ClassCover expands pilot programme amid growing demand from schools and substitute teachers

ClassCover, a leading Australian-based substitute teacher booking platform, today announces it has expanded its pilot programme amid growing demand from schools and substitute teachers. Having launched in Ireland late last month with the initial pilot set to take place in Dublin, the platform will now extend to Cork, Limerick, Galway, Tipperary, Meath, Louth, Wicklow and Kildare.

Irish schools have faced significant challenges accessing substitute teachers on short notice in recent years. According to a recent survey by the Irish National Teacher Organisation (INTO), 60% of schools were unable to source a substitute for an absence, leading to 283 people with no teaching qualification carrying out substitute work. Such difficulties have had real classroom consequences, including 735 days of disrupted learning from class splitting in the first six weeks of the school year alone.

ClassCover was built to address this issue. The platform aims to reduce the impact of teacher absences on children’s primary and secondary school education by enabling school principals to assess the availability of local substitute teachers and SNAs in real time. Previously, covering an absence often meant multitudes of phone calls or informal messages to social media group chats. ClassCover replaces that process with a single, transparent booking system – saving schools time and giving them a clear record of every booking.

Pilot schools will receive ClassCover Standard free of charge for two months, while schools outside the pilot regions can access ClassCover Lite at no cost. ClassCover Lite allows schools to bring their own list of trusted subs and SNAs onto the platform. Signing up will also be completely free of charge for substitute teachers and SNAs. The platform gives them control over which schools can see their profile, including the option to appear to schools searching for substitutes not yet on their list.

The platform also enables schools to attach lesson plans to booking requests, giving substitute teachers time to assess the needs of the class beforehand. Each school’s profile also includes onboarding information, helping new teachers feel prepared walking into an unfamiliar school and easing any first-day anxiety.

Ben Grozier, CEO, ClassCover, said: “We’ve heard again and again from Irish schools just how much time is lost trying to arrange cover. One Cork school reported having to make 39 phone calls just to fill a single day of absence, with cover handled through scattered contact lists and group chats. ClassCover consolidates all of that information into one single platform. With tiered plans, every school can benefit, whether they’re searching for new subs or simply managing the ones they already trust. We’ve seen how this platform has transformed the way in which schools in Australia navigate their teacher shortage and now it’s time to do the same for schools in Ireland.”

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