+ Midlothian

Teacher stress soars by 10% across city’s schools

   Levels of stress have increased in Edinburgh classrooms.

Levels of stress have increased in Edinburgh classrooms.

ALISTAIR GRANT and JAMES DELANEY
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   THE number of primary, secondary and special school teachers taking
   sick days because of stress or anxiety has soared by 10 per cent in the
   past year.

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   It has also emerged that the number of teaching days lost through
   stress or anxiety rose from 2925 in 2014-15 to 3434 last year – an
   increase of almost 20 per cent.

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   like a disciplinary than an absence procedure.

   He said: “Absence management policies add to the stress of teachers.
   Teachers are frightened to take time off work when they are not well as
   they do not want to enter the procedure as it is seen as a weakness.

   “Teachers do not like to admit they are stressed and unable to cope so
   they often seek other reasons for being off sick.

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   Alison Thornton, Edinburgh secretary of the Educational Institute of
   Scotland said escalating stress levels “did not come as a surprise” and
   were probably “not totally unique” to the Capital.

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   Figures released under Freedom of Information laws show the number of
   sick days taken by teachers due to stress or anxiety has boomed by more
   than a quarter since 2011-12 – the year after the new “Curriculum for
   Excellence” was first phased in.
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   He added: “Given cuts to council budgets and unsustainable workloads,
   it’s no surprise that so many teachers need time off to recover from
   stress.

   “The prospect of unnecessary standardised testing won’t be helping. By
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   Council bosses insisted they were “committed to employee well-being” –
   including tackling work-related stress.

   They declined to name any of the schools affected by stressed-out
   teachers, citing privacy concerns.