For some, it’s an easy decision. There are many stories to be heard about staffroom bullies, ever-increasing workloads, and the pressures of constant curriculum changes, parents’ expectations, and of course, the looming OFSTED inspection.

For others, supply teaching could be the greener grass on the other side of the metaphorical fence:

Images of a better work and home life balance
No display work
Little planning
Less paperwork
No staff meetings
Fewer responsibilities
No parents’ evenings
No ‘voluntary’ clubs to run
And you get your weekends back.
And all for the same pay.

Tempted?

Then the first thing you need to consider is your financial status. Can you afford to be out of work, potentially forever? It sounds dramatic, but supply teachers are less and less in demand in some areas due to the emergence of cover supervisors, and the use of HLTAs to cover lessons.

Can you afford to work for much less? If you can work locally through the Local Authority supply pool, you should be paid to scale. However, these are now a rare breed, and on the verge of extinction since the introduction of recruitment agencies into the education sector. Agencies supply schools with staff at a school’s request. They manage the paperwork and payments. And therefore they take a cut. A variable cut!

Keep in mind that without a contract, the possibilities of you receiving sick pay, maternity pay or paternity pay are slim.

You need to be able to manage your finances well. You will need to look into pensions carefully, don’t assume that you can pay into the national teacher’s pension scheme. During the summer holidays, will you have been diligent enough through the year to ensure you have money put aside for August? Of course, you could aim to get a summer job!

You need to believe that you would be happy leading a nomadic existence. Supply teachers roam from school to school. Possibly never visiting the same school twice in a term! Would you be happy without your own classroom? No stock room? No displays? No children to nurture and no staff with which to build a relationship?

Happy with all this? Then if you really want to leap, you’ll need to give formal, written notice to your Headteacher and Governors. It worked for me!

Where next? There’s a great quick read here on making the most of your education recruitment consultant. Check out our resources area here too.