How to Promote Staff Wellbeing in Schools
8 min read
Teaching and working in schools can be incredibly rewarding, but it also comes with significant responsibilities and pressures. From managing workloads and supporting students to safeguarding duties and adapting to changes in education, school staff face a wide range of challenges every day. In this article, we’ll explain what teacher wellbeing is, explore why it matters for individuals, schools and students, look at the current state of wellbeing in UK schools and give some practical ideas for supporting staff wellbeing in schools.
What is Teacher Wellbeing?
Teacher wellbeing refers to the physical, mental, emotional and social health of everyone working in a school. It applies to teachers, teaching assistants, learning support assistants, pastoral staff, school office staff, site teams, lunchtime supervisors, senior leaders and anyone else who contributes to the day-to-day running of a school.
Good wellbeing doesn’t mean feeling happy or stress-free all the time whilst at school, as everyone experiences challenging periods at work. Instead, wellbeing is about feeling supported, respected and equipped to manage the demands of the role while maintaining a healthy work-life balance.
A workplace that supports teacher wellbeing is one where people:
- Feel safe, respected and included.
- Have manageable workloads wherever possible.
- Understand what is expected of them.
- Receive appropriate training and professional development.
- Can access support when they need it.
- Feel confident raising concerns without fear of judgement.
- Have opportunities to collaborate with colleagues.
- Feel recognised for their contribution to the school community.
Supporting wellbeing is not solely the responsibility of individual employees. School leaders, governors and academy trusts all have an important role in creating policies, practices and cultures that promote positive wellbeing across the whole school.
What is the Current State of Wellbeing in Schools?
Wellbeing remains a significant concern across the education sector. In recent years, schools have continued to experience challenges, including increased student needs, recruitment difficulties, financial pressures and higher workloads. These factors can all affect the wellbeing of teachers and support staff. Recent surveys and reports show that:
- Many teachers report experiencing work-related stress on a regular basis: 78% of education staff described themselves as stressed and 45% reported experiencing symptoms of depression, anxiety or panic attacks because of their work (source).
- Teacher retention continues to be a challenge, with workload and wellbeing frequently cited as contributing factors why teachers leave the profession (source).
- School leaders often report high levels of pressure due to increased accountability, staffing shortages, budget constraints and increasing student needs (source).
- Education staff are increasingly supporting students with complex mental health, behavioural and safeguarding needs, adding further emotional demands to their roles (source).
The Education Staff Wellbeing Charter encourages schools and colleges to place wellbeing at the centre of leadership decisions and highlights the importance of manageable workloads, supportive leadership, professional development and access to appropriate wellbeing support. While many schools have introduced wellbeing initiatives, research suggests that lasting improvements are most successful when wellbeing becomes part of everyday leadership and organisational culture, rather than relying on occasional activities or one-off events.
The Importance of Teacher Wellbeing
Supporting staff wellbeing benefits everyone, from individual employees and students to the wider school community. When staff feel well supported, they are more likely to feel motivated, engaged and confident in their roles. This can contribute to improved teamwork, greater job satisfaction and better staff retention.
On the other hand, prolonged stress can affect physical health, mental health, concentration, decision-making and relationships with other colleagues. It may also increase sickness absence and staff turnover, placing additional pressures on the rest of the workforce.
Wellbeing also has an important connection to safeguarding. Keeping Children Safe in Education (KCSIE) makes clear that safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility and that all staff should be able to identify concerns, respond appropriately and work with other agencies where necessary. Staff who are experiencing excessive stress, fatigue or burnout may find it more difficult to maintain focus, notice subtle changes in a child’s behaviour or confidently act on their concerns.
Similarly, Working Together to Safeguard Children guidance highlights the importance of effective multi-agency working, professional curiosity and information sharing. Staff who feel supported and have manageable workloads are generally better placed to contribute effectively to safeguarding processes and provide consistent support for children and young people.
School leaders also have responsibilities under health and safety legislation to protect their employees’ health, including their mental health, so far as is reasonably practicable. This includes considering workplace stress, carrying out appropriate risk assessments where required and taking reasonable steps to reduce avoidable pressures.
Want to Know More?
Alongside Safeguarding Training, our range of online courses can help staff recognise the signs of stress, develop healthy coping strategies, support colleagues appropriately and contribute to a positive working environment: Stress Awareness in the Workplace, Mental Health Awareness Resilience Training, Conflict Management and Effective Leadership.
Tips and Ideas for Supporting Staff Wellbeing in Schools
The most successful schools take a whole-school approach to supporting staff wellbeing that considers leadership, workload, communication, professional development and workplace culture. Small, consistent changes often have a greater long-term impact than isolated wellbeing initiatives. Here are some ideas for supporting staff wellbeing in schools:
Create a Positive School Culture 
A supportive culture helps staff feel valued and encourages open communication. Leaders should set the tone for workplace wellbeing through their actions, behaviours and decision-making. Schools can promote a positive culture by:
- Encouraging respectful and supportive relationships between colleagues.
- Recognising and celebrating achievements, both big and small.
- Providing opportunities for staff to contribute ideas and feedback.
- Ensuring everyone feels included regardless of their role.
- Promoting equality, diversity and inclusion throughout the school.
- Addressing concerns promptly and fairly.
Manage Workload Effectively
High workload is consistently identified as one of the biggest contributors to poor wellbeing in education. While some pressures are unavoidable, schools should regularly review working practices to identify unnecessary tasks and reduce avoidable workload. Strategies include:
- Reviewing marking and feedback policies to ensure they are proportionate.
- Avoiding unnecessary meetings and making meetings purposeful.
- Using technology where appropriate to reduce administration.
- Setting realistic deadlines.
- Reviewing data collection processes to remove duplication.
- Protecting planning, preparation and assessment time where applicable.
- Encouraging staff to take annual leave and breaks where appropriate.
Support Good Leadership
Leadership has a significant influence on staff wellbeing and employees are more likely to feel supported when leaders communicate openly, listen to concerns and model healthy working practices themselves. Effective leaders should:
- Hold regular one-to-one wellbeing conversations.
- Be approachable and available when staff need support.
- Provide constructive feedback alongside recognition.
- Encourage healthy work-life boundaries.
- Monitor workload across teams rather than relying on individuals to raise concerns.
- Make wellbeing a regular agenda item during leadership discussions.
Encourage Open Conversations About Wellbeing
A culture where staff feel comfortable discussing their wellbeing can help identify concerns before they become more serious. Employees should know who they can speak to if they are struggling and trust that any conversations will be treated sensitively and appropriately. Schools can encourage open communication by:
- Normalising conversations about mental health and wellbeing.
- Providing confidential opportunities for staff to seek support.
- Training managers to have supportive wellbeing conversations.
- Sharing information about internal and external support services.
- Regularly seeking staff feedback through surveys, meetings or suggestion boxes.
- Acting on feedback where possible and communicating any changes that have been made.
Provide Meaningful Professional Development
Professional development should help staff feel confident in their roles rather than becoming another source of pressure. Training is most effective when it is relevant, practical and carefully planned throughout the year. When planning staff development:
- Create an annual training programme rather than scheduling sessions at short notice.
- Prioritise training that reflects the school’s current risks and priorities.
- Give staff sufficient time to complete mandatory learning.
- Build opportunities for discussion and reflection into training sessions.
- Ensure new starters receive appropriate induction training.
- Review training regularly to identify any gaps or emerging needs.
Avoid Compliance Fatigue
Schools have a legal responsibility to provide mandatory training in areas such as safeguarding, health and safety and data protection. However, repeatedly asking staff to complete numerous online courses or attend lengthy training sessions within a short period can lead to compliance fatigue. This may reduce engagement and make it harder for staff to retain important information.
Instead of viewing training as a series of tick-box exercises, schools should develop a structured programme that supports learning throughout the year. Good practice includes:
- Spreading mandatory training across the academic year where possible.
- Combining related topics into planned training days.
- Providing refresher training at appropriate intervals, rather than unnecessarily repeating the same content.
- Tailoring training to different staff roles where appropriate.
- Allowing sufficient time for staff to complete training during working hours where possible.
- Reinforcing key learning through discussions, brief updates and practical scenarios.
- Reviewing training feedback to improve future sessions.
Promote a Healthy Work-Life Balance
While busy periods are inevitable in education, schools should encourage healthy working habits throughout the year. Staff who feel able to switch off outside work are more likely to maintain good wellbeing over the long term. Leaders should also model healthy behaviours themselves as when senior staff demonstrate good work-life balance, employees are more likely to feel able to do the same. Schools can support work-life balance by:
- Encouraging staff to take lunch breaks where possible.
- Discouraging unnecessary emails outside working hours.
- Setting realistic expectations around response times.
- Reviewing expectations for evening and weekend working.
- Encouraging staff to use flexible working arrangements where appropriate.
- Supporting phased returns following long-term absence where needed.
Make Wellbeing Everyone’s Responsibility
Although leaders play a key role, creating a positive working environment requires commitment from the whole school community. Every member of staff can contribute to a supportive culture through daily acts of support, as these can have a significant impact on workplace morale and help colleagues feel valued. Staff can help by:
- Checking in with colleagues regularly.
- Offering support during particularly busy periods.
- Sharing ideas and resources.
- Respecting each other’s time and workload.
- Challenging behaviours that create unnecessary stress.
- Promoting kindness, inclusion and teamwork.
Signpost Staff to Additional Support
Even in schools with a strong wellbeing culture, some staff may need additional support during difficult periods. Schools should ensure employees know what help is available and how to access it. Making support visible and easy to access helps reduce barriers to seeking help early. This may include:
- Employee Assistance Programmes (EAPs).
- Occupational health services.
- Mental health first aiders.
- Trade union support.
- GP services.
- NHS Talking Therapies.
- Charity and wellbeing organisations.
- Flexible working or reasonable workplace adjustments where appropriate.
A whole-school approach to staff wellbeing recognises that healthy, supported employees are fundamental to a successful school. Investing in wellbeing, providing meaningful training and encouraging open conversations can improve morale, strengthen safeguarding practices and help schools create a positive environment that benefits everyone, including staff, students and the wider school community.
Further Resources:
- CPD Courses for Teaching and Education
- Teacher Recruitment and Retention: Importance and Strategies
- Leadership in Education: Hierarchy and Leadership Styles
- What is Teacher Burnout?
- Emotional Intelligence in Teaching
- How to Teach with Confidence
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