����Vlog

Ambassadors for the Department for Education’s flexible-working scheme have voiced fears that the initiative did not reach the schools “most in need” of support.

The DfE has published its from the��Flexible Working Ambassador Multi Academy Trusts and Schools (FWAMS) programme, which ran from 2023 until this year.

According to the DfE, the programme “aimed to drive the development of a culture of flexible working within the sector”.��

The programme supported 248 schools through 10 ambassadors.

The report, published today, highlights ambassadors’ concerns that the programme may not have reached schools experiencing “wider challenges”, such as those rated poorly by Ofsted or with high intakes of disadvantaged pupils.

The DfE wants schools to embed flexible working as part of efforts to improve teacher recruitment and retention.

But the evaluation suggests that the schools most likely to engage in the scheme were already interested in embedding flexible working, and those under the most pressure often lacked time, capacity or confidence to take part.

One ambassador said: “Schools that are not interested in flexible working are not the schools that are approaching FWAMS schools to work with them. So I don’t think that we are fundamentally changing attitudes.

“I think we are helping...but I think that what we are doing in the main is helping people who are already on that journey to figure out the best way.”

Increasing flexible working in schools

The research for the DfE also found that just 3 per cent of leaders and 1 per cent of teachers were aware of the FWAMS programme in November 2024.

The report also notes that ambassadors described local authorities as “difficult to engage and unsupportive regarding promotion of the programme”.

Most schools became aware of the scheme through existing relationships or research, the report notes, and “relatively few” found out about it through DfE or Capita communications.��The FWAMS programme comprised online resources and training delivered by a national provider, Capita, with support from Flexible Teacher Talent.

Furthermore, the report says, “most” scheme ambassadors found it “challenging and time-consuming” to recruit new schools for the programme.

One anonymous ambassador said that 90 per cent of their time was spent trying to encourage schools to engage with the scheme, against just 10 per cent of time spent meeting schools.��

Overall, 248 schools were supported via the scheme, and ambassadors provided advice on specific issues within schools and longer-term strategic help.

For schools that did participate, positive changes were enacted, the evaluation found.

One “key change” was the “normalisation” of flexible working, alongside increased staff awareness of options and��a “more consistent” approach within schools.

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