Our panel of experts include headteachers who have placed flexible working at the heart of their recruitment and retention strategies as well as teachers who work flexibly themselves.
We discuss why schools should consider flexible working, the impact it can have, and the benefits for staff and students.
How can we be strategic about our approach to flexible working? What do we need to consider when designing flexible working roles? How can we ensure it has an impact on issues such as workload and staff wellbeing?
And it’s not all about part-time working – we consider the forms that flexible working can take and the types of flexible working approaches that are possible.
Our experts offer a range of practical tips and examples and discuss how schools and teachers can overcome common blocks or barriers to effective flexible working.
Our host for this episode was Matt Bromley, an education advisor and author with 25 years’ experience in teaching including as a secondary headteacher and MAT director. His guests were:
- Antonia Spinks is the CEO at the Pioneer Educational Trust in the Slough area, which began working on its flexible working strategy in 2019.
- Sue Plant is the headteacher of John Taylor Free School in Staffordshire, which has put flexible working at the heart of its recruitment and retention strategy since it opened in 2018.
- Emma Sheppard is the founder of The MaternityTeacher PaternityTeacher Project (MTPT) who previously worked as an English teacher for 12 years. Visit www.mtpt.org.uk
- Lucy Rose is the co-founder of Flexible Teacher Talent. FTT won the DfE FWAMS tender with Capita and are considered industry experts when it comes to flexible working. She has been a teacher for almost 20 years and current works flexibly. Visit https://flexibleteachertalent.co.uk/
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For details about The SecEd Podcast, or to suggest future topics, email editor Pete Henshaw at editor@sec-ed.co.uk