§ Mrs. Iris RobinsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what assessment he has made of the(a) satisfaction and (b) needs of teachers in Northern Ireland; and what plans he has for further research. [90621]
§ Jane KennedyMy Department funded the Teachers' Health and Well-being Survey, which was the first of its kind for Northern Ireland's teaching profession. The report, which I launched on 16 December 2002 in partnership with the employing authorities and the teacher unions, shows that 57.7 per cent. of respondents were either very satisfied or satisfied with their jobs while 22.2 per cent. were either dissatisfied or very dissatisfied. The remainder fell in between both groups.
There was a relatively high response rate to the survey by teachers. Their valuable feedback will be taken fully into account by the employing authorities, working 693W closely with my Department and the teacher unions, in implementing the report's recommendations so that support services continue to improve to meet the needs of teachers. The report has been published on my Department's website and an executive summary has been sent to all teachers. There are no immediate plans for further research.