Managing Teacher Workload: 10 Practical Strategies

According to the DfE’s latest workload survey, full-time teachers work an average of 52 hours per week, with 20% of that time spent on non-teaching tasks. The three biggest workload drivers remain: marking, planning, and data management.

The good news is that research shows you can reduce workload significantly without any reduction in student outcomes — in fact, many workload-reduction strategies actively improve teaching quality.

Instead of writing individual comments on 30 exercise books, read through the set and identify common strengths, misconceptions, and next steps. Present these to the whole class in a short feedback lesson. Research from the EEF shows this is just as effective as individual written feedback — and saves hours.

Rather than planning each lesson from scratch, plan a sequence of 5–8 lessons at once. Identify the key learning journey, the assessments, and the resources needed for the whole sequence. Then adapt individual lessons as you teach them.

Low-effort, high-impact starters based on retrieval practice (quizzes, flashcards, Do Now activities) save planning time and significantly boost long-term retention. Create a bank of reusable starters that rotate across topics.

Check email at set times (e.g., morning, lunch, end of day) rather than constantly. Use templates for common responses. Unsubscribe from anything that isn’t essential. Remember: not every email requires an immediate or lengthy response.

Collaborate with your department or key stage team to share planning and resources. Use shared drives and resource banks. Adapt existing quality resources rather than creating from zero every time.

• 6. Use verbal feedback — A 30-second conversation is often more impactful than written comments
• 7. Automate data entry — Use spreadsheet formulas, markbook apps, or school MIS features to reduce manual data handling
• 8. Set a daily finish time — And treat it like a non-negotiable appointment
• 9. Batch similar tasks — Do all your photocopying, all your emails, or all your marking in one focused block
• 10. Learn to delegate — Student helpers for resources, teaching assistants for admin, shared responsibilities with colleagues