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Directed Time Budgets

Jordanstown Agreement 1987

Workload Agreement TNC 2011/08 Appendix 3

Teachers' Agreement TNC 2020/01

Directed Time Budgets

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Producing a Time Budget

Directed Time Budgets

School Development Priorities

(whole school; key stage/dept; individual)

School Calendar

Annual Schedule of Meetings

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Terms and Conditions

Directed Time Budgets

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Directed Time

1,265 hours

195 days – 5 Baker Days & 5 SDDs

DirectedTime Budgets

Directed Time means time spent on any activity which the Principal has determined that a teacher shall undertake. All the time that a teacher is required to be on school premises is included in Directed Time. For a full-time teacher it will not exceed 1,265 hours per year nor apply to more than 195 days. This includes 5 Non-Teaching “reasonably contiguous” days (Baker days) and 5 optional Staff Development days.

Schools have always been dependent on a commitment from teachers beyond the legal minimum requirement. Schools would find it impossible to include within a teacher’s 1,265 hours all of the time currently given by teachers to benefit children and young people in such activities as games, drama, music and school trips. The extent of this commitment is for each teacher to determine for himself or herself.

A teacher’s Directed Time of 1,265 hours per year is the basic legal requirement for a teacher to satisfy their contractual obligations. Time spent off school premises in preparing and marking lessons is not included in a teacher’s Directed Time.

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Stop and Process

Consider the commitments to extra-curricular and voluntary activities made by the teachers in your school that go beyond the minimum requirement.
Consider whether these activities should be included in the teacher's directed time.

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Directed Time

Directed Time Budgets

Class Contact

Supervision

Cover

Pastoral duties

PPA

TPL

Information to Parents

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Directed Time

Key elements:

Class contact time
Supervision
Non-teaching days (staff development days)
Teaching Allowance
Special Educational Needs Allowance
Planning, Preparation and Assessment (PPA)
Other professional duties

Time Budgets

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Directed Time

Directed Time Budgets

Class contact / Teaching time (weekly)
Non-teaching time (weekly)
Non-teaching time (annually)
Contingency time (annually)

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Class contact time (weekly)

Class teaching time
Cover
Leading an assembly
Pastoral teaching

Class contact or teaching time - A teacher may not be required to teach, as distinct from supervise, children in a formal situation for more than 25 hours per week in a primary or special school and 23.5 hours per week in a post primary school. This includes any time a teacher is involved in class cover.

Teachers cannot be asked to cover at all (or supervise) when it was known and agreed in advance that an absence would exceed 2 days (other than covering for primary 1, 2 or nursery colleagues).

�Teachers in schools of fewer than 222 pupils, nursery (in primary school), primary 1 and primary 2 teachers are not required to provide such cover.

Leading assembly is distinct from being in attendance at assembly. Leading assembly is considered to be class contact time. Being attendance at assembly remains part of directed time and is classified as non-teaching time.

Pastoral teaching is considered to be class contact time and is distinct from registration of pupil attendance. Effective pastoral teaching may include occasions where teachers follow an agreed pastoral programme, engage directly with pupils and monitor progress.

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Stop and Process

A. Consider how much time a teacher in your school spends on these four components each week:

Class teaching time
Cover
Leading an assembly
Pastoral teaching

B. Does this comply with the maximum time allowed per week i.e. 23.5 / 25 hrs per week?

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Non-teaching time (weekly)

Supervision
Teaching Allowances
Special Educational Needs Allowances
Attendance at School Assembly
Conducting Registration of Pupils
Professional Communication (inc. staff meetings)

Supervision � It is recognised that classroom supervision is not an effective use of a teacher’s time. Supervision occurs when a teacher is asked to engage in activities outside the classroom where there is no active teaching taking place. Supervision may include tasks such as morning and afternoon breaks, wet break times, arrangements for the arrival and departure of pupils, bus supervision, school assembly, examinations etc. In certain circumstances, a teacher may be required to supervise, as distinct from teach, the class of an absent colleague.

� Where a teacher is not required to supervise at morning or afternoon break, or where this is done on a rota basis, this period must still be defined as Directed Time.

� Unless employed under a separate contract as a mid-day supervisor, a teacher shall not be required to undertake mid-day supervision.

Teaching Allowance

Some teachers will be in receipt of Teaching Allowances that will have specific duties attached that are additional to teaching. Where this is the case these duties must also be allowed for within the Directed Time budget of 1,265 hours.

Special Educational Needs Allowances

Generally, Special Needs Allowances do not have additional duties attached, but where they do, additional non-contact time should be allocated.

Other Professional Duties

There is a range of other professional activities that go on regularly within schools. If a teacher is expected to carry out any duty that is deemed reasonable, then it must also be accounted for in the Directed Time budget. Due attention must be paid to the Strategy for Teacher Health and Wellbeing in Northern Ireland (TNC 2011/1), particularly where a teacher volunteers to take on additional duties on an unremunerated basis.

Attendance at School Assembly

Attendance at School Assembly is included in Directed Time. Leading an assembly is considered to be class contact time in the Directed Time budget.

Conducting Registration of Pupils

Registration of pupils, including basic uniform and equipment checks, and communicating announcements to pupils at the beginning of the day is included in Directed Time. If a teacher is required to deliver learning or pastoral work, this period of time is considered to be class contact time.

Professional Communication

Professional communication includes activities and participation in meetings which will support:

effective teaching and learning;
professional collaboration;
school development planning and action planning;
self-evaluation processes, e.g. review and development of teaching schemes, curricular provision. �� Effective team meetings include a meaningful purpose e.g. departmental development work, curriculum development, review of pastoral provision, monitoring and evaluating provision and outcomes, sharing practice, etc. Having a meaningful purpose reinforces the moral imperative of ensuring that directed time is aligned closely to the key priorities.

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Stop and Process

A. Consider how much time a teacher in your school spends on these components each week:

Supervision
Teaching Allowance and Special Educational Needs Allowance duties
Attendance at School Assembly
Conducting Registration of Pupils
Professional Communication (inc. staff meetings)

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Non-teaching time (annually)

Non-teaching days (staff development days)
Planning, Preparation and Assessment (PPA)
Participation in Evening Meetings
Teacher Professional Learning
Guidance, Advice and Support for Individual Pupils and Associated Administration

Non-teaching days

Full-time teachers are required to be available for work on 195 days per year, of which at least 5 are non-teaching days. These 5 days must also be accounted for within the 1,265 hours.

Planning, Preparation and Assessment (PPA)

The Pay & Workload Agreement, April 2020, guarantees that 10% of a teacher’s Directed Time (i.e. 126½ hours per annum) is set aside for Planning, Preparation and Assessment. (PPA). This dedicated PPA time will enable a teacher to raise standards through individual and collaborative professional activity. The Teachers' (Terms and Conditions of Employment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1987, in regard to working time, states that a teacher shall be available to perform such duties at such times and such places as may reasonably be specified by the Principal. School managements should ensure that a teacher’s PPA time is not eroded by demands and should be kept available for teachers to individually prepare, work, plan, mark and meet collaboratively with their colleagues.

Participation in Evening Meetings

Evening meetings are included within Directed Time. These should normally be included within the schedule of meetings provided in the school calendar at the beginning of the academic year. It is recommended that schools develop locally agreed provisions which provide a degree of flexibility for when such meetings need to be rearranged due to exceptional or unforeseen circumstances. Teachers are entitled to travel expenses for evening meetings.

Teacher Professional Learning

This may include:

Individual and collaborative professional learning activity, internal and external.

Induction and EPD.

PRSD.

Guidance, Advice and Support for Individual Pupils and Associated Administration

Direct engagement with pupils, parents, other agencies supporting pupils.

Pastoral support.

Careers advice.

Guidance to support learning and achievement.

Behaviour management.

�

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Stop and Process

Consider how much time a teacher in your school spends on each of these components annually:
Non-teaching days (staff development days)
Planning, Preparation and Assessment (PPA)
Participation in Evening Meetings
Teacher Professional Learning
Guidance, Advice and Support for Individual Pupils and Associated Administration

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Contingency time (annually)

Contingency

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Stop and Process

Consider how you would use the previous calculations to:

determine the level of contingency time for each teacher in your school;
confirm the teacher’s directed time budget remains within 1,265 hours.

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Additional Considerations

Substitute Teachers

Temporary Teachers

Part-time Teachers

Directed Time Budgets

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Over and Above

Participation in Extra-curricular Activities
Attendance on Residential Trips
In-year Variation
Lunch Break Entitlement

Directed Time Budgets

Participation in Extra-curricular Activities

Schools have always been dependent on a voluntary commitment from teachers, in an extended professional role, beyond the legal requirement. Schools would find it impossible to include within a teacher’s 1,265 hours all of the time currently given for the benefit of children and young people in the form of voluntary activities such as games, drama, music and school trips.

Attendance on Residential Trips

Teachers cannot be directed to take pupils on educational visits involving overnight stays. Where this takes place on a voluntary basis, it is a matter of negotiation between the teacher and the Principal as to the amount of Directed Time that will be allocated to this activity out of the annual Directed Time budget.

In-year Variation

There are times, usually predictable well in advance, when the pattern of the school day/operation of the set timetable is disrupted e.g. start of school year, end of term, GCSE/GCE examinations in May/June. Not every week in the school year is the same, for example the beginning of the school year, end of term, exam and report writing periods. Likewise, teaching time does not have to be the same in each week but cannot exceed the 23.5 / 25 hour limit in a single week.

Lunch Break Entitlement

All teachers are required to have a break of at least 30 minutes.

Teachers in a primary or post primary school are required to have a break of at least 30 minutes between the hours of 12 noon and 2.00pm.

Teachers in nursery schools and nursery units in primary schools are required to have a break of at least 30 minutes between the hours of 12 noon and 2.30pm.

Lunch breaks are unpaid and do not count towards Directed Time and teachers are not required to remain on school premises during lunchbreak.

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Checklist

Directed Time Budgets

Teaching Time (Weekly)	Tick (√)
Has teaching time (inclusive of cover) been included?	√
Is the teacher’s teaching time within the maximum limit of 23.5 hours (post-primary schools) or 25 hours (primary and special schools)?	√
If a teacher is directed to lead assembly, or provide learning, or pastoral work during registration, is it included as teaching time?	√

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Checklist

Directed Time Budgets

Non-teaching time (weekly)	Tick (√)
Have all meetings, including for those with teaching allowances, been included?	√
Has all the supervision which a teacher must engage in been included?	√
If the teacher is in receipt of a Teaching Allowance, is this reflected in their Directed Time Budget?	√
If the teacher with a Special Needs Allowance has additional duties, have these been included?	√
Is the time allocated to the SENCO / LSC proportionate and appropriate to the needs of pupils in the school?	√
Is the time the teacher must attend school assembly included?	√
Is the mid-morning / mid-afternoon break included (if applicable)?	√
Has time been allocated for communication with parents / carers if required?	√

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Checklist

Directed Time Budgets

Non-teaching time (annually)	Tick (√)
Has 10% PPA time been included?	√
Has the time allocated to preparing the written report to parents on the progress of their children been included?	√
Has time been allocated for PRSD / EPD / Initial Teacher Induction meetings, evidence collating and reporting been included?	√
Are non-teaching days included (Staff Development Days / INSET days) been included?	√
Has the writing of IEPs / PLPs been included in time for Guidance, Advice and Support for Individual Pupils and Associated Administration?	√
Has time been allocated for school events requiring staff attendance eg. Parents’ evenings, Open Nights, prize-giving etc.	√

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Checklist

Directed Time Budgets

Contingency Time	Tick (√)
Following the allocation of Directed Time, is there any time left over to provide flexibility for unplanned or unforeseen events that may require dedicated time?	√

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Checklist

Directed Time Budgets

General	Tick (√)
Have the 195 days up to which a teacher can be directed to work per academic year been identified?	√
Does the teacher’s Directed Time Budget remain within the annual maximum 1,265 hours?	√
Has any time that a teacher is directed by the Principal to be on school premises been included?	√
Are all the responsibilities included in the Directed Time Budget consistent with a teacher's professional duties?	√
Has an annual schedule of meetings been provided in advance of the academic year?	√
Have adjustments been made for part time teachers to ensure they are treated no less favourably than a full-time equivalent teacher?	√
Has due attention been paid to work/life balance?	√