This study is one of the EEF’s ​‘School Choices’ evaluations, which focus on the decisions school leaders make regarding practices and approaches, such as how to organise the school day or communicate with families. The aim of School Choices research is to produce causal evidence about the impact of different school-level approaches.

School Choices evaluations are divided into two phases: a scoping phase during which researchers assess the feasibility of an impact evaluation and refine their plans, and an impact evaluation phase during which they test the causal impact of a school-level approach.

The scoping phase for this project is complete, and the study has now progressed to the impact phase. The impact evaluation will use a synthetic control method to evaluate whether schools that have chosen to implement a nine-day working fortnight policy for teachers benefit from improvements in the sufficiency of teaching staff in their schools. Impacts on pupil attainment, staff absences, and teacher recruitment and retention rates will also be explored. An implementation and process evaluationAn IPE is used to understand how and why an intervention has (or has not) been successful. Data is analysed to explore programme quality, reach, adaptation and differentiation, as well as setting fidelity and responsiveness to the trial design. will also use surveys and interviews to explore how the approach is delivered in schools, as well as how teachers and school leaders experience the nine-day working fortnight.

The scoping phase of this study explored perceptions of the nine-day working fortnight in seven schools from Dixons Academies Trust, during their first year implementing the policy. Overall, the policy was well-received and was felt to offer improved work-life balance and flexibility. Most teachers said that the policy had improved their wellbeing and job satisfaction, although some reported challenges managing condensed schedules. Leaders also felt that the programme had supported their mental health, and some reported early signs that potential recruits were interested in the policy. Staff generally did not perceive the move to a nine-day working fortnight for teachers to have had any negative impacts on pupils.

Schools used a variety of approaches to implement a nine-day working fortnight, including adjusting lesson lengths, upskilling support staff to take on additional responsibilities and bringing in external specialists to teach some subjects. Schools generally did not reduce teaching workloads from 100% to 90%, tending to adopt condensed hours or a smaller reduction in working hours. Careful timetabling was found to be essential to making the nine-day working fortnight work.

Further information about the findings from the scoping phase can be found in this summary for school leaders.