Why I’ve quit teaching

For the past four years I have worked at an academy in Hackney. I was deputy head of maths for three of those years, and head of maths for the final term, managing 16 staff. After nearly a decade teaching in the state sector, I’d finally worked my way up to a well paid and respected position. But this summer I walked away from it.

I’m not alone. The profession is haemorrhaging talent: data from the National Education Union published earlier this year revealed that 44 per cent of teachers intend to leave the profession by 2027. Retention in London schools is particularly poor.

The reasons why teachers quit are complex, but there are a few common themes. One is exhaustion. When I told a friend that, during the peak of term, I was working 12-hour days, and that a standard day is about ten hours, they responded: ‘Isn’t that pretty normal for most jobs?’ Well, no, for these ten or 12 hours contain barely a single moment to yourself.