“Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.”
Seneca the Younger
Planning, Preparation and Assessment is a key part of the teacher’s job. But what is it, when should it be done, and where should this be carried out?
Since TNC 2020/1 all teachers are entitled to 10% of their directed time to be ring-fenced for PPA.
Teachers’ Representatives on the Teachers’ Negotiating Committee have been arguing for protected PPA time for many years, and all sides have recognised for years that depending on teachers planning, preparing and marking lessons in their spare time – unpaid – was not considered satisfactory by the TNC.
Therefore a succession of agreements culminated in the TNC 2020 / 1 agreement, which “ring-fenced” 10% of a teachers’ directed time for PPA. Typically this time will appear as part of a teachers’ timetable as “free periods”, and for a full time teacher this will equate to 126.5 hours.
Checkpoint – have free periods minutes been rounded down for PPA?
Some DTBs will use periods rather than time to calculate this. So a school might have 1 hour periods, over a 37 week teaching year. In order to work out the 126.5 hours they may do the following calculation:
PPA hours per week = 126.5 / 37 = 3.41 hours per week. So a FT teacher might be given 3 full periods of PPA every week.
But that means they’ve been “short-changed” to the tune of 0.41 hours x 37 weeks, which equals 15 hours and 15 minutes over the year. When are these hours going to be provided to the teacher? These are the kind of questions staff members need to prepare in order to meaningfully discuss their DTB.
Solution – in the above example there are several fixes to this problem. A simple one would be to ensure that FT teachers receive this time in other spots, such as Baker Days / SDD, or by setting aside time normally used for afternoon meetings for planning.
What is PPA for?
PPA is for planning, preparing and assessing day to day lessons. In some sectors, particularly Primary, it can include statutory assessments as well.
PPA is not for marking periodic assessment such as end of unit tests, etc, and it is also not for broader-scale planning such as school development plans, schemes of work, etc. It is for day-to-day short term teaching, and is specifically designed to help facilitate student improvement. So this means assessment for learning and developmental marking, not summative assessment.
Additionally, PPA is not for recording and analysing results, report entry, updating ELPs / SEND documentation, etc.
If it’s not self-directed planning for a teacher’s day-to-day teaching to improve student experience, then it’s probably not best use of your PPA time.
PPA can include homework or class tests, but with an important caveat.
If the teacher sets a class test or homework as part of their own lesson planning to help students improve, then these need to be marked within their PPA time.
If a leader under direction of the Principal requires a class test or homework to be set as part of lessons, then these should be given specific separate time in the DTB to be marked so that the teacher’s PPA time is not “eroded”. It’s the Principal’s responsibility as outlined in the Principal’s training not to erode the 10% PPA time.
We are aware that the situation in Primary is often different, and subject to continued discussions between employers and teacher representatives. think1265 would appreciate more input into this area from Primary colleagues, so if you want to help us out drop us an email.
Examples
Note – these examples apply mainly to post-primary. We shall update this section with specific information for Primary colleagues as soon as possible.
| Example | Is this included in the 10% PPA time? |
| Mr Briggs wants to set a short research homework in order to feed into a lesson he’s planned for Friday. | Yes – It’s Mr Brigg’s own decision to do this. |
| Ms McClure is asked by her HoD to run an end of unit test in her Year 13 sociology class. Should she mark it in her PPA time? | No – this was asked for by an agent of the Principal, so needs additional time in the DTB to mark that test. |
| Mrs Fisk teaches KS3 Science, and the school homework policy requires that there is one homework per week, marked and returned within 48 hours of receipt. | No – This is school policy and not Mrs Fisk’s own planning, so additional DTB time should be given or else her ring-fenced PPA time would be eroded. |
Where should PPA take place?
PPA can take place at a location of the Principal’s choosing, including off-site. One of the most commented on work-life improvements teachers noticed was the ability to do their PPA at home, rather than being forced to stay on school grounds for this. From a well-being perspective, particularly in the light of the joint communication from the TNC speaking of “a carefully managed and supported restoration of working practices in schools including the issue of an agreed communication” (following ASOSA being lifted,) it seems that this is an “easy win” for a Principal wanting to build some goodwill among staff. This would need to be explicitly arranged through local negotiations, and may need to take into account fire safety concerns such as letting the office know when a teacher is off site.
(Note, however, all parties in TNC agree that PPA being done at home outside of working hours (see below) is not a satisfactory situation. So a compromise position might need to be sought locally with Principals so individual staff may have blocks on their timetable where it’s agreed they can work off-site provided they are not required for cover.)
Blocking out PPA time on the timetable
Because of the requirement for cover it is often impossible for a teacher to “block out” periods of time as PPA time. This then puts an obligation on teaching staff themselves to ensure they protect their 10% PPA through each week by not allowing that time to be stolen by other tasks. A simple solution might be to block out the PPA periods and other responsibility periods starting from the first non-contact time on Monday morning, leaving the cover periods nominally blank toward the end of the week.
Then, when directed to cover a class on a particular day, simply shunt the remaining periods along one slot on your timetable. This way a teacher can be sure they have allocated – and used – their time budget properly.
Avoid “Mission Creep” by keeping your PPA time sacrosanct for that purpose. This may mean other tasks arrive which you do not have time to do in your weekly distribution of time, but that is a symptom of your time budget not being correct or the task allocation changing rather than you not doing your job properly. If we are to “think1265” and have evidenced, professional, constructive conversations with school leaders about time budgeting, we need to identify and highlight these kinds of things so that the DTB production cycle gets better. Stop “polyfilla-ing” over cracks in effective time planning by doing non-budgeted tasks at the expense of tasks you have time budgeted for, and never do these tasks at home. If you feel trapped by conflicting time demands because of rising task load, speak to your union rep for advice.
Remember that time budgeting exists as a workload management and welfare tool to protect teachers from taking too much on. It has been developed over decades to protect the health of teachers in an already stressful and busy job, so when a teacher allows their work pattern to creep above the budgeted time then they are on a path toward increased stress, illness and potential burn-out, even if it doesn’t feel that way at first. So protect the time you have been budgeted for, and speak to your union rep when you are tasked to do things without necessary time being budgeted for that task.
That which dare not speak its name – PPA at home.
Since Jordanstown (and long before that) teachers have had a highly unusual contract. Basically there is an expectation that teachers will have to do some work in their own time – for free – in order to fulfil their role. This is captured in the following paragraph in the Teacher Duties:
“The TNC recognises that PPA time has the potential to impact positively on the twin aims of raising standards and tackling teacher workload and has for some time been considering how the introduction of dedicated PPA time might best be facilitated. The practice of teachers carrying out their planning, preparation and assessment outside of their normal teaching hours, and in isolation from each other, is not considered satisfactory by the TNC.”
This is updated in TNC 2024/2 to state: “Time spent off school premises in preparing and marking lessons is not included in a Teacher’s Directed Time.”
And… “This guidance has been developed to provide a framework to ensure the allocation and distribution of duties is managed in a fair and reasonable manner that enables Teachers to observe their contractual requirements with sufficient time to enjoy a reasonable work/life balance.”
What this means in practice.
Sometimes teachers will feel like they have to do some additional planning, prep or assessment for their day to day classes outside of school hours. But this should be the exception not the rule. If it is a regular occurrence, then something is wrong with either your directed time budget, the management of that time, or the workload placed upon you.
Remember, 10% PPA is a minimum – not a target. If schools want teachers to excel, increasing this portion of the time budget should help them build better and more innovative lessons.
Practical example
A teacher is asked to teach a new ‘A’ level. They’re qualified to teach it, and have some bought in resources, but they are concerned about doing a great job in the time they have to prepare.
Bad practice:
The teacher is timetabled as normal and finds themselves having to devote most of their 10% PPA to this new subject. This is not enough time, so they invest several hours every week in evenings and three or four hours each weekend preparing for their day to day lessons.
This is a recipe for stress and burn-out, and will not deliver excellent teaching to either the new class nor the other classes the teacher has on the timetable.
Better practice:
The teacher is released from most SDD activities throughout the year, giving additional time to prepare. They are also ring-fenced from cover except in emergencies. They use this extra time to prepare for the new class.
This approach spreads out the workload, helping the teacher say “above water” without wasting all their 10% PPA time on the single class. However it could have negative impacts as they might miss some CPD opportunities.
Best practice:
The new ‘A’ level is given additional financial support in the form of reducing the contact time for that teacher, giving an extra few periods a week ring-fenced for additional PPA for the new subject.
This is the best option as it maintains the teacher’s CPD opportunities, while ensuring that dedicated PPA time for the new subject is given every week. It allows greater flexibility to develop the new subject, without damaging the teacher’s welfare or putting other classes into a lower priority.
Designed and produced by teachers and trade unionists. While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of information on this site, members and representatives are advised to contact their own trade union reps before taking action which might leave them in breach of contract. © 2024 think1265