How to create a cost-effective staffing structure

Make sure your staffing structure is providing value for money. Take a look at our tips and strategies for finding what cost-saving structure will work best for your school.

Last reviewed on 17 January 2022
School types: AllSchool phases: AllRef: 33415
Contents
  1. Audit your staffing needs 
  2. Review TLR payments 
  3. Consider a flexible SLT
  4. Limit middle leadership roles 

Audit your staffing needs 

Your staffing structure needs to match up with the needs of your school. To do this, start with a blank sheet of paper and ask yourself: 'What are the essential things the school needs to run effectively?’

This approach will help you think purely about the roles needed, rather than trying to fit staff members into a structure which might include non-essential roles. 

Future-proof decisions with 5-year projections 

Look at your projected pupil numbers for the next 5 years, to future-proof your staffing decisions.

It won't be cost-effective to make redundancies now if you're expecting a rapid increase in numbers on roll over the next few years. 

Consider support staff as well as teachers

You can make your support staff structure more effective by taking steps like:

  • Sharing staff with local schools
  • Outsourcing functions like cleaning, catering and IT support to give a stable cost at the procurement stage
  • Using fewer staff with higher skill levels