From Accountability to Growth – Rethinking Teacher Appraisal in 2025
The Teacher Development Trust’s new report marks a watershed moment for schools in England. With the Department for Education’s removal of mandatory Performance-Related Pay (PRP), school leaders now have the freedom to reshape appraisal as a genuine driver of professional learning rather than a bureaucratic exercise. This shift represents more than a policy change; it’s an opportunity to redefine what it means to be a professional educator.
Read the Teacher Development Trust's Full Report
For too long, appraisal has been entangled with pay progression and compliance. The TDT’s research confirms what many school leaders already know: when appraisal becomes a high-stakes process, it narrows focus, dampens trust, and increases workload. Yet when it is reframed as a developmental process, built on feedback, autonomy, and coaching, it has the power to unlock teacher motivation and ultimately improve student outcomes.
The TDT report highlights that appraisal should be separated from pay and compliance mechanisms to focus on development, reflection, and trust. In practical terms, this means:
Shifting the emphasis from “evidence collection” to professional dialogue.
Replacing annual high-stakes reviews with regular, low-pressure check-ins.
Embracing multiple sources of feedback, classroom observation, peer input, and self-reflection, rather than narrow quantitative metrics.
Training appraisers to deliver constructive, bias-aware feedback.
This approach isn’t about reducing accountability; it’s about making it smarter. Schools that cultivate developmental appraisal processes don’t abandon standards; they enhance them by making professional growth an everyday reality, not an annual event.
Teacher retention, wellbeing, and professional identity are at a critical juncture. Workload pressures and recruitment challenges are pushing schools to rethink how they support staff. The TDT’s findings resonate deeply here: teacher autonomy and trust aren’t optional extras; they’re central to a sustainable workforce.
By designing appraisal systems that emphasise teacher agency, schools signal confidence in their staff’s professionalism. Teachers who set their own goals, reflect on their progress, and receive timely, developmental feedback are far more likely to stay, grow, and thrive. This cultural shift, from accountability of teachers to development with teachers, could be one of the most significant levers for school improvement in the coming decade.
For leaders, the challenge is implementation. How can schools operationalise these principles without creating yet another layer of process?
Key considerations include:
Embedding coaching into performance conversations. Appraisal should feel like CPD, not an inspection.
Reducing administrative drag. Digital tools can streamline evidence collection, freeing time for dialogue.
Creating shared ownership. Teachers should co-design criteria and evaluation methods to increase transparency and fairness.
Evaluating the evaluators. Regular review of appraisal practices, informed by staff feedback, keeps systems live and trusted.
The most effective appraisal systems, as the TDT points out, are not templates but cultures. Leadership consistency, fairness, and ongoing communication are what make them succeed.
SchooliP is proud to partner with the Teacher Development Trust to support schools in translating this research into meaningful action. Our collaboration is rooted in a shared belief: that teacher appraisal should be a catalyst for learning, not a compliance exercise.
Through this partnership, SchooliP aligns its platform and training tools with the TDT’s evidence-based principles, helping schools to:
Design development-focused appraisal frameworks aligned with DfE guidance.
Facilitate coaching-style conversations between staff and leaders.
Link individual goals to whole-school priorities, fostering coherence without compromising autonomy.
Track CPD impact and feedback over time to ensure every teacher sees tangible growth.
Together, we are helping schools move from performance management to professional empowerment.
At SchooliP, we believe that teacher development and school improvement are two sides of the same coin. Our platform is designed to simplify appraisal, professional learning, and self-evaluation, integrating them into one clear, intuitive process.
By streamlining appraisal, SchooliP reduces workload, ensures consistency across departments and trusts, and gives leaders real-time insight into staff progress and professional development needs. Our tools enable schools to:
Build transparent, evidence-informed appraisal systems.
Manage and evaluate CPD impact effectively.
Foster a culture of feedback and collaboration that aligns with the TDT’s developmental model.
As the education sector moves towards growth-centred appraisal, SchooliP is committed to equipping schools with the systems, data, and confidence to make that shift successful.
Because when teachers thrive, children succeed.
