Webster, Rob ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1416-4439 (2026) Covering the gaps. How support staff-led class cover is reshaping roles, provision and workforce pressures in schools in England. Project Report. UNISON - University of Greenwich, London. (In Press)

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Abstract

Support staff-led class cover is widespread, often substantial in duration, and frequently carried out in poorly supported conditions. These are the central findings of a large-scale survey of more than 8,000 school support staff in England, reported here. The study makes visible the patterns and trade-offs that are often hidden within routine staffing arrangements, and the particular role workforce pressures play in decision-making about cover. The findings show that class cover is common. Overall, almost two in five support staff reported covering classes as part of their role. Among those who covered, almost two-thirds of teaching assistants (TAs) and almost half of other support staff1 had done so on their most recent working day. Cover was particularly common among TAs in primary and special schools, where seven in ten reported covering classes as part of their role. Many TAs who undertook cover reported doing so for lengthy periods during a typical day, and two in five said their cover workload had increased since the previous school year. Estimated time spent covering per day points to substantial deployment, averaging around 2 hours 41 minutes for TAs and 1 hour 56 minutes for other support staff. Although TAs remained the main group affected, the findings suggest cover was often bound up with wider workforce pressures, with other support staff – particularly those in welfare and technical roles – also being drawn into cover where staffing capacity was stretched. The study also found that support staff-led cover is often poorly supported. The provision of lesson plans and resources was inconsistent, many respondents reported covering without additional adult support, and staff’s usual duties were often not backfilled when they covered classes. Cover therefore did not simply address gaps created by teacher absence and shortage; it often shifted pressure and opened up gaps elsewhere in school provision. The findings raise questions about the relationship between national guidance and practice. The distinction between the two principal types of cover – cover supervision and specified work – did not map neatly onto how TAs were actually deployed. Despite guidance stating the contrary, many TAs reported actively teaching while undertaking cover supervision. Many TAs undertaking these forms of cover were employed below the role levels most closely associated with them in national guidance. Although additional pay for cover is discretionary, the majority of TAs and other support staff did not receive it. Cover had important reported consequences for pupils who routinely rely on TA support, particularly those with special educational needs and disabilities. Many TAs reported that, when covering classes, pupils missed classroom support, intervention sessions, and one-to one support. In this respect, TA-led cover is not only a workforce issue but also a provision issue, with particular relevance to current policy efforts to improve inclusive education. Taken together with a 2024 study of TA-led cover, on which this research builds, the findings suggest that support staff-led cover is not a temporary or isolated issue. It is best understood as a continuing feature of school staffing arrangements through which schools manage absence, workforce shortages, and day-to-day operational pressures.

Item Type:	Monograph (Project Report)
Additional Information:	This report draws on data from a survey of school support staff conducted between late February and mid-March 2026. The survey was commissioned and funded by UNISON and administered by Ipsos UK. The survey instrument was designed by the author, who also carried out the analysis presented in this report. The interpretations of the findings and the recommendations set out in this report are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect the views of UNISON or Ipsos UK.
Uncontrolled Keywords:	school support staff, class cover, workforce pressures, staff shortages, teaching assistants, workload, role creep, pupil provision, school staffing policy, England
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > H Social Sciences (General) H Social Sciences > HA Statistics L Education > L Education (General)
Faculty / School / Research Centre / Research Group:	Faculty of Education, Health & Human Sciences Faculty of Education, Health & Human Sciences > Institute for Lifecourse Development Faculty of Education, Health & Human Sciences > Institute for Lifecourse Development > Centre for Vulnerable Children and Families
Last Modified:	16 Jul 2026 15:33
URI:	https://gala.gre.ac.uk/id/eprint/53323

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