As England's classrooms prepare to reopen, a survey of over 900 educators reveals that nearly half are contemplating leaving the profession within five years — a quiet exodus driven not by indifference to teaching, but by the weight of a system that asks too much and sustains too little. The Liberal Democrats, armed with these findings, are pressing the new Education Secretary for emergency measures, while the government points to improving retention figures even as it concedes that more must be done. At the heart of this tension lies an old and unresolved question: how long can a society draw
Nearly half of teachers plan to quit within five years, Lib Dems warn
Teachers experiencing widespread burnout and stress are leaving the profession, affecting educational continuity and student outcomes.
We rely on teachers to educate our children, the least we can do is make sure they want to come back.
Mark
So nearly half of teachers want to leave. That's a huge number. How confident are we in that figure?
Mimi
The Lib Dems surveyed over 900 teachers, headteachers, and SENCOs across England. It's a substantial sample, and the NEU and ASCL helped conduct it, so there's some institutional backing. But it's worth noting this is a party survey, not an independent study.
Luke
Right—and the government is saying the actual attrition rate last year was the lowest since 2010. So there's a gap between "considering leaving" and actually leaving. Those are different things.
Mimi
That's fair. The survey asked about plans over the next five years, not immediate departures. And yes, the government's data shows people are staying. But the burnout numbers are striking—three-quarters reported frequent or constant burnout.
Mark
Why is burnout so high if people are actually staying?
Mimi
Because burnout and staying aren't opposites. People can be exhausted and still show up. The survey suggests they're exhausted *and* thinking about leaving.
Luke
The Lib Dems want the government to fully fund pay increases instead of making schools cover half. But they didn't say where the money would come from. That's a real gap in the proposal.
Mark
So it's a political call, not a fully costed plan.
Luke
Exactly. The government says it's already committed to 17% pay increases over two years. The question is whether that's enough, and whether the funding mechanism matters as much as the Lib Dems say it does.
Mimi
The teachers themselves said the problem isn't just pay—it's workload. Marking, lesson prep, administrative tasks. That's harder to solve with money alone.
Mark
So what would actually fix it?
Mimi
That's the open question. The Lib Dems are calling for limits on overtime and enforcement of working hours. But whether schools can actually reduce workload without more staff or resources is unclear.
Il Polso
- Nearly half of surveyed teachers in England are planning to leave the classroom within five years, with one in ten expecting to leave within the year — a profession quietly hemorrhaging its people.
- Three-quarters of respondents described burnout as a frequent or constant companion, with marking, admin, and lesson prep crowding out the actual work of teaching.
- The Liberal Democrats are demanding emergency intervention: full government funding of the September pay rise, legally enforced working hour limits, and mandatory flexible working policies across all schools.
- Teaching unions warn that more than a decade of austerity has hollowed out the system, and are calling on the new academic year to serve as a turning point rather than another missed opportunity.
- The government disputes the crisis framing, citing the lowest teacher attrition rates since 2010 and a record number of returnees — but its own spokesperson acknowledged that 'there's more to do.'
As England's classrooms prepare to reopen, a survey of over 900 educators reveals that nearly half are contemplating leaving the profession within five years — a quiet exodus driven not by indifference to teaching, but by the weight of a system that asks too much and sustains too little. The Liberal Democrats, armed with these findings, are pressing the new Education Secretary for emergency measures, while the government points to improving retention figures even as it concedes that more must be done. At the heart of this tension lies an old and unresolved question: how long can a society draw on the dedication of its teachers before that dedication runs dry?
As the new school year approaches, the Liberal Democrats have released survey findings that expose deep fractures in England's teaching workforce. Of more than 900 teachers, headteachers, and Special Educational Needs Coordinators surveyed, nearly half said they intend to leave the profession within five years. One in ten expect to leave within the year. The picture they paint is not of a workforce that has lost its vocation, but of one that has been ground down by it.
The pressures teachers describe are consistent and concrete: relentless marking, lesson preparation, and administrative demands that consume the hours that should belong to students. More than three-quarters reported experiencing burnout frequently or constantly. For many, the job has simply become unsustainable.
The Liberal Democrats are calling on Education Secretary Lucy Powell to respond with urgency. Their proposals include fully funding the 3.5% September pay increase — rather than requiring schools to absorb half the cost from existing budgets — along with legally enforced limits on working hours and mandatory flexible working policies. Schools spokesperson Caroline Voaden put it plainly: if society depends on teachers to educate its children, the least it can offer in return is conditions worth returning to.
The National Education Union, which co-conducted the survey, described a system weakened by over a decade of austerity. General secretary Daniel Kebede called on the government to use the new term as a genuine moment of change, fully funding the pay award and properly resourcing schools to arrest what he called a recruitment and retention crisis.
The government's response was measured. A Department for Education spokesperson noted that last year recorded one of the lowest teacher departure rates since 2010, and that a record number of educators returned to the classroom. The department pointed to cumulative pay awards of nearly 17% over two years and targeted support for flexible working. Yet it also acknowledged that more remains to be done — a concession that sits uneasily alongside the survey's findings.
This tension is not new. In 2019, four in ten teachers said they were planning to quit, citing the same pressures. That the figure has since risen to nearly half suggests that the interventions of recent years have not been enough to turn the tide — and that as schools reopen their doors, the question of who will be standing at the front of the classroom grows more urgent with each passing year.
As the new school year approaches, the Liberal Democrats have released survey findings that paint a stark picture of the teaching profession in England: nearly half of the educators questioned said they plan to leave the classroom within the next five years. The party surveyed more than 900 teachers, headteachers, and Special Educational Needs Coordinators across the country, asking directly about their plans to stay in the profession. The responses reveal a workforce under strain. Beyond those considering departure within five years, one in ten respondents said they were planning to spend less than a year in their current role.
The reasons teachers gave for wanting out cluster around the same set of pressures. More than three-quarters of those surveyed—including both current and former educators—reported feeling burnt out frequently or constantly while at work. They pointed to the sheer volume of marking, lesson preparation, and administrative tasks that consume their time, leaving less of it for actual teaching. The workload, they said, leaves them overworked and stressed. These are not abstract complaints; they describe the daily texture of a job that has become unsustainable for many.
The Liberal Democrats are using these findings to push for immediate action from the new Education Secretary, Lucy Powell. The party is calling for an emergency package of measures to address what they frame as a crisis. Their proposals are specific: the government should fully fund the 3.5% teacher pay increase scheduled for September, rather than requiring schools to cover half of it from existing budgets. They want legally mandated working hours to be properly enforced, with reasonable limits placed on overtime. They are also calling for all schools to be required to introduce flexible working policies. Caroline Voaden, the Lib Dems' schools spokesperson, framed the issue as one of basic reciprocity: "We rely on teachers to educate our children, the least we can do is make sure they want to come back after the summer."
The National Education Union, which helped conduct the survey alongside the Association of School and College Leaders, echoed the urgency. Daniel Kebede, the NEU's general secretary, described a system that has been hollowed out by over a decade of austerity and chronic underfunding. He called on the government to use the new academic year as a moment to signal change—to fully fund the pay award and properly resource schools and colleges to stem what he called the recruitment and retention crisis.
The government's response acknowledges the problem but disputes its scale. A Department for Education spokesperson noted that last year saw one of the lowest rates of teachers leaving the profession since 2010, and that a record number of teachers returned to the classroom. The department pointed to its own actions: pay awards totaling almost 17% over two years, funding for improved maternity pay, and targeted support for flexible working and manageable workloads. Yet the spokesperson also conceded that "there's more to do."
This is not a new tension. Teacher retention has been a challenge for successive governments. The National Education Union reported similar findings in 2019, when four in ten teachers said they were planning to quit, citing huge workloads and excessive accountability. The fact that the problem persists—and that nearly half of teachers are now considering leaving—suggests that the measures taken so far have not been sufficient to reverse the trend. The survey was conducted as schools prepare for a new term, a moment when the question of whether teachers will return to their classrooms becomes concrete and urgent.
Citazioni salienti
After over a decade of austerity and chronic underfunding in our schools the system is on its knees— Daniel Kebede, National Education Union general secretary
Last year saw one of the lowest rates of teachers leaving the profession since 2010, and a record number of teachers returning to the classroom, but we know there's more to do— Department for Education spokesperson
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