A new government must commit to developing its plans for education in partnership with the profession. We see what our pupils and their families need in order to flourish, and we are committed to education as the route to shaping knowledgeable, skilled and creative individuals who together can build a better world. The Chartered College is politically neutral, and we will seek to work with whatever party forms the next government.

As professionals, we have a responsibility to speak out about the issues that matter. Children who are living in poverty have increased barriers to their learning, and 4.3 million children (9 in every 30, the size of an average class) are growing up in poverty in the UK. Approximately 1 in 5 children and young people have mental health problems, many of whom may struggle in schools. Many schools have set up foodbanks, and many school staff regularly use their own money to provide food or equipment for their pupils. In order for teachers to focus on the core tasks of teaching, it is essential that pupils’ needs are met. 

To have the greatest impact for those pupils, we need to empower the teaching profession. Too few people want to become teachers, and too many are leaving. In their own manifestos, many organisations have identified the need for a comprehensive and long term workforce strategy and we believe it should be underpinned by a clear understanding of professionalism. Our definition of professionalism includes the key requirement to balance teachers’ and leaders’ commitment to their pupils with a focus on their wellbeing. This includes being properly rewarded for the vital work they do, as well as looking at ways of improving flexibility and reducing workload.

Wellbeing is also supported by another crucial element of professionalism, professional autonomy. Teachers need to be trusted and empowered, through excellent professional development opportunities to make expert decisions according to context and pupil need. A workforce strategy needs to include a funded commitment to professional development that builds three-way communication between research, policy and practice. This isn’t about providing research for teachers to follow, but properly recognising the role of teachers in combining research with practice, and building new knowledge from observations and action research.

Finally, a workforce strategy should include developing a professional accountability system. This includes an inspection system that works with the profession, that promotes professional conversation and challenge, that enables teaching with creativity and innovation. As a profession, we are committed to learning in order to keep improving the work we do with children and young people, and we need a system that provides meaningful feedback, empowers schools to share good practice and learn from each other, and enables government to focus support for those schools that need it most.

There are many issues that need to be addressed by the new government, and we will be publishing some specific asks over the next few weeks. But it is clear that education is made better when government works in partnership with the profession, and the Chartered College is committed to growing that partnership. We’d love to know your key asks for a new government. Do let us know by filling in this form.

You can find out what the keys asks from the Chartered College of Teaching members want in our recent blog article [here], and also find all of the education organisations manifestos for education in one place [here].