Government urges ex-teachers to return to classrooms to cover COVID staff shortages
The government believes some local areas may "struggle to find sufficient numbers of supply teachers available", unless former staff come forward to help.
Retired and former teachers across the UK are now being urged to return to the classroom in the new year in a bid to help with staff shortages due to the rise in COVID-19 cases.
As the Omicron variant is expected to continue to cause “increased staff absence levels in the spring term”, the Department for Education (DfE) and Education Secretary has issued a plea today asking recently-retired teachers, or those who trained as teachers and changed career, to return to the classroom temporarily “to help protect face-to-face education”.
The government believes some local areas may “struggle to find sufficient numbers of supply teachers available”, unless former staff come forward to help.
The appeal comes as it’s being reported that some schools are already preparing for the possibility of online teaching next term, and even have told pupils to take laptops home in case of disruption after Christmas.
The Education Secretary has urged ex-teachers who are available to return to the classroom, to apply on the Get Into Teaching website.
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In the plea issued by the government, it’s said that it “remains important” that the same comprehensive checks go ahead as they always would for anyone working with children, which is why potential teachers are being encouraged to get the process started as soon as possible.
They should ideally start the process before Christmas Eve to be ready to join the workforce from January.
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We're asking former teachers to temporarily return to the classroom so children can continue to benefit from face-to-face education during the pandemic.
It could be for as little as a day a week next term.
“I am asking any teachers no longer in the profession to come forward if they are available to temporarily fill absences in the new year,” Mr Zahawi said.
“Although 99.9% of schools have consistently been open this term, with cases of Omicron increasing, we must make sure schools and colleges have the teachers available to remain open for face-to-face education.
“Anyone who thinks they can help should get the process started now on the Get Into Teaching website.”
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He also added at the end of his plea that “everyone should get boosted now to help reduce the amount of disruption from the virus in the new year.
I am asking former teachers to come forward to temporarily support school and college workforces in the New Year.
The government says that supply teacher agencies across the country will continue to manage local supply and demand to help make sure schools and colleges do not need to close as a result of lack of staff, and so from today, those eligible can expect to receive targeted communications encouraging them to participate.
The DfE is helping schools, unions, and supply teacher agencies to reach potential teachers through social media and other communication channels.
The government is also working with the teacher training programme provider Teach First for the mission to get former teachers back on board, with the company’s Chief Executive, Russell Hobby, adding: “Given the challenges that schools now face, we want to see what more can be done to help – including how we, and those of our alumni who have trained as teachers but currently work outside the profession, may be able to support schools to remain open safely in the new year.”
Former teachers should approach supply teacher agencies listed on the website, the government says, as they will manage local supply.
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The government believes some local areas may struggle to find “sufficient numbers of supply teachers available”, unless former staff come forward to help / Credit: Flickr
However, the launch of the appeal has not been received too well by some education unions and opposition parties.
Paul Whiteman – General Secretary of school leaders’ union NAHT – said: “Having a greater number of supply teachers to call upon could be helpful, but it will not take away from the very challenging circumstances schools find themselves operating under.
“We need to be very clear that if things get to this stage, it will mean that education will look very different in January and we could be talking about a very different type of provision at the start of next year.
“That has huge implications for things like exams, assessment and inspection.”
While shadow Schools Minister Stephen Morgan added: “This is a sticking plaster, and only part of what’s needed to keep children and staff safely in class next term.
Featured Image – Wikimedia Commons
News
Manchester band Westside Cowboy release ‘thrilling’ debut album that critics are calling one of the year’s best
Emily Sergeant
One of the UK’s best rising bands have released their debut album today to glowing reviews from critics and fans alike.
Jimmy Bradbury, Reuben Haycocks, Aoife Anson O’Connell, and Paddy Murphy – better known together as Westside Cowboy – formed back in 2023 when they were students at the Royal Northern College of Music, so while they may not all be from Manchester, they definitely have the spirit of our city at the heart of everything they do.
After playing in different bands across the city throughout their student years, the four-piece joined forces to create Westside Cowboy – an indie rock collective credited with self-coining the genre of ‘Britainicana’.
Put simply, Britainicana is a cultural concept that mixes the hazy, mythic feel of American country and folk, with the sound of raw British punk, indie rock, and small-town life.
Westside Cowboy have released their debut album, It Goes On / Credit: Clementine Schniedermann (Press Shots – Supplied)
If that sounds like your cup of tea, then you’ll be pleased to know that Westside Cowboy have released their debut album, It Goes On, to the world today (21 August).
And the reception from critics, arguably, couldn’t be better.
Prior to the release of their debut album, the band had released two EPs, including So Much Country ‘Till We Get There in January earlier this year, and had started to make a name for themselves with their popular debut single ‘I’ve Never Met Anyone I Thought I Could Really Love (Until I Met You)’ in 2024.
They went onto make even further waves when they supported equally-rising American rock band Geese on their UK and Irish tour back in March – with many fans calling it one of the best support and main act combinations in some time.
Three singles from their debut album were shared with the world ahead of its release – ‘Kick Stones (The Boys)’ came first, followed by ‘Pin Up Boys’ and ‘Dobro’.
So, it’s fair to say the anticipation for album was high… and if the reviews are anything to go by (which we think they are), it looks like the band has very much delivered what they set out to achieve.
Westside Cowboy’s debut album It Goes On is now available to stream, or you can purchase a physical copy in a range of formats from their website here.
Take a listen👇
Featured Image – Press Shot (Supplied)
News
UK set to be battered by storms as ‘unprecedented’ El Niño arrives this autumn
Emily Sergeant
The UK is being told to brace for a series of storms this autumn when the ‘unprecedented’ El Niño weather event arrives.
It’s already been a summer of extremes for the country, with multiple heatwaves over the past couple of months, but now it appears that autumn and winter are set to have some extremes of their own, as the Met Office is warning that this upcoming El Niño could be one of the most significant in recent memory.
El Niño is declared when sea temperatures in the tropical eastern Pacific rise 0.5°C above the long-term average, which therefore impacts global rainfall patterns and average temperatures.
The natural warming of sea temperatures is forecast to reach more than 3°C in the coming months, according to the Met Office, making this year’s weather event have the potential to be ‘the largest since the 19th century’.
The UK is set to be battered by storms as ‘unprecedented’ El Niño arrives this autumn / Credit: Johannes Plenio (via Unsplash)
El Niño will create a heightened risk of drought in the tropics, southern Africa, and north eastern Australia, but over in north western Europe – including the UK – it means we are likely to experience wetter and stormier conditions.
The UK, and of course Greater Manchester, is absolutely no stranger to a storm around this time of year, but forecasters say this could be an entirely different beast.
“We should be clear that this is an unprecedented event,” warned Professor Adam Scaife, who is the Head of Long Range Forecasting at the Met Office.
“I have never seen an El Nino signal this intense in our forecasts.”
Professor Scaife concluded: “A typical El Nino leads to an equatorial Pacific sea-surface temperature rise of between one to 2°C, with 2°C being a really big event. This implies that, if the forecast is accurate, and other forecast systems show similar extreme values, then 2026 will far exceed our recent experience of El Niño and its worldwide climate influences.’
Forecasters and officials, however, have warned that it could take months of sustained rainfall before rivers, reservoirs, and groundwaters are ‘completely replenished’ – which is when a drought can officially be declared as over.
It also warned drought conditions could persist into the new year as, despite El Niño, as current forecasts do not suggest this autumn will have the amount of rainfall needed to drive recovery.
Emily Sergeant -
20th December 2021 
