By Ex-teachers urged to return to schools following staff shortages
Due to staff shortages caused by the ongoing Covid pandemic, the government is urging ex-teachers to return to schools to manage all of the absences.
New data from the Department for Education has revealed that at least 485 former teachers have signed up with agencies since Monday 20 December 2021 to combat this problem, the BBC reported.
It is still unclear how many of these teachers have started teaching students again.
The news comes after weeks of reports of staff shortages in many different sectors, such as travel and healthcare.
New figures revealed on Tuesday 11 January that one in every 12 teachers were off sick due to the Omicron variant each day.
This has caused a huge disruption to students’ progress in classes, especially as they are already facing stress from the pandemic’s effects themselves.
The government continues to urge ex-teachers to get back into the business to help schools regain a sense of normalcy in their daily lives.
Education Secretary Nadhim Zahawi said: “I call on all other former teachers who are able to do the same to come forward now.”
School leaders’ union NAHT indicated that the number of returning teachers has not yet balanced out with the number of teachers taking sick days, so further action is still needed.
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