SCHOOLS AND COLLEGES
STRESS MANAGEMENT
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Grantham NG31 8QH
T: 01476 572653
M: 07939 845920
E: mailto:enquiries@calmspace.co.uk" enquiries@calmspace.co.u k
W: www.calmspace .co.uk
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INTRODUCTION
Teaching has been identified as a profession with one of the lowest levels of wellbeing according to a number of studies.
Stress is one of the biggest problems facing teachers today and teacher stress is a priority for the National union of Teachers (NUT) who have worked with LEAs and the Health and Safety Executive since 1990 to tackle the problem. In 1999 the NUT published guidance for its members that:
Analysed the causes, symptoms and effects of stress in schools and colleges, reaffirming the NUT position that stress was rooted in organisational causes Considered why employers needed to take action to tackle stress, including their legal obligations under health and safety legislation
Set out a practical programme for NUT members in schools and colleges to promote discussion around stress, identify the problems and take up issues with managers and governing bodies in order to tackle the causes and effects of stress
In 2002 a government working party was set up to develop ideas for cutting workload. A further report, commissioned by the government from the School Teachers Review Body and published in May 2002 recommended a number of ways schools could reduce the factors leading to stress e.g.:
Reducing workload to an average of 45 hours a week within 4 years
Dedicated time for teachers involvement in management
Extra support, including a lap top
More support staff
Guaranteed teacher time for lesson planning and marking
Professional help for head teachers
At the 2010 NUT Conference delegates unanimously condemned their growing workload which has triggered a growth in stress-related illness and mental health problems. They vowed to take action to win a 35 hour week, smaller class sizes and an end to an inspection and management culture that makes growing demands on teachers " in a more and more bullying way".
WHAT IS STRESS?
The Health and Safety Executive defines stress as:
"The reaction people have to excessive pressures or types of demand placed upon them. It arises when they worry they can't cope."
Stress is not in itself an illness but it is a condition that can give rise to very real illness.
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In the late 1990s a TUC survey found that stress was the main health and safety concern in four out of five schools and more than half of all ill-health retirements were stress-related.
WHAT ARE THE CAUSES OF TEACHER STRESS?
Although stress is very much a health and safety issue, many of the causes of stress are drawn from wider areas e.g. conditions of service and management. Research carried about by the NUT found the following as the main causes of teacher stress:
Excessive working hours
Excessive workload
Rising class sizes
Pressures due to OFSTED inspection
Changes in curriculum and courses
Changes to assessment and testing requirements
Poor management
Workplace bullying
Crumbling schools
Pupil behaviour
Risk of violence
Lack of support with bureaucracy
Lack of job security due to redundancy and fixed term contracts
Lack of control over the job
Threat to early retirement arrangements
Denigration of the profession by politicians and the media
Lack of public self esteem
Research investigating stress in teachers undertaken by Buckinghamshire Chilterns University College looked into the most stressful and most relaxing points of the day. They found the factors contributing to a dramatic rise in blood pressure included:
Faulty photocopiers
Inappropriate room allocation
Insufficient equipment
Interpersonal relationships were also found to be particularly stressful, especially where the reaction led to anger that had to be suppressed. Examples of this type of interaction included:
Disciplining difficult pupils
Dealing with parents on the phone
Interactions with superiors in the presence of students
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Some of the most relaxing events included the mid-morning tea break and lunchtime clubs with keen pupils.
WHAT ARE THE EFFECTS OF STRESS?
The effects of stress on the individual include physical effects e.g. raised heart rate. Muscle pain and lower resistance to infection. Over a long period stress may contribute to chronic health problems such as heart disease and ulcers. They may also include psychological and behavioural changes affecting work performance and interpersonal relationships, including poor concentration, overworking, irritability or aggression, becoming withdrawn or reluctant to accept constructive criticism.
The Teacher Support Network was used by 12,000 in its first year ( 1999) It identified the top five issues raised by teachers seeking help as:
Stress, anxiety and depression 27%
Conflict with managers and colleagues 14%
Pressures of workload and excessive changes 9%
Loss of confidence and performance anxiety 9%
Relationship, marital and family problems 5%
Stress among teachers can also have a negative impact on schools e.g. the efficiency and quality of education delivered and increased vulnerability to legal action from employees who are harmed.
Teacher Support Network found:
The high level of clinical interventions were valuable for some, but missed the mark for many
It had low to medium impact on the profession as a whole There was a low volume use of services
WHAT MUST SCHOOLS AND COLLEGES DO?
Schools and colleges have a legal obligation to take action on stress. Under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 schools and colleges must safeguard the health, safety and welfare of employees. Under the Management of Health and Safety at work Regulations 1992 they also have a specific duty to undertake risk assessments which seek to identify and eliminate or reduce risks to employee health, safety and welfare.
Stress falls into this category which means that schools and colleges must:
Consider the risk of stress among their workforce
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Take steps to remove or reduce the risks by changes to working practices or introducing protective measures
The NUT advises that the most effective schools/colleges stress policies include how to tackle the root causes of stress by encouraging group discussions and problem solving. They also stress the important role of their members in ensuring debate takes place, problems are identified and solutions are discussed and implemented. The
NUT/Nottingham University " Action Plan for Schools" was drawn up by Nottingham Trent
University and looked at:
Delivering education
How problems were solved in schools and colleges
The way in which personal and professional development were approached
Delivering education
Designing jobs and allocating duties so that teachers' skills are better matched to the demands on them.
Reducing time pressure and introducing time management training
Providing more non-contact time for preparation and marking
Making greater use of teaching and administrative assistants
Improving the physical environment and providing more teaching resources
Reducing class sizes
Providing better training on the management of disruptive pupils and more support in dealing with them
Working towards increased agreement on the "aims and objectives" of the schools
Problem Solving Environment
Developing a more co-operative and supportive culture
Providing time and opportunities for staff to relax together
Improving cohesiveness and quality of social environment
Developing the idea of team problem solving and legitimising this by providing time for staff to discuss problems together
Improving communication within school
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Provide better feedback to teachers
Requesting senior teachers to share information more readily
The Development Environment
Developing better person-centred management approaches
Improving the leadership and management styles adopted by senior staff
Making more frequent and better use of expressions of appreciation of teachers' efforts and achievements
Moving towards more frequent and better use of feedback
Improving initial and in-service training for teachers, making it relevant to their real need
Including management training for head teachers, stress and time management training, communications skills training and management of disruptive pupils
Seeking to provide better support facilities for schools, including a broadly-based occupational health service, counselling and leisure facilities
Making efforts to improve community and public health perceptions of the school and its teachers and pupils.
THE BENEFITS OF MANAGING STRESS
The benefits to a school or college managing stress include:
Improved morale. Performance and motivation of staff
Reduced staff absence leading to reduced costs of supply teachers Greater staff retention leading to reduced disruption
Reduction in the communication of stress Reduction in health retirements
Improvements in teaching standards due to reductions in turnover and use of supply teachers
Greater involvement of staff in school/college led change processes Better support for head teachers and leaders in schools/colleges Invaluable data for schools self-evaluation for OFSTED
Support for other initiatives e.g. Healthy Schools and Investor in People Less wasted management time
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At the very least schools and colleges need to:
Demonstrate organisational " buy in" for managing stress
Develop an awareness and understanding of the HSE Stress Management Standards
Gather and analyse data Generate an action plan
Establish a genuine dialogue with staff Implement and evaluate interventions Create sustainability by training staff
WHAT CAN CALMSPACE DO TO HELP?
We know from experience that keeping teachers in work, where possible, is a priority. Calmspace works in a sector specific way responding to the changing needs and habits of teachers:
Providing training in Stress Management, Time Management, Communication Skills, Team Problem Solving and the Management of Disruptive Pupils
Able to circulate, collate and analyse the NUT checklist of possible problems at work to identify problems that can then be taken forward to group discussions of stress Also able to provide independent facilitation of group discussions in order to:
Raise awareness and understanding of issues and avoid problems being glossed over
Gather evidence of the exact nature of the problem Identify steps which can be taken to address the problem Independently monitor and evaluate interventions
Individual coaching
We have adopted an holistic approach to working with individuals that involves looking at:
Workload, work relationships, performance, pressure etc
Common mental health problems
Personal problems e.g. money, family and children
For more information about Calmspace Limited's stress management services or to book a
FREE, no obligation, 30 minute consultation please ring 01476 572653 or e mail enquiries@calmspace.co.uk
Sources of Information
NUT Health and Safety Briefing : Tackling Stress ( published 1999)
Buckingham Chilterns University College 2007
Stress – Prevention is better than cure by Worklife Support
Teachers Support
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