TEACHERS caught in the middle of a staffing crisis which is forcing an East Lancashire council to scout in Europe for new classroom recruits are deeply demoralised, a union boss has claimed.

Simon Jones, divisional secretary for the Blackburn with Darwen branch of the National Union of Teachers, was commenting on a new report which paints a picture of "an unsustainable profession."

"The teaching profession is committed to high standards and care for pupils but it is deeply demoralised," Mr Jones said.

"Fundamental change is required which puts teachers at the centre of decision-making about what is best for children and young people's learning.

"The message to the Government from this report is that teachers need greater support in schools to reduce workload and salary opportunities comparable to other graduate employment."

A spokesman for Blackburn with Darwen Council said they were not aware of any major concerns among teachers generally, but some individual teachers may be worried. He added that the council had still to identify which European country it would use to recruit in a bid to fill vacancies in the borough's schools.

The council has also pledged that only teachers who meet its high recruitment standards will be taken on.

The report follows an in-depth survey of attitudes among teachers in Lancashire conducted on behalf of the NUT.

It concludes that teaching as a career is failing to attract and retain the number and quality of teachers needed in our schools.

Teaching has become an "unsustainable profession", it says, and it needs to attract a new "flexible generation" of graduates if the current recruitment crisis is to be reversed. "A generation gap is opening up inside the teaching profession, which the Government needs to understand if it is to reverse the long-term recruitment crisis in education," the report adds.

"Younger teachers are more flexible in their outlook, but are increasingly concerned about their pay prospects as well as the opportunity to manage their own professional development," said Matthew Horne, author of the report, Classroom Assistance: Why Teachers Must Transform Teaching.

As the recruitment market for graduates expands, new and prospective entrants to the profession are increasingly measuring the prospects offered by teaching against the career paths of other graduates.

Mr Jones added: "Money is not the sole reason for the low morale of teachers.

"Excessive workload and declining status contribute to a complex mix of factors demoralising teachers.

"This is contributing to a view that survival in the 'blackboard jungle' is only possible for a short time."