The Department for Education has published new guidance on School Workforce Planning (external link) in response to requests from school leaders.
The publication provides non-statutory guidance for anyone in a strategic leadership position within maintained schools and academies and aims to help school leaders review their staff structures regularly as part of annual school improvement, curriculum and financial planning.
The guidance acknowledges there is no single staff structure, or approach to reviewing staffing, that will suit all schools in order to deliver excellent pupil outcomes. It also explores the contextual factors such as funding, pupil demographics and school improvement priorities that play a key role in decisions around workforce planning.
The guidance includes:
- A list of options for school leaders to consider
- Questions for school leaders to consider when reviewing their staff structures
- An example timeline
- Links to advice, case studies and tools for school leaders to use.
Staffing structures should be reviewed regularly to see if it still fits the school’s priorities, especially if those priorities have recently been changed. Governing boards have a clear strategic role to play in appointments at senior leadership level (headteachers, deputy/assistant headteachers and school business manager), but all other appointments should be delegated to the headteacher.