Why Your Best Recruitment Tool Might Already Be Happening in School Today

Recruiting staff in schools is hard.

You write the advert. You tweak the job description. You add the phrase “warm and welcoming school” because, let’s be honest, everyone does. Then you post it online and hope the right person appears before the deadline.

But here’s the thing, your vacancy advert might not be the thing that convinces someone to apply.

Your school might. Because before a teacher, TA, office manager or senior leader applies for a job, there’s a very good chance they’ll have a look at you online.

Not in a sinister way. Just in the normal “could I actually work there without crying in my car by October?” kind of way. They’ll check your website. They’ll look at your social media. They’ll scroll through recent posts. They’ll try to work out what the school feels like.

And that matters.

May is not messing about

For many teachers in England and Wales, 31st May is the key resignation deadline if they want to leave their current school to start somewhere new in September.

But the point is this: May is decision time.

Teachers who are thinking about moving are already looking. Some are actively applying. Some are waiting for the right role. Some are quietly judging schools online while pretending they’re “just browsing”.

So if your school only starts thinking about recruitment when the vacancy goes live, you might already be late.

On a lighter note, 31st May is also World Parrot Day, National Macaroon Day and National Smile Day.

Which is a lot for one date to carry.

So yes, schools could spend the day celebrating parrots, eating macaroons and smiling politely through the final half-term chaos. But for teacher recruitment, it is also one of those dates that really matters.

Because while everyone else is thinking, “What a cheerful day for baked goods and tropical birds,” teachers who are considering a September move may be thinking, “Right, am I resigning or not?”

And that is exactly why schools need to be visible before the deadline arrives. Not louder. Not more desperate. Just clearer about what makes them a brilliant place to work.

Candidates want more than a job advert

A vacancy advert tells people the basics: Year group. Subject. Salary. Closing date. Person specification. Apply by noon, because apparently education runs entirely on noon deadlines.

But candidates want more than that.

They want to know:

• Does this school feel well-led?

• Do staff seem happy?

• Are pupils engaged?

• Is behaviour calm?

• Is there support?

• Is there humour?

• Is there joy?

• Would I belong here?

A job advert can say, “We are a supportive team.” Your social media can show it.

Your everyday school life is recruitment content

This is the bit schools often miss. Recruitment content does not have to be a staged photo of three members of staff pointing at a laptop. It can be much simpler than that.

A brilliant CPD session.

A TA being properly celebrated.

A calm classroom.

A staff member leading something they’re proud of.

A trip where everyone looks exhausted but happy.

A display that shows real learning, not just laminated perfection.

A video that captures the warmth of the school.

A post that shows pupils enjoying school and adults enjoying working with them.

None of that screams, “APPLY NOW!” But it does whisper, “This looks like a good place to work.”

And that whisper can be powerful.

Culture beats clichés

Every school says it is welcoming.

Every school says it has high expectations.

Every school says staff are valued.

That does not mean it is untrue. It just means candidates have read it all before.

What they are looking for is evidence.

Show them the staff team.

Show them the relationships.

Show them the support.

Show them the training.

Show them the behaviour.

Show them the laughter, the pride, the calm, the ambition and the slightly chaotic joy of school life.

Because culture is not built in a paragraph at the bottom of a job advert. It is revealed in the small moments people see again and again.

Social media is part of your recruitment funnel

Schools often think social media is mainly for parents and it is. But it is also for future staff.

When someone sees your vacancy, your social media might be their next stop. If the latest post is from World Book Day 2022, that probably does not help.

If your feed is only dinner menus, snow updates and “don’t forget odd socks day”, that does not tell candidates much about working there either.

But if your feed shows a school that is active, warm, proud and purposeful, it gives people confidence.

It helps them picture themselves there.

And that is often the first step towards applying.

Do not wait until you are desperate

The worst time to start showing staff culture is when you suddenly need three teachers, a SENDCo and someone brave enough to run Year 9 on a wet Friday afternoon.

Recruitment visibility should happen all year round. That does not mean endless “come and work for us” posts. It means making sure the good stuff already happening in school is visible.

The teamwork.

The CPD.

The classroom routines.

The pupil relationships.

The staff celebrations.

The leadership.

The moments that make people think, “Actually, that looks like somewhere I’d like to be.”

Then, when a vacancy appears, the advert is not doing all the heavy lifting on its own.

The story is already there.

Your next great member of staff might already be watching

The person you want to recruit may not apply because your advert says “committed to excellence”.

They may apply because they have seen enough of your school to believe it.

They have seen happy pupils.

They have seen proud staff.

They have seen strong leadership.

They have seen the kind of place they can imagine joining.

That is the power of everyday school storytelling.

Your best recruitment tool might not be a glossy advert, a paid listing or a perfectly polished application pack. It might be the brilliant stuff already happening in school today.

The only question is whether anyone can see it.

Need help showing the story behind the vacancy?

At MDM, we help schools and trusts use social media, photography and video to show what school life really feels like.

Not in a forced, corporate, “look at our values” kind of way.

In a clear, authentic, useful way that supports reputation, admissions and recruitment.

And with the May resignation deadline fast approaching, now is a very good time to ask:

If a brilliant candidate looked at your school online today, would they want to be part of it?

info@mitchelldigitalmedia.co.uk | 01249 588 228