Teacher shortage subjects – How we’ve avoided supply for 3 years
Executive headteacher Anthony David explains how to recruit much-needed teaching staff for shortage subjects…
- by Anthony David
- Executive headteacher, consultant, author and leadership coach
Filling those vital teacher posts within shortage subjects can seem like an impossible task. However, there are ways and means of covering the lessons you need to cover without compromising the integrity of your curriculum offer. Here’s how….
I run a small group of schools across London. For the last three years we haven’t had to employ a single supply teacher. However, that’s not to say that our recruitment process is an entirely stress-free process.
Believe it or not, there was once a time when I actively looked forward to it. After all, a new teacher will typically bring with them a set of fresh ideas, enthusiasm and a unique perspective that can enrich our school community.
Recruitment today, however, is no longer just about filling gaps. It requires careful strategy, long-term thinking and a focus on sustainability.
Define what you need and why
Before rushing to advertise a role, ask yourself, ‘What do we actually need?’. Recruitment should never be a knee-jerk reaction to a resignation.
Instead, you should assess your staffing needs through the lens of long-term planning. Are you thinking short-term, to fill a sudden vacancy? Or do you need a more permanent solution?
If a teacher is going on maternity leave, for instance, will you require a like-for-like replacement? Or can you restructure timetables and use internal resources to cover the absence?
One of the best ways of ensuring continuity in teaching is to develop a flexible and skilled team. Mapping skill sets across departments allows you to readily identify staff members who can step up in times of need.
One of our schools recently faced the sudden departure of a physics teacher – a subject that’s notoriously difficult to recruit for. However, we didn’t immediately seek an external replacement.
Instead, we assessed our existing team and found a maths teacher with a physics background. With some additional training and support, this teacher was then able to take on key physics lessons. In the meantime we looked into arranging a more permanent solution.
Adopting this approach meant that we were able to ensure consistency for our students. It also provided some valuable career development for the teacher concerned.
Effective ways to recruit teachers for shortage subjects
Once we established the need, the next challenge was finding the right candidate. In an increasingly competitive market, simply placing an advert on the Tes website is no longer enough. Below are some different strategies that have previously worked for us…
Grow your own talent
We have established strong partnerships with teacher training providers and universities to ensure a steady pipeline of enthusiastic new teachers who are already familiar with our school culture.
Typically, we’ll aim to train SCITT students across different sites. This is so that we can support need across the group as and when it arises.
Apprenticeships & subject knowledge enhancement
Encouraging non-traditional routes into teaching, such as apprenticeship schemes and SKE courses, has helped us secure teachers for shortage subjects like maths, physics and computing.
For example, we recently helped a highly skilled science technician complete a teaching apprenticeship. This resulted in a committed and highly knowledgeable new member of staff.
Re-engaging former teachers
There’s a significant pool of qualified teachers who have left the profession due to work-life balance concerns. Offering part-time and flexible working arrangements has enabled us to bring experienced teachers back into the classroom.
One of our most successful recruits last year was a former English teacher returning after a career break. By tailoring a part-time role to fit her availability, we filled a key vacancy.
Our experience of advertising for part-time teachers is that there are many teachers out there who are more interested in working three days a week than full time.
That might say a lot about the demands of the role, but it’s a strategy we’ve used in many cases to recruit very strong, committed teachers.
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International recruitment
With the right support, international teachers can be an invaluable asset. Our group of schools has successfully recruited highly skilled teachers from overseas. This is particularly in subjects facing acute shortages.
This approach involves careful planning around visa sponsorships, cultural integration and pastoral support, and a different approach to recruitment.
It might not be possible to ‘see’ a lesson being taught by the candidate. However, having them send over a video of them teaching is a good way of getting round this. There’s also the added advantage that you can see how they set out their learning environment, and how they interact with children they know well.
Retaining staff
Recruitment is only half the battle; retention is equally, if not more important. After all, what’s the point of recruiting a brilliant teacher, only for them to leave after a year?
To retain our staff, we’ve focused on ensuring that teacher workload is manageable. This means reducing unnecessary marking policies, streamlining data collection and introducing wellbeing initiatives to protect staff from burnout.
Teachers also need to see a future for themselves in your school. Providing pathways for professional growth – such as leadership opportunities and funded training courses – has been key for us in being able to maintain an appropriately motivated workforce.
Finally, staff are more likely to stay in environments where they feel valued and supported. Simple gestures – such as acknowledging achievements, fostering a strong sense of community and listening to staff feedback – can make a huge difference.
Beyond traditional roles
Sometimes, when filling vacancies we need to think outside the box. Faced with a persistent shortage of computing teachers, we opted to hire an industry professional with a background in coding.
We provided them with in-school teacher training. This hybrid model ensured that our students received high-quality subject knowledge, while also developing a teacher from within our own school community.
Another approach we’ve used is team teaching. Instead of relying on a single teacher for a subject, we’ve created collaborative teaching models. This is where multiple teachers share responsibility for lesson planning and delivery.
This has been particularly effective in MFL, where finding full-time teachers can be especially challenging.
The role of leadership
As school leaders, we must see recruitment as an ongoing process, rather than a reactive exercise. Proactive recruitment means constantly networking and engaging with potential candidates before we even have a vacancy. It also means ensuring our schools are places where people want to work.
A key part of this is telling our school’s story. Why should a teacher choose our school over another? What makes us different?
We’ve found that sharing success stories, promoting our culture and highlighting our commitment to professional development through social media and networking events has significantly improved our recruitment outcomes.
Recruiting and retaining teachers in shortage subjects will always be a challenge. However, by adopting a strategic approach, it’s possible to fill vacancies without compromising on quality.
By investing in our existing staff, exploring alternative routes into teaching and fostering a culture where teachers want to stay, we can build resilient teams. These can then provide students with the stability and expertise they deserve.
The challenges of recruitment have certainly increased, but then so too have the opportunities for innovating. As leaders, our task isn’t to just fill positions. It’s to create schools in which great teachers are able to thrive. And when we get it right, the rewards are immeasurable.
Anthony David is an executive headteacher.
