Mark Solomons, founder and CEO, Welbee
Yet, statistics show the problems continue to increase. The latest Teacher Wellbeing Index and other reports consistently highlight the precarious state of the profession, with nearly 4 out of 5 staff reporting unhealthy stress and over half suggesting their organisation’s culture negatively affects their wellbeing.
Factors like covid, rising student mental ill-health, the need for greater SEND support, student behaviour, increasing parental expectations, crumbling buildings, the cost-of-living crisis, and underfunded schools all have an impact. Much of this is beyond our control with little sign of change coming soon.
We also know we are not alone, with mental health challenges extending beyond education. Over half of UK employees (55%) admit to them, according to research by The Global Business Collaboration for Better Workplace Mental Health.
So, what’s the real problem for trusts and schools?
Is it poor wellbeing and mental health challenges leading to staff absence, attrition and the impact these have on students and their outcomes? Or is it our inability to address these issues effectively?
Wednesday 19 June was National ‘Thank a Teacher Day’, and we do need to thank everyone in our schools, not just teachers. The best thank you is to build an organisation and culture where staff want to work, can do their best work, and choose to stay.
Where to start?
Research from the Wellbeing Research Centre at the University of Oxford analysed data from hundreds of organisations, looking at 11 different interventions, such as resilience training, stress management, relaxation classes and mindfulness apps.
They found that individualised mental health interventions don’t work. Across several indicators, participants were no better off than their colleagues who didn’t take part.
Trying to change the worker rather than the workplace misses the mark.
This doesn’t mean individuals shouldn’t take responsibility for their wellbeing or that personal support isn’t helpful. However, this should not be the place to start.
Professor Sir Cary Cooper, one of the UK’s leading experts on organisational wellbeing suggests the main reason people become ill at work is the lack of people and soft skills of line managers, an area often lacking in leadership training and development. Leaders have the biggest impact on wellbeing.
It’s like building a house
Improving organisational wellbeing is like building a house, starting with the right foundations. This means living to agreed values, developing the behaviour, knowledge and skills of leaders, and putting the right supporting processes in place so staff feel valued.
Many organisations, however, spend more of their time building the ground and first floor, ignoring the foundations.
They provide, cakes, staff activities like yoga, plan wellbeing days, or seek to give staff added time off, as solutions. But, if staff don’t feel valued or supported, after time off, wellbeing days, cake, or yoga, what has changed?
While greater flexibility and hybrid working will be part of the conversation, they will only make a sustainable difference when added to the right culture. One where every day behaviours show staff are valued and belong.
This means consistently taking small ordinary actions each day:
- Relating and having short conversations with staff before adding tasks or making requests.
- Checking in with people, showing interest in their lives.
- Managing by walking about - catching people doing the right things, regularly and authentically to show appreciation.
- Being a role model, expecting people to copy what you do, not what you say.
- Ensuring people get a break (and coffee).
- Ensuring bathrooms don’t regularly run out of soap.
Leadership behaviours, tea, and toilets!
Leaders must also be aware of their own needs and look after themselves first – often easier said than done - failure to do this compromises everything else.
Many in the sector work too hard to deliver outcomes for students, and staff wellbeing is not where it needs to be. While inadequate funding, staff turnover, inexperience, and other challenges are significant barriers to change, creating a great place for all staff to work must be our focus.
We cannot put it off a day, month or until next year, because of other priorities!
The day-to-day whirlwind of interruptions, meetings, emails, and firefighting does push aside important strategic change. Yet, the consequences are significant - impacting morale, retention, absences, financial performance, and student outcomes.
The good news: As a leader, you can help make the difference.
The bad news: As a leader, it’s up to YOU to help ensure change happens.
Mark Solomons is founder of our multi-ward winning CST recognised supplier Welbee, and author of ‘What Makes Teachers Unhappy and What Can You Do About It? Building a Culture of Staff Wellbeing.’
Welbee supports trusts through a done with you systemised process to measure and track staff wellbeing, and most importantly recommends actions and supports implementation, to help build a culture where staff want to work, will do their best work, and want to stay.
The CST Blog welcomes perspectives from a diverse range of guest contributors. The opinions expressed in blogs are the views of the author(s), and should not be read as CST guidance or CST’s position.
