YOU might be feeling envious of schoolteachers just now. Most schools in York have either already broken up for the summer, or are about to.

Long weeks of idleness, toasting themselves on a foreign beach or sipping wine in the garden, stretch ahead. Who said teaching was tough? Well, it’s not like that. Yes, the school holidays have just begun: though it won’t be long before most teachers begin thinking about and planning for the new term.

During term time, however, teaching is a hugely stressful, demanding job. It isn’t just the teaching itself, taxing though that is (have you ever tried controlling, let alone teaching, a class of 30 13-year-olds who would rather be anywhere else?). It is the long hours of preparation and lesson-planning; endless marking; the extra-curricular activities, admin and red-tape; the stress of Ofsted visits and of trying to keep up with politicians tinkering with the curriculum or pressing schools to become academies.

The pressure is constant. Little wonder, then, that during the last five years, almost 300 teachers in York have been forced to take time off sick. A Freedom of Information request has revealed that during this time, more than 7,000 teaching days have been lost in York.

Vic Klays, deputy head of All Saints School - just rated outstanding by Ofsted - says stress, anxiety and depression are becoming serious problems in schools, for teachers, support staff and pupils alike.

This is hardly the best environment for pupils to learn in. New education secretary Justine Greening needs to take a long, hard look at the demands being placed on schools and teachers. They are becoming unsupportable.