Options for Teacher Career Progression

Develop curriculum design, lead assessment approaches, and support colleagues in their specialist area. Common in secondary settings and increasingly in larger primary schools.

Take responsibility for a key stage or curriculum area across the whole setting. These roles are typically at TLR1 or TLR2 level and offer whole-school influence without a full step into senior leadership.

Pastoral roles focus on learner welfare rather than curriculum. Heads of year, pastoral leaders, and heads of key stage manage wellbeing, attendance, and behaviour for a cohort of learners, working closely with families and external agencies.

The Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) role carries statutory responsibility for safeguarding across the setting and is a requirement in every school. Experience as a DSL is highly valued in senior leadership appointments.

The SENCO coordinates provision for learners with SEND across the whole setting, working with staff, families, external agencies, and the local authority. It is one of the most significant specialist leadership positions a teacher can hold.

From September 2024, the mandatory qualification is the National Professional Qualification for SENCOs, with new SENCOs having three years from appointment to complete it. The role frequently carries a TLR or SEN allowance and in many settings sits on the senior leadership team.

National Professional Qualifications (NPQs) are the government-accredited professional development framework for teachers and leaders in England. They cover both specialist teaching roles and leadership development, and by 2024/25 had been taken up by staff in 88.4% of state schools.

NPQs include:

NPQs are funded by the DfE for most teachers in state-funded settings in England, subject to eligibility. They are designed to be completed flexibly alongside a teaching role, typically over 12 to 18 months.

Senior leadership roles, including assistant headteacher, deputy headteacher, and headteacher, are paid on the leadership pay range under the STPCD. This is a separate scale from the classroom pay range, with headteacher salaries varying significantly by school size, phase, and location.

Senior leadership requires demonstrated whole-school impact, not simply excellence in the classroom. Most appointments look for evidence of leading change, managing staff, and contributing to school improvement at a strategic level. Experience in middle leadership, whether through subject, pastoral, or SENCO routes, is typically a prerequisite.

Executive leadership in multi-academy trusts and large federated schools represents a further tier, with roles including executive headteacher and CEO carrying responsibility for multiple settings and significant organisational complexity.

Career progression for teachers does not have to stay within a single setting. Several routes take experienced professionals into broader roles.

Local authority advisory and improvement roles draw on classroom and leadership expertise to support multiple schools, often with a specialism in curriculum, SEND, or school improvement.

Educational consultancy, including work for inspection bodies, training providers, or curriculum developers, is an option for experienced practitioners who want to influence practice at scale.

Teacher training and mentoring, including roles in ITT partnerships, Teaching School Hubs, and ECT induction support, allows experienced professionals to shape the development of the next generation of teachers.

Career progression is not only a matter of moving up a leadership hierarchy. For many teachers, deliberately using supply and temporary work at different stages of a career is part of a broader strategy.

Supply work across different settings, phases, and provision types builds a breadth of professional experience that a single permanent post rarely provides. Long-term placements often lead directly to permanent appointments. And for experienced professionals returning after a career break or considering a change of direction, supply can provide a low-commitment way to test a new phase or setting before committing.

Our article on permanent vs temporary teaching jobs sets out how the employment terms and rights differ across contract types and what each means practically for pay and progression.

Whatever your progression goal, the work available to you shapes the experience you can build. Flexzo Teach connects education professionals directly with settings across all phases, role types, and provision sectors, including short-term supply, long-term placements, and permanent posts.

You set your availability, rate, and preferences. Settings contact you directly. There are no agency margins and no transfer fees between a temporary placement and a permanent offer.