What Are the Next Steps After a Year in Supply Teaching?
Supply teaching is a fantastic opportunity to learn and build on the necessary skills to become an amazing teacher. Your next steps after a year in supply teaching are yours to make, and you can choose to continue working as you are, move onto permanent roles, specialise, or move into a different career.
Reflecting on Your First Year in Supply Teaching
Your first year in supply work will be the most challenging, and you will learn how tough the job can be. However, it will also give you all the skills you need to excel in a permanent position if you want to pursue it. You will need to take the time to look back on your year and choose what you want to do—but don’t forget that you can change your mind at any time!
What you choose to do and the next steps after a year in supply teaching will come down to what you want to get out of your career, and what is important to you.
Is Supply Teaching a Good Long-Term Career?
Supply teaching can be a fantastic long-term career, because there will always be a need for supply teachers. Permanent teachers will get sick, go on leave, retire, and more, and there always needs to be suitable professionals to fill their shoes—so you will rarely be out of work, provided you are willing to travel to work at different schools in your area (or beyond).
However, it’s important to remember that supply teaching will not be everyone’s preferred option, as there are disadvantages that make this route less appealing to many. While you have the freedom to choose when and where you work, this job does not come with the reliability and security that a permanent role does, and this can be stressful. Additionally, constantly changing environments can be challenging, and it is not something that everyone will enjoy.
Common Next Steps After 12 Months in the Classroom
After 12 months of supply teaching in a classroom, you can either continue with your supply work, start looking for permanent teaching roles, or consider specialising in SEN, EYFS, or secondary subjects. These are all valid options, and it is up to you to choose what you want to do moving forward—but don’t make a decision without doing your research first.
What Can I Do After a Year of Supply Teaching?
After a year of supply teaching, you can either continue working in a supply role, transition to a permanent teaching role through your supply work or apply for permanent positions, or explore other career paths that make more sense to you. If you want to keep working as a supply teacher and continue having the level of freedom you do, you should communicate this to those you work with so that they can continue assisting you.
However, if you want to move onto teaching permanently at a school, you may need to secure a permanent job through a supply role, or specially apply for these roles on job websites. In many cases, continuing supply work but selecting more long-term opportunities at a school will open the doors for you to be hired there on a permanent basis, so this can be a good place to start.
How Does Your Experience Give You an Advantage?
The experience you gain as a supply teacher will build on your classroom management skills, flexibility in itching, teaching methods and approaches, and so much more—and these are all things that schools want from their teachers. This means that next steps after a year in supply teaching open the path to many opportunities that you will do well in, and you are likely to have an upper hand against any teachers who have not proven themselves through supply teaching.
How Do You Decide What Kind of Role Fits You Best?
Deciding which option is best for you is a challenge when deciding your next steps after a year in supply teaching, and it all comes down to your wants and needs. You will need to consider security, finances, freedom, and more when deciding if you should go for a permanent teaching role, or remain a supply teacher—there is no right or wrong answer!
Supply teaching comes with more freedom, and you can choose when and where you work. You are also not expected to take on the same responsibilities as a supply teacher as you would if you were a permanent one in a school, which means that you and generally doing little to no paperwork,don’t have to worry about parent’s evenings, and more, unless you are in a long-term supply role.
| Pros of Supply Teaching | Cons of Supply Teaching |
| Highly flexible | No continuous/reliable income |
| Relocation is always an option | Stressful to change environments every day |
| Ever-changing environment | Difficult to form meaningful work relationships |
| Better work-life balance | Often very early mornings |
| Little to no paperwork depending on the role | Not always teaching your specialised subject(s) |
| Your skills are always in-demand | |
| Opportunity to gain diverse experience | |
| Fantastic for career development | |
| Excellent for networking opportunities |
In a permanent teaching role, you will have more responsibilities, do more paperwork, and handle things like parent’s evenings, but your job will be more secure and you will not have to worry about landing your next position to get paid. In these roles, you will get to teach your specialised subject and focus on what you love, which is not always guaranteed with supply roles.
You will also get to work with the same teachers and students—which is great if you all get on, and allow you to build meaningful relationships while also getting the chance to progress your teaching career.
| Pros of Permanent Teaching | Cons of Permanent Teaching |
| Consistent income | More paperwork and admin work |
| You know what to expect from your day | Less flexibility in hours |
| Ability to form meaningful work relationships | More responsibilities around school |
| Get to teach your specialised subject(s) | Plenty of work to be done outside of school |
| Lots of opportunities for career progression | |
| Better job security | |
| Comprehensive benefits package | |
| Pension schemes |
How Do I Transition From Supply Teaching to a Permanent Role?
In order to transition from supply teaching to a permanent role, you will need to demonstrate that you have the skills to thrive—which supply work will grant you. Once you have these skills and build a strong reputation for yourself as a supply teacher, you will need to put work into networking at different schools and applying for permanent positions, ensuring that you apply early and tailor your applications to highlight your skills and expertise.
To transition, you will also need to continue your CPD via going training courses, getting formal qualifications, attending webinars, and more while you look for suitable permanent roles. And finally, you will need to shine in your interviews and be thoroughly prepared, arrive early, and stay calm as best you can.
When asked questions, use the STAR method to give yourself the best chance of success:
- S – situation (give a brief description of the particular scenario/context you are drawing from)
- T – task (outline the objective/challenge you faced in that situation)
- A – action (go through the steps you too to address the challenge/achieve the objective)
- R – result (discuss the positive impact of your decisions/positive outcome)
How Can First Class Supply Support Your Next Career Move?
First Class Supply, we want to help you land the teaching job you want, and we make sure that you get all the opportunities you need. From teaching roles to CDP and more, we work hard to ensure that you are always improving, and put time into mentoring, placements, and personalised help.
Decide your next steps after a year in supply teaching, and make the most of the opportunity with First Class Supply. We want you to succeed, and we can help our registered teachers breeze through interviews, edit CVs, and continue their training to make sure it happens.
Not sure what’s next after a year in supply? Talk to First Class Supply for personalised career advice, local opportunities, and expert support tailored to your goals, or check out our community support, testimonials and meet the team? We also have information for schools and teachers, and like to keep you up-to-date on news.
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