Key takeaways
- Compare curriculum demand with staff capacity before timetable construction.
- Use contact ratio as a staffing lens, with regional targets treated as examples.
- Treat specialist rooms and teacher expertise as hard feasibility checks.
- Rerun the curriculum audit and staff loading chart when staffing changes.
What does a feasible staff model prove?
A feasible staff model proves that the periods demanded by the curriculum can be covered by available teacher periods. The curriculum audit counts demand. The staff loading chart counts supply. They are linked, so a resignation, new course, or changed period count should trigger a rerun.
Do not treat the count as a staffing formality. If the audit says a subject needs more periods than qualified teachers can provide, the timetable cannot fix that later.
Which resource checks belong before the build?
Check the practical limits before placement starts.
- Contact ratio for teacher-periods taught against teacher-periods available
- Curriculum audit for subject-period demand
- Staff loading chart for teacher-period supply
- Teacher expertise, including “must teach” and “can teach” preferences
- Specialist rooms, labs, workshops, and room type requirements
- Part-time availability, including two-week cycles and non-working days
How do planners run the resource model?
Run the model after the catalog has a clear structure and before handoff.
- Confirm the period count from term and holiday structure.
- Calculate subject demand in the curriculum audit.
- Calculate teacher supply in the staff loading chart at the chosen contact ratio.
- Map teacher expertise against the subjects and sets they may teach.
- Check specialist room and equipment requirements for each subject area.
- Rerun the model after resignations, new hires, or major catalog changes.
How do staffing changes affect the plan?
Staffing changes can remove curriculum capacity quickly. A sourced example in the knowledge base describes the risk when a sole subject specialist leaves. One survey reported that 76% of leaders were unsure they had systems to retain a programme, and only 32% thought a new teacher could pick up a complete one.
Use that as a sourced example, not a universal rate. The planning action is to rerun the curriculum audit and staff loading chart when a key teacher leaves, joins, or changes availability.
What should resource sign-off confirm?
Sign-off confirms feasibility, not the finished timetable.
- Curriculum audit and staff loading chart match at the chosen contact ratio
- Regional contact-ratio assumptions are labelled as examples where used
- Teacher expertise is recorded for must-teach and can-teach allocation
- Specialist rooms and equipment needs are treated as hard constraints
- Part-time availability has been checked against the cycle pattern
- Known staffing risks are ready for planning cycle governance
Questions planners ask about resources and staff
What is the curriculum audit checking?
It checks the periods each subject needs. The staff loading chart then checks the periods each teacher can give. The two must match at the chosen contact ratio before the plan is feasible.
How should teacher expertise be represented?
Record what each teacher must teach and can teach. More credible “can teach” flexibility makes scheduling easier, but it must reflect real expertise or certification.
Why do specialist rooms matter this early?
A lesson is not feasible if it needs a specialist room that is unavailable or the wrong type. A free slot in a chemistry lab does not solve a history-room need, and the reverse is also true.