About this study
This report looks at the referral of incompetence cases being made by Local Authorities and schools to the General Teaching Council (GTC) for England.
The GTC and the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) want to understand why the patterns of referral vary across different local authority areas.
The context for making incompetence referrals
Local Authorities and schools make referrals for incompetence within a framework that consists of:
Key findings from the report
At different stages in the framework we found evidence of factors affecting referrals to the GTC. These factors include:
Potential policy impact
Our study will be used by the GTC and the Government to make recommendations that will aim to strengthen and clarify the process for referring incompetence cases to the GTC.
Methods
In the scoping stage of this study we carried out a literature review, a review of existing administrative data and in depth interviews with national stakeholders.
We then conducted a series of case studies in different Local Authorities with Local Authority staff, head teachers, governors and trade union representatives.
Finally, deliberative group workshops were held for national stakeholders to discuss early findings from the study.
Fieldwork was conducted in stages, and participants were also identified and selected in stages.
You can find out more about how we conducted this study here.