Challenges of teacher retention and how to address them

What are our greatest challenges when it comes to teacher retention?  We may all be aware of the high rates of attrition that our sector sees within the first 3-5 years of a teacher’s career, but it is further down the line, with our mid-career teachers, where the most damage is being done. Every year, more than half of our leavers are aged 30-49, and women aged 30-39 make up the largest demographic of leavers every year.  When we lose these experienced mid-career professionals, we lose our middle and senior leaders, our pastoral wisdom, in-depth subject knowledge and mentoring potential. But by the time teachers’ reach their thirties, the influence of their personal lives on their professional lives is so complex and specific to each individual, that it can be difficult to know where to start to support these valuable colleagues to remain in the profession. What are the commonalities in this demographic, so vulnerable to retention, and how can we as school leaders, help