The work of education – whether in a classroom or the school leader’s office – has always required energy, resilience and a deep well of commitment. Today, both school staff and school leaders face mounting pressures that stretch their capacity and test their wellbeing. Teachers are navigating high workloads, challenging pupil behaviour and a shifting policy landscape, while leaders are responsible not just for student outcomes, but also for staff morale, safeguarding, inspections and budgets. This dual pressure cooker has brought the concept of ‘staff wellbeing’ to the forefront of school improvement agendas. However, the term itself is often poorly defined – and where clarity is lacking, misunderstandings and mismatched expectations grow.
A recent survey found nearly half of headteachers have sought professional help for their mental health in the past year (ASCL, 2023). With challenges ranging from severe staffing shortages to budget crises, it’s no surprise that 51% of school leaders are considering leaving the profession within three years, with 88% citing the job’s impact on their wellbeing as a major reason (ASCL, 2023).
School leadership has always been demanding, but many experienced leaders are expressing that it is harder now than it has ever been. Key elements impacting on school wellbeing include:
- Staffing Shortages: Teacher recruitment has plummeted — 38% below target for new secondary teachers in 2023/24 (DfE, 2023), leaving schools scrambling. Leaders must juggle timetables and ask teachers to plug gaps, which takes a toll on morale and performance.
- Funding Squeezes: Stagnant budgets and rising costs mean difficult decisions. “There are significant funding issues… we are forced to make decisions that are fundamentally not in the best interest of children” (NAHT, 2023).
- Accountability and Ofsted: Ofsted inspections create high-stakes stress. Tragically, the suicide of headteacher Ruth Perry in 2023 highlighted the toll inspection frameworks can take (The Guardian, 2023). One leader reflected, “I have never felt so physically ill… You are under so much pressure to not make any mistakes” (The Guardian, 2023).
- Unsustainable Workload: Beyond headline issues, long hours, constant emails, and relentless expectations grind leaders down. 84% of school leaders say the job regularly disrupts their sleep (ASCL, 2023).
At the same time as pressure has intensified for school leaders – teachers and support staff are also facing growing demands. Increasing workloads, challenging student behaviour, relentless accountability measures and the emotional toll of supporting pupils all contribute to rising levels of stress and burnout across the profession.
In the face of these challenges, there is widespread agreement that staff wellbeing matters. A school can only thrive when its leaders, teachers, and support staff are able to sustain their energy, motivation and morale. As a result, wellbeing has become a regular item on leadership agendas, with efforts made to support staff through morale-boosting initiatives and improved work-life balance. Yet despite these good intentions, wellbeing remains a complex and often misunderstood concept – and in some cases, those misunderstandings are becoming a new source of tension.
When Wellbeing Becomes a Battleground:
Stories circulate in the teaching profession of school leaders so focused on achieving outstanding Ofsted ratings or driving up test scores that the expectations placed on staff become unsustainable. In some schools and academy trusts, there is a very real concern that staff wellbeing is being sidelined—consciously or not—in the relentless pursuit of performance metrics.
While this may be the case in some settings, it is mostly the case that leaders genuinely want their teams to be happy and healthy. Yet many also feel caught in a bind. They’re tasked with improving wellbeing, but under tight constraints: you can’t conjure new staff or money and standards still have to be met. On the other side, some staff have begun to view “wellbeing” almost as an entitlement or bargaining chip. This gap in expectations can lead to what one might call “weaponised wellbeing.”
What does weaponised wellbeing look like in a school? In schools that are well run, school leaders will be looking at opportunities to reduce workload – perhaps reducing the marking burden, implementing ‘light touch’ monitoring or restricting the number of data drops in the school year. They do this in a belief that they are enabling the essential work of the school to continue in a way the supports a sensible workload for staff. However, in the staffroom, a few voices grumble, “If they truly cared about our wellbeing, we wouldn’t have to do any break duties or meetings after 3pm.” In other words, any ask by school leaders that goes beyond teaching in-class hours is seen as an affront to wellbeing. School leaders are beginning to report staff are suggesting that “wellbeing” means no duties, no emails outside work hours, complete autonomy over their timetable – essentially zero tolerance for any additional strain. Some school staff even invoke wellbeing to push back on basic job expectations (like playground supervision or parent evenings), creating a fraught dynamic.
Several leaders report staff pushing increasingly unrealistic interpretations of wellbeing. Because the term is so loosely defined, it can be co-opted to reject any expectations deemed uncomfortable or inconvenient. As one head described in a recent conference: “We’re now hearing that wellbeing means: no duties, no marking after school, no difficult students, no performance management. That’s not wellbeing — that’s fantasy.”
Of course, wanting reasonable boundaries is legitimate – no one should be exploited under the guise of dedication. The problem is when wellbeing is invoked to dismiss any extra responsibility or change. School leaders then feel stuck: every initiative or request (no matter how necessary) could be met with, “But what about our wellbeing?” This can breed resentment on both sides. Leaders might start to see wellbeing talk as a cynical shield for avoiding work, while teachers feel management is tone-deaf to their needs. The original purpose of wellbeing – to support staff – gets lost in miscommunication.
The heart of the issue is that wellbeing means different things to different people. It’s often poorly defined. To some, it’s about mental health and feeling valued; to others, it’s flexible hours and perks; to others still, it implies a stress-free utopia. In reality, it can’t mean “no stress ever.” Teaching is rewarding but inherently challenging work. There will be busy weeks, tough days and things that are simply part of the job.
So, how can we bridge this conceptual gap? It starts with reframing the conversation. Rather than viewing wellbeing as a magical state of zero discomfort, leaders should talk with their staff about how they can jointly arrive at the development of a fulfilling, supportive work environment. That means acknowledging the pressures teachers and leaders face, while focusing on what truly makes work worth it despite those pressures.
In the next part of this blog series, I will explore a more useful idea at the core of wellbeing – workplace fulfilment – and how it can help both leaders and staff find common ground.
The Infinite Headteacher 