This is the first year I have managed to secure a fixed-term, part-time teaching post. I am grateful to have been given this opportunity; however, it is only a 0.4 contract, meaning I am employed for two days per week and still need to rely on supply teaching to make up the remaining days.
In previous years, I have relied entirely on supply work. At the beginning of the school year, work can be very slow and unpredictable. In my experience, it is usually around November or December before supply becomes more consistent, and I can then often secure four or five days of work per week for much of the remainder of the school year.
The biggest difficulty is the lack of job and financial security. Even when supply work becomes fairly regular, there is no guarantee of work from one week to the next. The summer holidays are particularly difficult because supply teachers have no work and therefore no teaching income during this period.
It can be frustrating to be a qualified and experienced teacher who wants to work, but still be unable to secure enough contracted hours or a permanent position. I would like decision-makers to consider not only how many teachers are employed, but also how many are relying on temporary, part-time or supply work when they would prefer more secure employment.
Greater access to permanent posts, or at least longer-term contracts with sufficient hours, would provide teachers with much-needed stability and make remaining in the profession more sustainable.
This is answer 194 of the 269 written answers that teachers let us quote anonymously in the Scottish Teacher Employment Survey 2026. It answers the survey’s last question: what do the people who make decisions about teacher employment need to know?
We have corrected spelling, added paragraph breaks and removed details that could identify anyone. Words in square brackets are ours.