WELLBEING The price of poor staff wellbeing
In his column for Education Today this month, MARK SOLOMONS, creator of award-winning Welbee, an online evaluation and staff wellbeing improvement tool, examines the true cost of wellbeing.
attainment and behaviour and additional work for colleagues. Changes to classroom routines, teaching styles and expectations can all have a potential impact on learning, especially with the growing number of pupils requiring additional support, both educational and pastoral.
Presenteeism
On the flip side, is presenteeism, with 47% of education staff continuing to work when unwell (Education Support 2022). According to research by Sheffield University (2022), the rate of presenteeism is one and a half times that of overall absence, putting staff at greater risk of burnout**. Stress and burnout are cited as being among the top reasons for staff leaving the education sector, in order to avoid further mental and physical health issues.
W
ith school budgets stretched and looming deficits for many - the financial crisis and crumbling concrete just some of the challenges - the financial cost of poor staff wellbeing should be top of the agenda for leaders of MATs, schools and colleges. The annual costs of recruitment versus retention, sickness and absence, supply and cover costs and the impact of presenteeism should all be considered.
In addition is the non-financial cost - the impact poor staff wellbeing has on individuals, their colleagues, pupils, the community and the outcomes achieved.
Recruitment
Each academic year, the majority of MATs, schools and colleges will have recruitment costs from natural staff turnover. Leavers may be retiring from the profession, or seeking promotion where there are no internal opportunities - although for MATs with multiple, well-located schools, there is the additional opportunity to build an effective succession plan across internal short-lists.
When good staff leave for other reasons, and the turnover rate is higher than expected, there will be significant additional costs. With one third of new teachers leaving within five years, hanging on to more of those that we have is not only a cost saving, it has an impact on pupil outcomes too.
Data from the DfE’s Schools Workforce Census, November 2022*, shows that 43,997 teachers left teaching for reasons other than retirement, 7,800 more than the previous year. Teacher vacancies (full and part time) have doubled in the past two years; from 1,100 in November 2020, to 2,300 in November 2022. The vacancy rate - which takes into account the increase in the workforce over this period – rose from 2 per 1,000 teachers in service, to 5 per
1,000. This suggests the recruitment market continues to become more competitive. The cost of turnover is the cost incurred in managing leavers and recruiting replacements: additional administration, the full recruitment process (including advertising), onboarding and training.
While there is a lot of data about the numbers of staff being recruited and retained, there is surprisingly little on the costs. One study by Price Waterhouse Coopers, adjusted for inflation, puts the direct costs at nearly £1,400 per vacancy, for adverts, safeguarding checks and other interview expenses. This can increase significantly if the proportion of vacancies are filled through agencies and/or a greater number of senior staff leave. The indirect costs are estimated to be nearly £4,900 per vacancy: staff time for advert creation, pre-application conversations, tours, shortlisting, interviews and new-starter administrative tasks. Other important considerations are the significant ‘opportunity costs’ - time spent away from other leadership tasks.
Sickness and absence
Symptomatic of low staff wellbeing and an unsupportive school culture, are high rates of staff absence due to mental and physical ill- health, stress, and exhaustion. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) (2023) highlighted that 68.6% of absences in education were related to staff wellbeing. Staffing takes the largest slice of every school or MATs budget - 82% according to aggregated DfE data. With an average sickness rate of 5.8 days per employee per year, 3% of a school’s total staffing budget is spent on staff that are absent (DfE 2023). The average cost of supply cover (approximately £230/day outside London) is equivalent to £171 per pupil per year. When staff are off-sick, the implications are not only financial, once again there is an additional ‘opportunity cost’. Teacher absence can also have a much longer-term impact on pupil
12
www.education-today.co.uk
The most significant ‘opportunity cost’ of presenteeism is once again, the impact on pupil outcomes. A study carried out in UK primary schools in 2019, by Professor J Glazzard and Dr A Rose***, revealed the levels of pupil perceptiveness towards their teacher’s mood and wellbeing, and its impact – children are masters of observation:
‘…children were attuned to their teacher’s mood and could usually pick up when they were feeling stressed, even if teachers tried to hide it. Teachers were…unusually short tempered
..got upset when pupils did not understand the work they were given; classroom behaviour deteriorated; and less work than usual was completed...’
The relationship between teacher and pupil is dynamic and reciprocal - crucial to pupil outcomes and wellbeing, and in turn, a teachers’ sense of fulfilment and job satisfaction. Teachers with high job satisfaction, working in a supportive environment, appreciated by leaders and colleagues, teach more effectively.
What is the likely cost of poor staff wellbeing?
Although calculating the likely cost at a local level may take a little effort, for many MATs, schools and colleges, the financial and non-financial costs are significant.
If you would like to know the costs to your MAT, school or college, please visit
https://bit.ly/ wellbeing_cost to access a calculator.
For further information, support, and advice about creating a culture with staff wellbeing at its centre, please contact
welbee.co.uk
*
https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/ find-statistics/school-workforce-in-england **
https://www.sheffield.ac.uk/economics/research/ impact-and-knowledge-exchange/impact-health- work/impact-health-work/presenteeism-uk-effects- physical-and
***
https://eprints.leedsbeckett.ac.uk/id/ eprint/6268/1/TheImpactOfTeacherWellBeingAM- GLAZZARD.PDF
March 2024
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44
