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PPA and directed time calculator for teachers

Check your statutory PPA entitlement, then see how duties, meetings, cover and parents' evenings stack up against the 1,265-hour annual limit on directed time. No sign-up needed.

Your PPA entitlement

Every teacher's timetable must include planning, preparation and assessment (PPA) time of at least 10% of their timetabled teaching time, allocated in blocks of no less than half an hour.

Leave blank if you just want the minimum figure.

Other directed time commitments

PPA has a fixed statutory minimum (10%, see above). Duties, meetings, and parents'/open evenings don't have a fixed quota, they just have to fit inside the 1,265-hour cap and be 'reasonable' under paragraph 52.4. This section shows your total against that cap, not a per-activity entitlement.

Break, bus, detention duty and similar.

Occasional rather than weekly, so most people count these for the whole year.

If known.

Leave blank if you work full-time.

Used with your contracted hours to pro-rata the 1,265-hour budget (paragraph 51.6).

Directed time is spread over 195 days, normally 39 weeks.

Nothing you enter here is saved or sent anywhere. The calculator runs entirely in your browser and starts fresh each visit. We only record anonymous, cookie-free counts: that the page was visited, whether the PPA or directed-time result was used, and clicks on the sign-up button - never any of the numbers you type in.

Source: School Teachers' Pay and Conditions Document (STPCD) 2025, paragraph 52.5 (minimum 10% PPA), paragraphs 51.5 and 51.6 (the 1,265-hour annual limit on directed time, applied pro-rata for part-time teachers) and paragraph 52.4 (reasonableness). This is a general guide rather than legal advice; your union or HR team can confirm how your contract applies.

Frequently asked questions

Is this PPA and directed time calculator free to use?

Yes. It's completely free, needs no account, and nothing you type into it is saved or sent anywhere: it runs entirely in your browser and starts fresh on every visit.

What is the statutory minimum PPA time for teachers?

Under the STPCD, every teacher's timetable must include planning, preparation and assessment (PPA) time of at least 10% of their timetabled teaching time, allocated in blocks of no less than half an hour (paragraph 52.5).

What counts towards the 1,265-hour directed time limit?

Directed time covers teaching, PPA, duties, meetings and briefings, cover, and parents' or open evenings: anything your school directs you to do. Paragraphs 51.5 and 51.6 of the STPCD cap it at 1,265 hours a year, pro-rata for part-time contracts, and paragraph 52.4 requires any individual demand on that time to be reasonable.

Where do these figures come from?

The School Teachers' Pay and Conditions Document (STPCD) 2025: paragraph 52.5 for the 10% PPA minimum and paragraphs 51.5 to 51.6 for the 1,265-hour directed time limit. This calculator is a general guide rather than legal advice; your union or HR team can confirm how it applies to your contract.

I don't have my timetabled hours worked out yet, what should I do?

Build your weekly timetable first with the free Timetable Builder, which needs no account, then come back and enter your total teaching hours here.

Want this tracked automatically every week instead of re-entering it?

TTM does this for you, free to start