Teachers' hours affect family lives

Nineteen in 20 said their family lives suffered

The long hours worked by many teachers is having a detrimental effect on their family lives, a survey suggests.

A poll of 400 teachers by justforteachers.co.uk found 95% felt their home lives suffered because they were overworked.

Working 53 hours a week doesn't leave much time for any home and family life or any sort of relaxation

Doug McAvoy, NUT

Nearly 70% said their teaching was affected by the long hours they worked.

More than four in 10 had suffered work-related depression, while 63% complained of insomnia.

Nine out of 10 said the volume of work they had to do was under-estimated by other professionals.

And 83% said they put in more time than they had when they first started out.

Topical issue

The issue of teachers' working hours has come under the spotlight in recent months, as the profession struggles to recruit and retain staff.

In the spring, an alliance of four teachers' unions demanded a fundamental review of pay and conditions.

And there were threats of industrial action if a maximum 35-hour working week was not introduced.

In response, the government commissioned a review of teachers' workload by management consultants PricewaterhouseCoopers.

An interim report confirmed that many teachers in England and Wales were working over 50 hours a week in term time - with some exceeding 60 hours.

General secretary of the National Union of Teachers, Doug McAvoy, said the pressures on teachers were enormous.

"Working 53 hours a week doesn't leave much time for any home and family life or any sort of relaxation," said Mr McAvoy.

"It is one of the problems that damages recruitment and retention into the profession," he added.