This DfE report examines the supply and demand for supply teachers in primary, secondary and special state schools across England. It considers how supply teachers are deployed, along with the strengths and limitations of current models for the procurement, management and professional development of supply teachers.
The supply market in England is large and diverse. It has evolved over recent years in the context of a decline in the number of Local Authority-run supply teacher pools and it is now dominated by commercial agencies operating at a national, regional and local level.
The report findings suggest lack of awareness is the primary barrier to engagement and measures to increase its visibility could deliver benefits in terms of the quality and cohesion of provision and access to localised pools of supply teachers.
The use of supply teachers, particularly in the secondary phase, has increased since the Covid-19 pandemic. The drivers of this growth are increases in the number and duration of teacher absences and recruitment difficulties and schools use supply workers for cover of a few hours to several weeks or even months.
Most supply workers are deployed as classroom teachers but there is evidence of them fulfilling other roles, including teaching assistant (TA) and senior and specialist roles, as well as some non-teaching functions.