation. They made me realise I needed to put myself first.”
FAILURE
When Laura returned to work, she went down to four days a week, before finally handing her notice in.
She says, “I felt like a failure, but I knew I had to get out before something much worse happened.”
Laura started as a supply teacher six months later and now works some mornings and afternoons in a local primary school. She says, “My workload is considerably lighter. I won’t work at weekends or when the kids are in the house.
“I’ve lost £7,000 a year in salary, but I could never work full-time as a teacher again.
“Something has to change. We need more teachers to enter the profession to share the workload, and the government should rethink what it expects from us. A 70-hour week isn’t normal.”
Thankfully, Laura’s mental health is much improved. She says, “Life is very different now. I had to choose my family over my career, but I had no alternative.” By Alex Meyer
● For more information, visit educationsupportpartnership.org.uk or call the helpline on 08000 562 561.