‘If we can accommodate’: School timetabling and the reality of flexible working

Becky Trenow is a guest blogger for Curriculum Solutions. She shares insights on timetabling from a teacher’s perspective drawing on part time and full time classroom experience. This is the second in a series of three blogs. Her blogs look at the impact of timetabling on: how to balance school and staff needs, flexible working and timetabling to support students with SEN.

‘If we can accommodate.’

It’s the phrase that many teachers hear when they first request part-time working, and one that often signals that the outcome has already been decided.

Too frequently the rejection of flexible working is framed as a timetabling problem. It’s not that the school doesn’t want to support part-time requests, but it is something that just doesn’t quite ‘fit’. But this raises a bigger question: why are timetables so rigid? Why can’t we design more flexible structures?

Why the School Timetable Defaults to No

In many schools, flexibility is treated as an add-on - something to be negotiated once the ‘main’ timetable is complete. Requests are handed down to Middle Leaders who have no capacity to make any significant changes to the already concrete building blocks so, at this point options are limited and it becomes much easier to say no to staff requests. But when flexibility is considered from the outset, different possibilities begin to emerge.

As a part-time teacher, I’ve seen how much potential there is for a more adaptable approach. Some full-time colleagues would welcome reduced hours. Some part-time staff would be happy to adjust their working days year on year. I would happily run early morning interventions but need to leave promptly at the end of the day for school pick-ups. But without open and proactive conversations, these opportunities are missed and the timetable becomes unnecessarily fixed.

Who Bears the Cost When the School Timetable Won't Flex

What’s particularly important is who this affects. Requests for part-time working are more commonly made by women - often linked to caring responsibilities or seeking alternative roles that offer remote working. When those requests are declined because they ‘don’t fit the timetable,’ the impact goes beyond logistics - it affects retention, progression, and equality; in 2024, women in their 30s were the largest group leaving teaching.

At the same time, schools are facing growing recruitment challenges. Experienced teachers are leaving because they are seeking flexible, or part time working, taking their years of experience and subject knowledge with them. Against that backdrop, it’s worth asking whether more flexible timetabling could help retain these staff and become part of the solution. 

Building a School Timetable That Works for Everyone

A timetable constructed with flexibility in mind from the start is far more likely to accommodate a range of workforce needs than one that tries to retrofit these needs at the end. Timetabling isn’t just about organising lessons. It’s about shaping the conditions in which teachers can stay, grow and do their best work. 

Schools need to think about whether flexibility is truly possible, not just theoretically considered.

How can a school timetable consultant help?

Curriculum Solutions is an education consultancy that supports schools with curriculum design and timetables, helping build structures that work for staff and students alike. If you want us to do a sense check on your timetable and whether you could accommodate more flexible working patterns, please get in touch.