A new teacher's first week

In your first week you should receive safeguarding training and a copy of the school’s key policies, meet your induction tutor and mentor, and be given a timetable that is lighter than your colleagues’. That is what the statutory guidance expects for an early career teacher (ECT) in England. The rest of the week is the school’s own business, so use it to find out how the school runs day to day.

Safeguarding comes first

Keeping Children Safe in Education says safeguarding systems should be explained to all staff as part of induction. That covers the child protection policy, the behaviour policy and the role of the designated safeguarding lead (DSL), including who the DSL and deputies are. Schools should give staff copies of the policies and a copy of Part one of the guidance at induction.

The guidance also says all staff should receive safeguarding and child protection training, including online safety, at induction, with updates at least annually. If nobody has told you who the DSL is by the end of day one, ask. You will need to know how to pass on a concern before you are alone in a classroom.

Your induction tutor and mentor

The ECT statutory guidance says the school should appoint an induction tutor and a designated mentor, both expected to hold QTS. Mentoring should be regular and one to one. Your teaching should be observed, with written feedback, and progress is reviewed against the Teachers’ Standards.

In week one, agree when you and your mentor will meet each week. Put it in both diaries before the term fills up. The full process, including assessments, is in the early career teacher induction guide.

Your timetable

In the first year of induction, the guidance says an ECT must not teach more than 90% of the timetable of the school’s existing teachers on the main pay range. In the second year the limit is 95%. This is in addition to the planning, preparation and assessment (PPA) time all teachers get. The time is meant for your induction programme, including training and mentoring.

Check your timetable against this on day one. If your teaching load looks like a full one, raise it politely with your induction tutor, and if that goes nowhere, your appropriate body can help. The wider limits on what you can be asked to do are in teacher workload.

Practical things to sort

Most of these come from ordinary school routines, not national rules, so ask about each one:

• your timetable, room, and who covers the classes you will teach
• the behaviour policy in practice, including how to log incidents and who to call for support
• the school’s marking and assessment expectations
• how to book photocopying, equipment and trips
• how to report sickness, and who to tell if you are off. See reporting sickness as a teacher
• when and how you will be paid, and what to check on your first payslip

If you have just completed training, QTS is the qualification you need for ECT induction. The general checklist for starting any public sector job, such as ID, payroll forms and IT accounts, is in your first week in a public sector job.

Support beyond the school

Induction should not make unreasonable demands on you, and the guidance says so. If the school is not providing what it should, your induction tutor is the first contact, then the appropriate body that oversees your induction, and a union can help throughout. Mentoring and induction for new staff covers what good support looks like.