Supply Teaching

[apple]

Hi there

just enquiring whether anyone out there is doing supply. I am considering my future... getting a bit fed up and feel the need to change. Need to know the ins and outs of supply. Is there anyone that has gone it alon and not gone through an agency? I know a few schools that I have good contacts with that could use me but can I do this without a middleman e.g. agency.

What are the rates for an experienced teacher, what do I need to consider e.g. what costs would I incur (how do I sort out tax and NI, union rates, etc)

Anyone out there able to enlilghten me from this dark passage I'm in

[Guest]

Hi apple - I too was an experienced teacher and did some supply work oh a couple of years ago now . I was in a tizzy over what I really wanted to do and had been an EY / Ks1 leader in a huge primary school with its own nursery for 7 years before having my family. It was a job i loved and knew I didnt want to in at the same level due to family commitments so tested the water with a bit of supply.

The positives are its flexible and you can choose the areas you work in and you can build up good relationships with schools who will ask for you back. However , for me, this job is all about getting to know the children and it doesnt allow you to do that . I found I needed the consistency of having the same children in front of me each day - getting to know them - seeing progress - what makes them tick . Thats me - everyone is different and it is something that very much fits with the here and now - it might be a short term career move to give you some thinking time or bring in that bit of extra cash without any major commitment.

Money wise I think it varies - all LEA'S run their supply cover differently - some are centralised , others deal with agencies , you will need to contact your LEA to find out how they do theirs . Pay also varies ( and you can register to work with several agencies at the same time to maximise your chance of work) . I negotiated a better rate than they first offered because I felt they were getting experience - it worked so blow your own trumpet !

For me it didnt work - but was valuable as it proved this to me . I now own and run my own pre- school and love it ! Money much,much less , job satisfaction huge ! Hope this helps - Dizzy

[Guest]

Sorry - to answer the last part of your post . All financial bits and pieces - NI etc were attended to by agency and were taken off before I got my pay , and, if you contact your union they have special rates for supply teachers which they will be able to apply to your membership . Diz

[JacquieL]

I have done some supply over the last three years but not as my main occupation to earn a living, so I wasn't really worried whether I worked or not. I think how often you work would depend on where you are in the country and which age groups you are happy to work with. I think using HLTA's for cover has reduced the amount of supply cover available in some places. Having said that there does seem to be work around, especially maternity leaves, which are often advertised. You will need a new CRB. It could get complicated if you worked for more than one LA as you will need several CRB's. You may be asked to pay for these yourself.

I first began supply when a local school rang up as someone had told them I had retired. I ended up doing a fair amount for them and thoroughly enjoyed it. Then my name was passed to a Children's Centre ( HT's talking) as someone experienced with EYs, and I have worked there a lot since. Some schools prefer to have supply teachers who do not work for an agency as they don't have to pay an agency fee. Some LA's have their own lists, but do charge the school a fee but are cheaper than agencies. Different agencies pay different rates, but they make a deduction so you wouldn't get your full rate. If you work outside an agency then you are paid pro-rata for the scale point you are on. Obviously that can make some teachers expensive so less likely to get work. Your holiday pay is within your daily rate so you won't get paid in the holidays. That makes the daily rate look quite good at the time. Your employer deals with your pay, tax etc but there is quite a bit of form filling involved.

I can only talk from my experience. The TES site has a Forum for supply teachers and it is worth a read.

[Guest]

the majority of supply teachers we use are not through and agency we contact them direct as they, like you with other schools, have formed good contacts with our school.

[Rea]

I work for an agency, not a teacher though. The downside to going it alone is the tax and NI. My agency pay all that for me, but my hubby is self employed and its not really that difficult to sort out.

The hours obviously cant be guarenteed so look aroound at schools in your areas to check how often they use supply. I dont know the rates, but most agencies advertise upto around £120 a day for teachers. The school gets charged loads more than you get so if you went it alone you'd be able to work out a fair amount to suit you both maybe. I recently wored officially for my old playgroup, knowing they havent much money I charged them the hourly rate I would have been paid by theagency, but it saved them money.

The overall pros and cons for me are...

Pros

Choose when and where you work. Some places I dont ever want to go back to!

Get to see how other people do things. Lots of different ways the EYFS is interpreted

No paperwork, reviews, case stuidies, key children (short term placement)

 

Cons

Not guarenteed work

Dont get to know the children or when you do you might then be told you're not needed next week

Dont have a say in the running or planning necessarily

Have to work out the politics in the staff room - (but I'm not there to make friends so that doesnt really count.)

No sick pay

If you work at a really good place and then apply for a job there, the agency can demand an introduction fee (time scales are involced here though with mine) which some places might not want to have to pay. Something to check.

 

I've worked for supply for over 3 years and wouldnt go back to staff purely because I like to have time off to suit me and my family rather than having to put holiday requests in. I dont go to meetings, have to stay beyond my booked hours and I dont ever have to worry about Ofsted

[JacquieL]

" The school gets charged loads more than you get so if you went it alone you'd be able to work out a fair amount to suit you both maybe." Rea

 

The school has no choice but to pay you according to the increment you are on. There is no negotiation on this. This is part of your T & C's as a teacher.

[Susan]

If you dont need the financial security of a permanent job, supply teaching can be great. If you need any money on a regular basis I wouldnt advise it. I thoroughly enjoyed the supply teaching I have just done from an experience point of view as it is a great way to get out and about and see other schools and year groups. Unless you are on a long term cover, no planning, no meetings, regular hours and flexibility.

The disadvantage for me was that there was no job satisfaction after a while. When I took a longer term contract I had to build up again as schools had taken me off their lists. In the 2 Autumn terms 07 and 06 I hardly had any work and this is also difficult to manage as you never know what you can do in case work should come in!

Agencies do pay not to scale, LEAs do and will pay your into TPS.

Both need CRBs which take time to get organised and you will probably be expected to pay for these. And you will need references and be prepared for interviews.

Another advantage is that you are available to pick up those jobs that become available after the resignation date.

 

Good luck.

[Rosey]

While I am an NQT and only just getting into the world of supply teaching, I just had to comment and say that this thread is answering so many questions for me! I'm literally in the process of signing up with agencies to get supply work, whilst I apply for a permament post and reading this post is alleviating my fears and making me feel much happier about the whole process.

 

Rosey x

[mundia]

IF you are able to register with your LA for supply, you will not only get paid to scale but also can continue to contribute to TPS. For me this was infinitely preferable to an agency..downside is that you do get sent to all sort of plaes!!

 

But if you have the school contacts already, ask them what or who they use?

[apple]

Thankyou all for your valuable advice, I shall bear all your points in mind as I continue to ponder this route!