Staff turnover (Swedish: personalomsättning) measures the proportion of a school's staff that is replaced during a year. If ten out of a hundred teachers leave and are replaced, the staff turnover is 10%. High turnover can signal problems with the working environment, management or employment conditions, while low turnover often reflects a stable and pleasant workplace.
Why is staff turnover important?
For students — especially younger children — continuity among teachers and educators is crucial for security and learning. Research shows that schools with low staff turnover generally achieve better results, as experienced teachers who know their students can provide more individually tailored instruction. Parents of preschool children often cite a stable staff team as one of the most important criteria when choosing a preschool.
Data sources and availability
Exact staff turnover per school unit is not publicly available in Sweden. Skolverket reports staff statistics per school unit, but not mobility or new hires per year at the unit level. As a proxy, one can use the change in the number of teachers or in the proportion of qualified teachers over time — a measure called the stability index.
Municipality-aggregated data
Kolada publishes municipality-level staff statistics, including the proportion of qualified teachers (qualification rate) with multi-year history. The trend in this indicator shows whether recruitment and stability are improving or deteriorating in the municipality as a whole. Skolkoll displays this as part of the municipality page's staff stability section.
Comparison with municipalities and the national average
By comparing a municipality's qualification rate with the national average and observing how the trend develops, Skolkoll provides an indication of whether the municipality is recruiting and retaining qualified staff at the same rate as the rest of the country. Municipalities that consistently improve their qualification rate are likely investing in staff stability.