Teacher wellbeing in 2026: practical workload resources for school leaders

Why should teacher wellbeing be a priority for school leaders in 2026?

Teacher wellbeing in 2026 is no longer a "nice to have" staff benefit. Across the schools, trusts and education settings that Findel supports, leaders are increasingly recognising that staff wellbeing, retention and workload are now strategic priorities rather than separate conversations.

With Education Support’s Teacher Wellbeing Index 2025 reporting that 76% of education staff experience stress, the focus for school leaders is shifting from wellbeing initiatives alone towards practical changes that make everyday school life more manageable.

The conversation around teacher wellbeing has changed. A few years ago, wellbeing often sat alongside school improvement plans as a separate strand of activity. Today, the most effective leaders recognise that wellbeing is woven through everything a school does. It is influenced by planning expectations, assessment systems, communication processes, behaviour policies, resource availability and the countless operational decisions that shape a teacher's day.

Across Findel's work with schools, one theme emerges consistently: teachers rarely become overwhelmed because of a single issue. Pressure builds through the accumulation of small frustrations, duplicated processes and competing demands. That is why wellbeing and workload are now inseparable.

Teacher wellbeing affects much more than staff morale. It influences recruitment, retention, teaching quality, organisational stability and ultimately pupil outcomes. Education Support's Teacher Wellbeing Index continues to highlight significant levels of stress across the profession, while NASUWT wellbeing surveys consistently identify workload as one of the leading causes of teacher dissatisfaction.

For senior leaders, the challenge is no longer understanding that wellbeing matters. The challenge is identifying where meaningful change can be made. This is something GLS sees across every phase of education. Whether speaking with headteachers, trust leaders, school business managers or classroom practitioners, the same reality often emerges: schools are under pressure to do more while resources, time and staffing remain stretched. In that environment, every process matters. The schools making the greatest progress are often those that focus on removing barriers rather than adding initiatives.

What does effective workload reduction look like in practice?

One of the biggest misconceptions around workload reduction is that it requires lowering standards. In reality, the opposite is often true. Schools that successfully reduce workload tend to be highly focused on protecting teacher time for activities that have the greatest impact on learning.

The DfE Workload Reduction Toolkit provides a useful framework because it encourages schools to examine whether established practices continue to justify the time they require. Through Findel's conversations with school leaders, some of the most productive questions are often the simplest:

• Does this task improve outcomes for pupils?
• Is this information being recorded elsewhere?
• Does this meeting achieve something that could not be communicated more efficiently?
• Are staff spending time producing evidence that nobody uses?
• Does this process support teaching, or merely document it?

The answers frequently reveal opportunities to simplify. Workload reduction is rarely about removing responsibility. It is about removing friction.

How can school leaders identify unnecessary workload?

Many workload pressures remain hidden unless leaders actively look for them. Teachers often become accustomed to inefficient processes and simply absorb the additional burden. A targeted workload review can help uncover these issues. Questions might include:

• Which task consumes the most time relative to its impact?
• Which process feels unnecessarily complex?
• What regularly interrupts your teaching preparation?
• What one change would have the greatest positive effect on your week?

The most important stage comes afterwards. Staff need to see evidence that feedback leads to action. Across Findel's wider education partnerships, one lesson consistently emerges: trust grows when people can see that their experiences have shaped decisions. Even relatively small changes can improve morale when they demonstrate that leaders are listening and responding.

Which areas of school life typically create the most workload pressure?

Although every school context is different, several themes appear repeatedly.

Marking and feedback

Many schools continue to refine their feedback approaches in line with research from organisations such as the Education Endowment Foundation. The trend towards more focused, purposeful feedback reflects a growing recognition that extensive written marking does not automatically improve learning. Schools that successfully balance impact and workload tend to prioritise feedback that pupils can act upon while avoiding unnecessary administrative burden.

Planning and lesson preparation

Planning remains one of the most significant demands on teacher time. This is particularly true when staff are creating materials from scratch, adapting resources for different needs or searching across multiple sources for suitable content. Hope Education has long positioned itself around supporting educators with resources, ideas and inspiration rather than simply supplying products. That distinction matters in a workload conversation. When curriculum-linked resources, activity ideas and specialist SEND materials are readily available, teachers spend less time searching and more time focusing on teaching. Across primary schools especially, reducing planning friction can have a meaningful impact on staff wellbeing. It reflects a broader principle that sits at the heart of the Hope Education approach: making life easier for educators so they can focus on helping children succeed.

Administrative duplication

Many schools continue to review how assessment data, pupil information and reporting requirements are managed. Where information is collected multiple times, entered into several systems or retained without a clear purpose, unnecessary workload can quickly develop. Removing duplication is often one of the fastest routes to reducing pressure.

Resource sourcing and operational friction

One workload factor that receives far less attention is operational friction. Teachers losing time searching for resources, departments managing multiple suppliers, support staff chasing missing items, last-minute orders, and unexpected stock issues. Individually, these issues may seem minor. Collectively, they consume significant time and attention.

This is one reason why procurement and wellbeing are more closely connected than many people realise. Through GLS, schools can access a broad range of everyday essentials through a single education-focused supplier. While this may appear to be an operational consideration, it can have a direct impact on workload by reducing administrative effort, simplifying ordering and helping staff access the resources they need more efficiently. When teachers spend less time solving logistical problems, they have more capacity for teaching and supporting pupils.

What practical resources can support teacher wellbeing?

The most effective wellbeing resources are often those that prevent workload from escalating in the first place. Examples include:

• Shared planning resources
• Curriculum-aligned teaching materials
• SEND support resources
• Assessment templates
• Parent communication templates
• Behaviour management frameworks
• Staff wellbeing check-in tools
• Meeting structures and templates
• Collaborative planning resources
• Targeted CPD focused on workload management

Importantly, these resources should remove complexity rather than create it. This reflects a wider shift that Findel has observed across the sector. Increasingly, schools are looking for support that delivers outcomes, not simply products. Hope Education's emphasis on practical classroom support and curriculum inspiration aligns with this trend. Likewise, GLS plays an important role in helping schools access essential resources efficiently and consistently. Both approaches support the same objective: helping educators feel prepared, supported and ready to teach.

How can wellbeing become part of everyday leadership?

The strongest wellbeing cultures are rarely created through standalone wellbeing programmes. Instead, wellbeing becomes embedded within decision-making. Before introducing a new initiative, policy or process, school leaders can ask:

• What workload will this create?
• What will we stop doing to make space for it?
• How will success be measured?
• Who will be most affected?
• Can this be simplified further?

These questions help schools avoid the common trap of introducing new solutions that unintentionally create additional workload. Across the education sector, Findel increasingly sees schools taking a more joined-up approach to improvement. Curriculum delivery, SEND provision, wellbeing, procurement and operational efficiency are becoming part of the same conversation because each influences the others. When staff feel equipped and supported, schools are better placed to achieve their wider goals.

How can schools avoid tokenistic wellbeing initiatives?

Teachers are generally quick to recognise the difference between genuine support and symbolic gestures. A wellbeing breakfast may be appreciated, but a streamlined marking policy may be transformative. A thank-you email is welcome, but a reduction in unnecessary meetings may have a greater long-term impact.

The schools making the greatest progress tend to focus on removing unnecessary pressure rather than simply introducing new wellbeing activities.

The Findel perspective: wellbeing starts with readiness

At Findel, we believe confident learning starts with confident educators. Too often, discussions about wellbeing focus on resilience alone. While resilience matters, it should never become a substitute for meaningful support. The most effective schools create environments where staff feel equipped, trusted and ready to succeed. That belief sits at the heart of Findel's Made for Education proposition.

We understand that schools do not simply need products. They need support that reflects the realities of education. Whether that support comes through the curriculum expertise and classroom inspiration provided by Hope Education, the operational efficiency and everyday essentials available through GLS, or the wider guidance and partnerships developed across the Findel family, the goal remains the same: to help educators spend less time overcoming barriers and more time making an impact. Because when teachers feel ready, pupils benefit.