Mental health challenges in education

Published: April 3 2025

The NASUWT (The National Association of Schoolmasters Union of Women Teachers)  has published its Wellbeing at Work survey, with 11,754 teacher respondents taking part between September 2023 and January 2024.

Using the 14 scale Warwick Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale to analyse the results, the overall recorded wellbeing score was 38.4. This is significantly below the average score of circa 51 which is reported by the general population and represents a decline of 0.3 points from the 2022 survey.

This score continues to highlight a major issue within the teaching profession.

The survey showed that workload is still the main reported factor that has been responsible for creating work-related stress for teachers.

Less teachers reported experiencing work related stress in the last 12 months than in 2022, however this figure is still at 84% which is egregiously high. The main contributing factors are shown as:

• Workload (54%)
• Pupil behaviour (36%)
• Monitoring and accountability measures (26%)

The three main effects reported by the respondents upon their health and wellbeing were:

• Sleep loss (87%)
• Low levels of energy (84%)
• Loss of appetite (29%)

One section of the survey focused on schools’ responses to wellbeing issues. The experiences reported by the respondents suggest that health and wellbeing is currently not considered to be a priority for school leaders.

Some key takeaways are shown below:

• 73% report their school does not provide staff with workspaces that promote wellbeing and 54% say their school does not provide staff with a safe and comfortable space to take time out and debrief outside the classroom environment.
• 64% report their school does not have measures in place to monitor and manage stress and burnout which coincides with only 42% reporting their school has an annual wellbeing survey.
• 63% report their school not having a school based counsellor who is accessible to both staff and students
• 46% disagree/strongly disagree that their school provides clear policies on their right to switch off and guidelines as to when they should reply to emails at weekends and evenings, with only 12% agreeing/strongly agreeing

With this in mind schools should review whether they offer the items identified which may demonstrate their support for teachers’ health and wellbeing and take steps to address this where possible.

The survey is also indicative that teachers do not feel supported at government level:

• 70% disagree/strongly disagree that government policies support schools to respond to mental health and wellbeing issues that affect teachers
• 51% strongly disagree with the statement ‘My country’s inspectorate regime takes teacher mental health and wellbeing into account when assessing schools’, with a further 28% disagreeing
• 76% agree/strongly agree that the way their country’s inspectorate regime carries out its work has a negative impact on teacher mental health and wellbeing

Whilst there is an indication of some improvement since the 2022 survey, the results still highlight that institutions in the sector are struggling to support the mental health and wellbeing of teachers.

It is essential that schools focus on the mental health and wellbeing of their staff in 2025 ensuring adequate support is in place including measures such as:

• Stress measurement tools
• Stress management measures
• Counsellors
• Flexible working opportunities
• Policies focussing on communication and women’s health issues

These initiatives will be fundamental in addressing and protecting the health and wellbeing of teachers and the quality of education that is provided to our children.

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