Responding to the latest update on the update for the strategic education workforce plan, school leaders' union, NAHT Cymru national secretary, Laura Doel said:

“We welcome the Welsh Government’s recognition of the critical role the education workforce plays in raising standards. This workforce plan is a vital opportunity to tackle concerns over workload, wellbeing and recruitment and retention which have been raised repeatedly by school leaders and teachers.

“Society’s expectations of schools and colleges have shifted significantly, with families coming under more pressure, but support and resources have not kept pace with these demands. Leaders and practitioners’ time is being stretched more thinly than ever as they are called upon to deal with non-teaching issues including the impact of poverty.

“The Welsh Government must focus on getting the basics right - addressing the unsustainable workload pressures that undermine wellbeing and drive people out of the profession – even when these do not conveniently align with its priorities.

“NAHT Cymru took industrial action because these issues could no longer be ignored, which was only resolved with a clear commitment from the government to act. We need to see urgent progress in these areas, working closely with the profession, in order to avoid further disruption.”