Teacher stress levels soar as staff off sick

THE number of teachers signed off with stress has soared by more than a quarter in recent years, according to figures that are fuelling fresh fears over the Covid pandemic’s impact on staff.

Freedom of Information (FoI) responses from 24 local authorities show 2,284 individuals were affected in 201920 – up 26% on the 2016-17 total of 1,808.

The Scottish Government and standards watchdog Education Scotland stressed that £1.5 million had been invested in schemes to boost mental health and help manage Covid-related strains.

But the Scottish Conservatives, who obtained the data, said teachers were “feeling overworked and under appreciated”.

They added that not every council had responded to the FoI request, meaning the overall national totals are likely to be even higher.

Union leaders said the pandemic, which resulted in school closures and remote learning, had probably “exacerbated” the pressures bearing down on staff.

They also described the latest statistics as unsurprising and warned that several longstanding factors – among them workload, pupil misbehaviour, lack of specialist help for youngsters with additional support needs and “pushy parents” – were making life in the classroom impossible.

Seamus Searson, SSTA General Secretary, said: “Working from home was in many ways more stressful for teachers, as it was taking them twice as long to complete certain tasks.

“Now they’re all back, however, the issues that were there previously are coming to the fore again and we’re already hearing from members that what they’re being asked to deliver for the SQA under alternative certification is unmanageable.

“In the secondary schools you’ve got a shortage of teachers, particularly in areas such as Fife and Edinburgh.

“It means the teachers left in school are having to cover for people who are sick and so on. Lots of schools don’t bring in supply in the first instance and just ask existing teachers to cover the gaps.”

Larry Flanagan, EIS General Secretary, said: “The rising trend in these figures is not surprising as it matches the findings of recent EIS Health and Wellbeing surveys which show that more and more teachers are suffering from increased stress arising from excessive workload, leading to a poor work-life balance, alongside a lack of support in addressing additional support needs for students.

“The last year of coping with the impact of the pandemic is likely to have exacerbated the pressures.

“It is critical, therefore, that as we look to education recovery, support must be put in place around nurturing teacher wellbeing as a prerequisite for doing the same for pupils.”

The Scottish Government and Education Scotland (ES) said a £1.5 million funding package, which includes mental health support from Barnardo’s Scotland and the charity Place2Be, had been put together in the wake of Covid-19.

ES and the General Teaching Council for Scotland are also providing new professional learning opportunities for post-probation staff and have developed a coaching and mentoring offer.

An SNP spokesman said: “The Scottish Government has also undertaken a recruitment drive by hiring 1400 over the pandemic. Our manifesto has committed £1bn to closing the attainment gap and recruiting another 3,500 teachers.”