Loss of female teaching staff

WQ.184/2023

WRITTEN QUESTION TO THE MINISTER FOR CHILDREN AND EDUCATION BY DEPUTY R.J. WARD OF ST. HELIER CENTRAL

QUESTION SUBMITTED ON MONDAY 24th APRIL 2023

ANSWER TO BE TABLED ON TUESDAY 2nd MAY 2023

Question

“With reference to Table 5 of a Freedom of Information request, published 8th March 2023, which shows a pattern of female teaching staff leaving the profession in higher numbers compared to their male counterparts, particularly in the 40 to 59 age group, will the Minister advise –

1. what reasons she gives for this pattern;
2. what research or dialogue has been, or is due to be, undertaken to understand the loss of female teaching staff; and
3. whether those replacing these staff members will reflect the age and demographic lost and, if not, whether she can provide information on the demographics of the replacement staff?”

Answer

Table 5 which the Deputy has referred to represents leavers in the 30 – 39 age group in 2019 and provides a breakdown by gender and pay scale of the second highest group of leavers in that year. Due to reporting restrictions in the Freedom of Information response it is not possible, with any certainty, to deduce that female teaching staff are leaving in greater numbers than male teaching staff within this specific age group however this is accurate across all age groups for 2019 where female leavers account for 75% of all leavers. It is also important to note that table 5 includes leavers from both teaching assistant and teacher roles.

1. The workforce referred to in table 5 of the FOI response is comprised of 73% female and 27% male staff. This is aligned with the gender mix of the teacher and teaching assistant workforce and so is proportionate. With circa 3 times as many female employees compared to male it would be expected to see a higher number of leavers who are female.
2. Senior officers meet regularly with all the Unions representing staff in CYPES and continue to respond to the workforce with positive changes such as flexible working, enhanced parental leave and training and development. Research on flexible working is due to be commissioned shortly and this will help schools develop and implement more flexible approaches to working, recognising the challenge due to the nature of the roles.

The Minister is concerned about the recruitment and retention of all staff and her officers continue to work to enhance recruitment activities and respond to concerns of the workforce that can impact on retention. Considerable effort has been invested into strengthening recruitment capabilities through joint work between the Education directorate and the Delivery Unit within the Cabinet Office. Developing new candidate attraction approaches, focussing on enhanced candidate management, and streamlining recruitment processes are all having positive impacts. Investment enabled through Government Plan funding is being deployed to grow the workforce. Schools and CYPES continue to focus on provide new learning and development opportunities for staff to aid retention. These include funding of development to support leadership, oracy, multi-lingual learners, SENDCos, graduate teacher training and early career teachers amongst others.

3. It is uncommon in any industry for new recruits to mirror the demographic of leavers. For example, retirement is a common reason for leaving and those that retire are normally in the upper age brackets, it would not be expected to replace retirees with new recruits of similar demographic. Staff are employed on the basis of competitive recruitment where we seek to recruit the best person for each role based on their skills and experience. Neither age nor gender form any basis of decision making when recruiting.