Salaries for new teachers are set to rise to £30,000 by 2022-23, under government plans for the biggest reform to teacher pay in a generation.

The Teacher’s Pension Scheme is also one of the most generous on offer. From September, the government will be fully funding increased contributions into the scheme, so that school leaders can focus as much of their resources as possible on the front line. It means teachers will get an employer contribution of 23.6% on top their salary towards their pension every year to ensure the scheme is fully funded.

Education Secretary Gavin Williamson announced the plans today (2 September), underlining his determination to recognise teaching as the high-value, prestigious profession it is.

The move would make starting salaries for teachers among the most competitive in the graduate labour market, building on the above-inflation average pay increases for teachers in the last two years.

Mr Williamson will set out his proposal to increase teachers’ starting salaries by up to £6,000 in a remit letter to the School Teachers’ Review Body (STRB), asking for their recommendations on raising the starting salaries of new teachers as well as next year’s pay award.

The £14 billion investment announced by the Prime Minister last week will ensure that pay can be increased for all teachers. The government’s proposal to increase the pay of early career teachers fastest is in line with the evidence on where recruitment and retention challenges are greatest. Further detail will be set out in the government’s evidence to the STRB later this year.

Education Secretary Gavin Williamson said:

Teachers truly are the lifeblood of a school and I have been instantly impressed by the dedication, commitment and hard work that I have seen from those at the front of our classrooms.

I want the best talent to be drawn to the teaching profession and for schools to compete with biggest employers in the labour market and recruit the brightest and the best into teaching.

Teachers should be in no doubt that this government fully backs them in every stage of their career, starting with rewarding starting salaries, and giving them the powers they need to deal with bad behaviour and bullying and continue to drive up school standards right across the country.

The Education Secretary will also ask for the STRB’s recommendations on additional pay reform, including the introduction of progression points in pay. Progression will continue to be linked to performance ensuring the investment best supports the recruitment and retention of the most talented recruits into classrooms.

The Teachers’ Pension Scheme also provides additional benefits linked to salary and is inflation-proof to offer teachers a secure retirement.

The government is also planning significant new investment in the Further Education workforce as part of a 16-19 funding package. This is critical to underlining its commitment to delivering world-leading technical education.

To ensure teaching continues to be attractive as teachers’ lives develop, a group of Ambassador Schools to champion flexible working are set to be introduced.

These will be responsible for sharing good practice on how to successfully implement flexible working in schools, utilising case studies and practical resources for teachers and school leaders. Once fully rolled out, these will form part of an overall flexible working toolkit.

Mr Williamson added:

I want to keep great teachers in the profession, and we know that the lack of flexible working opportunities is often cited as a reason for leaving.

Other sectors have embraced flexible working and the benefits it provides – I want to see the same in schools. There are great things happening in some schools, but I want it to be the norm.

These new Ambassador Schools will break down the barriers and show schools who are nervous about flexible working that not only can it be done, it can change their school for the better.

Alongside proposed record increases to new teachers’ salaries, trainee teachers will also receive reformed core training content, which will ensure all new trainees begin their career with high-quality evidence-based training.

This will dovetail with the Early Career Framework, the biggest teaching reforms in a generation. Backed by at least £130 million a year in extra funding when fully rolled out, this will provide a two-year entitlement to training and support for new teachers, including a reduced timetable to allow teachers to make the most of their training.

Structured curriculum resources to reduce teacher workload in key subjects will also be introduced, building on the success of the Department for Education’s Curriculum Fund pilots.

Background

Phase 3 of the whole systems approach to obesity is based around a workshop where stakeholders are invited to develop a local system map of the causes of obesity.

In East Herts, the primary learning was this facilitated stakeholder engagement and increased understanding of the range of different factors that impact obesity locally, and how these factors relate and can be linked together.

Phase 3 of the 6-phase whole systems approach to obesity entails:

• preparing for workshop 1 – identifying and engaging wider stakeholders, preparing presentation slides and adding local information, and preparing facilitators to undertake system mapping
• holding the workshop – conducting the system mapping exercise
• beginning to develop a shared vision

What was involved

Stakeholders from across the local system collectively mapped out the local causes of obesity during a half-day system mapping event (workshop 1). The system maps were then produced by the team who managed the approach (the core working team).

The workshop provided stakeholders with a real insight into why obesity is considered a highly complex issue and why all of the different components need to be considered, to better understand the issue as a whole. The workshop took into account the human, societal and environmental factors contributing to obesity.

Collectively, these new insights could potentially be used to help shift the system in the right direction to reduce the impact of the obesogenic environment.

Main stakeholders included councillors from community wellbeing champion areas and the portfolio holder for health and wellbeing.

Service managers and officers from council departments including:

• health and community wellbeing
• housing
• parks and open spaces
• environmental health
• licensing
• Hertfordshire County Council Public Health

Partners from the local voluntary sector including:

• children’s centres
• nutritionists
• physical activity community interest company
• NHS community service
• individuals with a personal interest in planning and active travel

East Herts stakeholders identified green space and the healthy eating environment as priority areas to address.

Collaborative partner work resulted in a high-level green spaces strategic action plan, focused on increasing participation and accessibility to green space.

Working well

The workshops created an opportunity to discuss obesity and engage stakeholders in the importance of the issue, as well as give adequate time and space to understand the complexities and system factors that contribute to obesity.

Stakeholders were also able to consider using the approach to give insight, understanding and application to other complex public health issues.

Next steps

To change the local system, the next phase involves translating this action plan – with its short, medium and longer-term objectives – into specific actions. The whole systems approach is intended to create the conditions to generate system shift in the East Herts District area.

Momentum for achieving tangible outcomes has to be considered against the backdrop of realising that system shift is something that will take time to happen.

For further information, contact Simon Barfoot, Healthy Lifestyles Programme Officer at East Herts Council. simon.barfoot@eastherts.gov.uk

Background

Lewisham Council’s obesity strategy focused on increasing access to healthier food and the use of parks and open spaces.

In phases 5 and 6 of a whole systems approach to obesity, the local authority worked to create a dynamic local system where stakeholders were brought together to critically reflect on undertaking a whole systems approach, while considering opportunities to strengthen the process.

Phase 5 of the 6-phase whole systems approach to obesity entails:

• developing the structure of the system network
• undertaking the first system network meeting
• presenting the finalised shared vision
• agreeing the action plan

Phase 6 entails:

• monitoring and evaluating actions
• maintaining momentum through regular meetings
• reflecting and identifying areas for strengthening
• monitoring progress of the whole systems approach and adapting to reflect how the system changes over time

What was involved

Lewisham Council assembled a range of stakeholders to form the Lewisham Obesity Alliance, which meets on a regular basis to share learning, best practice and identify opportunities to align actions. The Council was able to obtain engagement from some stakeholders because they involved them in all of the earlier phases of their local whole systems approach to obesity.

Primary stakeholders included:

• schools
• the NHS
• food retailers, manufacturers and suppliers
• town planning
• transport, sport and leisure
• faith groups
• community and voluntary sector

Following a series of meetings on the food environment and the use of parks and open spaces, members of the Alliance identified 3 main actions to focus on for each theme, working together to align actions to maximise outcomes.

In terms of increasing access to healthier food, the 3 primary actions were:

1. public and private sector organisations to support a workplace charter that outlines provision of healthy eating guidelines at events
2. up-skill people including schools and youth services
3. support schools, children’s centres, early years providers in developing updated food and nutrition policies

For increasing use of parks and open spaces, the 3 primary actions were:

1. give people reasons to go to parks (range of activities, hydration stations or coffee bars)
2. support schools and workplaces to use parks
3. maximise walking and cycling by identifying messages on the benefits of physical activity

Working well

There were several leading elements of work over these 2 phases that enhanced the Council’s whole systems approach to obesity work and developed the ‘Health in All Policies’ approach.

Firstly, the Lewisham Obesity Alliance continues to grow and is now made up of a diverse range of over 100 stakeholders who champion the obesity agenda and whole systems approach. This has helped the Alliance gain support and recognition from elected members and has created partnerships between organisations that would not have formed without a whole systems approach.

Secondly, quarterly meetings were held with a different external speaker or local stakeholder, sharing examples of best practice related to the 6 primary actions the Council was working towards. Sharing learning with additional insight from external speakers helps inspire and motivate Alliance members to reflect on their individual areas of work and also how they can align actions.

Thirdly, partners provided updates on how they were contributing to this agenda in Lewisham Council’s quarterly public health obesity alliance e-newsletter. The Council and Alliance were able to use this as a means to evaluate how engaged stakeholders are and the work they are doing.

Next steps

Lewisham Council will continue engaging the wider Lewisham partnership to ensure a more co-ordinated approach around the wider determinants of obesity through the Lewisham Obesity Alliance. They will encourage stakeholders to embed a whole systems approach to obesity into their policies and actions plans.

This is particularly important as maintaining momentum to date has often been down to one individual, meaning it can be lost if that individual were to leave.

The Council is also planning to set up a website so that information including stakeholders’ progress, presentations made at quarterly meetings and e-newsletters can all be available in 1 location to support the overall action plan.

For further information, contact Gwenda Scott, Public Health Strategist, Public Health Lewisham. Gwenda.Scott@lewisham.gov.uk

Background

In Suffolk, childhood obesity is a growing concern with National Childhood Measurement Programme data indicating that rates are continuing to rise.

Suffolk County Council decided that addressing this was a priority but recognised there was only so much progress they could make with just public health interventions. Therefore, they implemented the whole systems approach to obesity programme, with the aim of involving a range of teams and organisations in their local area that have a role to play in tackling childhood obesity and its knock-on effects.

Phase 1 of the 6-phase whole systems approach to obesity entails:

• engaging with senior leaders to obtain their support
• setting up a core working team to undertake the day-to-day operations and coordinate the approach
• establishing resources to support the process
• securing the accountability, advice and support of a group of senior stakeholders offering a broad range of expertise to ensure the approach has sufficient challenge, governance and resource

What was involved

The first step taken by Suffolk County Council’s Public Health Team was approaching politicians and senior leaders from across the system to help release the resources required for this work to be prioritised. This was important in enabling staff to support the approach as part of their day-to-day work and embedding it into their objectives.

After support was secured, a series of events were held with stakeholders committed to reducing childhood obesity, including:

• Health and Wellbeing Board
• NHS and clinical commissioning groups (CCG)
• voluntary and community sector organisations
• district and borough councils
• local businesses
• education and schools
• children and young people’s services

As the whole systems approach involves people outside of the public health field, this phase was also crucial in establishing the same level of understanding about childhood obesity.

To help achieve this, the council created a campaign addressing any stigma and stereotypes about obesity, as well as presentations to the Health and Wellbeing Board, the Suffolk County Council chief executive and directors, CCG leaders, hospitals and the voluntary sector.

This ensured that everyone had a basic knowledge about how the different areas of work linked together and the role they played in this.

The core working group started as a small group with representation from schools, healthy child services and sustainable transport. Over time, the group has grown and become more of a network, so the council are now reviewing membership and will set up a more developed network.

Working well

Initial engagement helped senior leaders understand the purpose and benefits of a whole systems approach, as well as the impact it could have locally and how their organisations played a role. Furthermore, holding face-to-face meetings with members from the Health and Wellbeing Board, building on the evidence and priorities, and providing briefings and regular updates was important for gaining their support.

Stakeholder events, presentations about the approach for senior leaders, and the campaign to address obesity-related stigma were all also beneficial in securing support and the required resources.

Feedback from partners indicated that some of the stakeholder events and workshops were too academic. Therefore, it is important that these events make it clear that there is a link between the whole systems approach to obesity and partners’ day-to-day jobs and the communities they are working with. Making this connection clear in the first workshop is critical for securing support over the subsequent phases.

The good working relationships developed during this phase have also helped other projects. For example, the councils ‘Eat Out Eat Well’ award now includes a breastfeeding-friendly criterion because of new breastfeeding contacts made through the whole systems approach.

Next steps

Suffolk County Council will continue engaging partners and increasing momentum for the work, as well as adding national directives such as the NHS Long Term Plan and Childhood Obesity Plan into their planning.

The council are also aiming to secure resource that would allow someone to take this on as a full-time role, as this work is currently based on individual capacity. Having a dedicated person working on progressing this programme means that the work will not get deprioritised and that there is 1 specific person with constant commitment, capacity and enthusiasm who partners can liaise with.

For further information, contact Nicki Cooper, Senior Health Improvement Commissioner at Suffolk County Council. Nicki.Cooper@suffolk.gov.uk

Background

Phase 4 of the 6-phase whole systems approach to obesity enabled Halton Borough Council to collectively prioritise actions to address obesity with its system of local stakeholders and develop a workable action plan through stakeholder workshops.

Phase 4 of the 6-phase whole systems approach to obesity entails:

• preparing for the second workshop with stakeholders as part of the whole systems approach to obesity
• delivering the workshop and carrying out action planning
• developing a draft whole systems action plan
• refining the shared vision

What was involved

The first step of phase 4 for Halton Borough Council was to refine the council’s system map, which was prepared in an earlier workshop as part of phase 3 and visually represents how the local causes of obesity are linked. This refinement was done through participatory activities at the programme’s second stakeholder workshop.

During this workshop, new actions to address obesity were also proposed. These were added to the existing actions mapped in phase 2 and overlaid on to the system map.

Primary stakeholders included:

• Halton clinical commissioning group
• local councillors
• Halton Stadium
• school meals
• transport
• children’s centres
• community centres
• environmental health
• Halton Housing
• Halton Lea Shopping Centre
• Halton People Into Jobs
• Department of Work and Pensions
• sports and leisure
• lead for Children and Young People

Following the workshop, the core working team, who managed the approach, considered whether further actions were required to bridge any gaps in the proposed approach.

They then developed a draft whole systems action plan, which included actions from a range of different stakeholders such as:

• introduce improved work health initiatives
• develop, implement and deliver a Making Every Contact Count training programme
• create more accessible cycling and walking route to promote active transport
• work with communities, local communities safety team and transport to alter the perception of safety
• raise awareness of what is available around the built environment agenda, for example linking health and planning

Working well

Through the collective work of stakeholders, Halton Borough Council was able to put together an action plan that reflected a much broader range of actions than previously. These actions also go beyond public health and therefore support a whole systems approach.

The council had several principal take-home messages from this phase. Firstly, it’s important to ensure there is a dedicated core working group to pull the action plan together. This involves:

• administering and delivering workshops and presentations
• writing up each stage
• developing the action plan
• feedback processes

Secondly, the programme should not lose momentum. One way of avoiding this during phase 4 is to book in all workshops at once and set specific deadlines for actions.

Thirdly, the council learnt to be prepared to work with a smaller group than anticipated, as it takes time to engage stakeholders from all parts of the local system.

Next steps

For Halton Borough Council, the next steps will be to align its action plan with the whole systems approach to obesity in the Halton strategy and complete the action plan. This will require ongoing communication across the network as well as monitoring and evaluating actions individually and collectively in phase 6.

For further information, contact Lisa Taylor, Divisional Manager Health and Wellbeing, Halton Borough Council.