Learning By Questions: Whitepaper suggests wellbeing not being looked after well enough

One-off interventions and token gestures are not having a significant enough impact on wellbeing in education, says the most recent report on wellbeing in schools shared by Charlie Burley, also known as The Teachers’ Health Coach, in conjunction with education specialist Learning by Questions (LbQ).

The whitepaper highlights that whilst there has been a marginal 2 per cent drop in the number of teachers who report feeling stressed, 77 per cent of staff still experience symptoms of poor mental health due to their work, and only 53 per cent feel that those that experience poor mental health are well supported (Education Support 2025).

Based on research from a range of schools and educational bodies – including University of Oxford, Tes, NASUWT, Education Support, National Foundation for Educational Research, Department for Education and Ofsted – the former teacher and wellbeing expert suggests that whilst the health toll on staff, leaders, schools and communities is real and immediate, another way is possible.

“This is the moment to be bold. To reimagine schools not as places where wellbeing is ‘added in’, but where it is woven into everything,” says Charlie Burley, The Teachers’ Health Coach.

Schools and staff that commit to systemic change, and put people before processes, are already showing what can be achieved the report claims. A ‘human-first’ 6Cs Framework is proposed as the way to achieve such change and create cultures of being well in schools.

“As a framework based in psychology, biology and social science, it’s a human-first approach to real change in wellbeing,” explains Charlie. “We need to start recognising that teachers are people before they are professionals and that meeting their needs is not optional, it’s essential.”

This latest report on ‘Rewriting Wellbeing’, which follows the first whitepaper in October 2025, also outlines how schools are increasingly fulfilling roles wider than ever before, which is placing more pressure on already stretched resources.

The number of pupils with SEND has increased by 5.6 per cent in the last 12 months (Education Support 2025) and workload is cited by staff to be as the leading cause of work-related stress. Budgets are also under strain, with 18 per cent of LA-maintained schools in England operating in a deficit in 24/25, up 2.5%.” (Department for Education 2025)

“We know that workload is one of the biggest drivers of teacher wellbeing. If we can reduce the time teachers spend on repetitive tasks outside the classroom, we can give them back energy for the work that really matters,” says Greg Adam, Managing Director of LbQ.

“That’s where well-designed systems can make a real difference, not by adding more complexity, but by removing unnecessary burden. When teachers have more capacity, they are better able to focus on pupils, and that benefits learning as well as wellbeing.”

To learn more on ‘Rewriting Wellbeing’ and find out about real-life cases studies of schools that have successfully applied the approach, visit https://primary.lbq.org/hub/leadership-guide-staff-wellbeing-strategy