DfE updates: Workload Reduction Taskforce and Education Staff Wellbeing Charter

Today, the DfE has published its initial recommendations to the Workload Reduction Taskforce and an update on its commitments in the Education Staff Wellbeing Charter.

The Government launched the Workload Reduction Taskforce alongside the pay award in July 2023, as part of a commitment to reducing teacher and leader workload. The Taskforce will help support the Department for Education’s ambition to reduce teachers’ and leaders’ working hours by five hours a week within three years. These initial recommendations are testament to the Taskforce’s commitment to making meaningful and pragmatic recommendations that support a material reduction in workload and working hours for teachers and leaders in England. 

The group will make final recommendations to the Government, Ofsted, and school and trust leaders by the end of March 2024.

The Education Staff Wellbeing Charter is a declaration of support for, and a set of commitments to, the wellbeing and mental health of everyone working in education. The Charter was created by the education sector to highlight staff wellbeing in the education sector and is a tool for schools and colleges to create and publicly commit to their own wellbeing strategies. It is a declaration to protect, promote, and enhance the wellbeing and mental health of everyone working in state education. Commitments to education staff wellbeing from the DfE and Ofsted are included, and principles are set out on shared understanding of the meaning and importance of wellbeing and everyone’s roles and responsibilities. The Charter sends a message to everyone working in schools and colleges that their wellbeing and mental health matter, and it aims to improve wellbeing in schools and colleges by encouraging debate and accountability.

All state-funded schools and colleges are invited to sign up to the Charter as a shared commitment to protect, promote and enhance the wellbeing of their staff, although sign-up is voluntary and there is no deadline.

It is positive to see these outcomes from the Taskforce, but we have discussed with our clients and in our forums the need to develop bespoke, internal people and wellbeing strategies as well. The need to be competitive in attracting and retaining staff to become an employer of choice is more important than ever in the education sector.

If you want to discuss this further, please contact Holly Joyce or one of the HR Consultants in our team.

Thanks to Trainee HR Consultant, Holly Joyce, for preparing this article.