A teacher from Portishead is building a team of teachers to offer freelance cover to schools across North Somerset.

David Cash, who has been a PE teacher for more than 12 years, wants to remove the negative stereotype associated with supply teaching by setting up Freelance Teacher UK and he is looking for teachers of all subjects to join him.

He said: “After working as a contracted teacher and a supply teacher for the past 12 months, I was struck by the need for competent, mature and experienced teachers who were able to hit the ground running, be that for one day, or one term.

“There are many good supply teachers across the region, but all too often, supply staff are rolled out by agencies without consideration of how that teacher will perform in front of a class full of unknown students, how the teacher will fit the ethos of the school, or simply that the teacher is not experienced enough to cope with the very different professional and personal dynamics that come with being a supply teacher.”

“The term ‘supply’ has negative connotations from teachers, as well as students. Freelance Teacher UK aims to break down negativity around the use of day-to-day teachers and promote the use of the term freelance, used in many areas of the private sector and denotes a professional who is able to consult with, and work with the team currently in place, with minimum impact for students and departments.”

The agency supplies staff on a daily basis, or to fulfil longer term, temporary roles within schools.

For more information, email davidcash@freelanceteacheruk.com