Protocol Education
Protocol Education is a UK-based specialist education recruitment agency placing teachers and support staff in 1,500+ schools across Early Years, Primary, Secondary, and SEND settings through a branch network and proprietary mobile apps.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1995
- HeadquartersLondon, United Kingdom
- Headcount251–500
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Protocol Education does
Protocol Education is a UK specialist education recruitment agency that connects schools with qualified teachers, teaching assistants, and support staff across Early Years, Primary, Secondary, and SEND settings in England. Founded in 1995 and operating as a subsidiary of Supporting Education Group, the company serves more than 1,500 schools annually and places more than 3,000 educators per year through a sales-led model combining 25+ local branches, nine regional offices, dedicated consultants, and proprietary digital tools. Customer segments include state-funded schools, Multi-Academy Trusts (MATs), nurseries, and educators (including graduates and Early Career Teachers), with no single named-anchor customer in the disclosed data.
Protocol Education firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Protocol Education
- Legal name
- Protocol Education Limited
- Website
- https://protocol-education.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1995
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 251–500 employees
- Short description
- Protocol Education is a UK-based specialist education recruitment agency placing teachers and support staff in 1,500+ schools across Early Years, Primary, Secondary, and SEND settings through a branch network and proprietary mobile apps.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Protocol Education industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Education Staffing Services
- NAICS
- Educational Support Services (611710), Professional and Management Development Training (611430)
- SIC
- Services-Educational Services (8200)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Special Education Staffing & Contracted Providers (Paras, Therapists, Specialists) (EDAJAKAL)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Education Professionals (Teacher/Administrator CE, CPD) (EDAAALAE)
Keywords
Where Protocol Education is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- London
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices3 records
Markets served
Protocol Education business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others
Revenue model
- Education Staffing Recruitment: The company charges schools and MATs for recruiting and placing teachers and support staff. Services include daily supply cover, long-term placements, and permanent recruitment across all education phases including early years, primary, secondary, and SEND settings.
- Temporary/Supply Staffing: Provides temporary teaching and support staff to schools with weekly PAYE pay to workers. Revenue generated through margin on staff placement rates charged to schools.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Weekly | Learning Support Assistant roles |
| Unit Pricing | Weekly | Primary Supply Teacher roles |
| Unit Pricing | Weekly | Psychology Graduate roles |
| Unit Pricing | Weekly | SEND Teacher roles |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels6 records
Protocol Education product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Protocol Education is a UK specialist education recruitment agency that connects schools (early years, primary, secondary, and SEND) with qualified teachers, teaching assistants, and support staff through daily supply cover, long-term placements, and permanent recruitment. The company operates 25+ local branches and nine offices across England and matches schools with educators using proprietary mobile apps (myProtocol Staff for schools and myProtocol Work for educators), a public job board with 2,300+ live vacancies, and dedicated regional consultants. Supporting offerings include a free CPD Academy for educator development, accredited Team Teach behaviour management training, an Early Career Teacher (ECT) Pool, a Future Teachers Programme for graduates, and specialist SEND and Multi-Academy Trust staffing solutions.
Product overview
Protocol Education is an education recruitment agency operating a platform-plus-services model. The core platform comprises the myProtocol Staff App & Portal (for schools to book and manage educators) and the myProtocol Work App (for educators to find work and manage their careers), supported by a searchable Job Board with 2,300+ live vacancies. The product portfolio also includes the free CPD Academy (online professional development), Team Teach Training (accredited behaviour management certification), the ECT Pool (for newly qualified teachers), the Future Teachers Programme (pre-ITT paid placements), and Tutor Services. SEND Staffing Services and MAT Staffing Solutions provide specialist and multi-school recruitment capabilities. The offering connects schools with educators across Early Years, Primary, Secondary, and SEND settings through both daily supply cover and permanent recruitment.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- ECT Pool: Early Career Teacher Pool - gateway for newly qualified teachers to access teaching jobs across the UK
- myProtocol Staff
- myProtocol Work
- CPD Academy
- Team Teach Training
Products and services
- myProtocol Staff App & Portal Mobile app and web portal that enables schools and Multi-Academy Trusts to post vacancies, manage bookings, view educator profiles, submit timesheets, and track placements end-to-end. Targeted at UK schools and MATs in early years, primary, secondary, and SEND settings.
- myProtocol Work App Mobile app for educators (teachers, TAs, support staff) to search jobs, receive real-time job invitations, update availability, accept or decline shifts, view diary, submit timesheets, and access payslips. Targeted at qualified and aspiring educators seeking work in UK schools.
- CPD Academy Free online professional development platform offering bite-sized courses on safeguarding, SEND support, teaching assistant training, mental health and wellbeing, and health and safety basics for educators. Issues certificates on completion and is free for registered educators.
- ECT Pool Gateway platform connecting newly qualified teachers with long-term and supply roles across primary, secondary, and SEND settings, with free CPD access and optional mentoring support. Targeted at Early Career Teachers entering the workforce.
- Team Teach Training Accredited behaviour management training programme offered at three levels (Level 1, Level 2 Blended, and Level 2 Face-to-face) equipping educators working in SEND and SEMH settings with de-escalation techniques and positive handling strategies. Targeted at educators supporting pupils with challenging behaviours.
- Job Board Public-facing searchable portal listing over 2,300 teaching jobs across England, filterable by sector (Early Years, Primary, Secondary, SEND), specialism, contract type, and location. Targeted at educators seeking school roles.
- Future Teachers Programme Paid placement programme that allows graduates to gain hands-on school experience as a Teaching Assistant or Cover Supervisor before formal Initial Teacher Training, with optional access to fully funded PGCE places. Targeted at graduates considering a career in teaching.
- Tutor Services One-to-one and small group tutoring service enabling educators to support student progress outside full classroom teaching, with free CPD Certified Tutor Toolkit and flexible scheduling. Targeted at educators seeking tutoring work.
- SEND Staffing Services Specialist SEND recruitment service connecting schools with SEND-trained educators, behaviour mentors, therapists, and Thrive-trained SEMH specialists across mainstream and specialist settings. Targeted at SEND schools, specialist units, and alternative provisions.
- MAT Staffing Solutions Multi-Academy Trust staffing solution providing consistent, scalable educator recruitment across multiple schools within a single trust, including supply, long-term, and permanent placements. Targeted at Multi-Academy Trust central leadership and HR teams.
Quantifiable outcome
- 3,000+ teachers and support staff placed annually
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Protocol Education
Customer profileNamed customers5 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Protocol Education technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
Protocol Education partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Four partnerships are on record, tiered parent and core.
- Supporting Education Group (SEG)parentProtocol Education is proudly part of Supporting Education Group, a parent company providing strategic direction and shared services across education recruitment brands.
- Best Practice NetworkcorePartnership for Initial Teacher Training (ITT) programs including Fee-Funded ITT and Postgraduate Teacher Apprenticeship. Also provides Level 3 Teaching Assistant apprenticeship programs for career changers.
- Thrive ApproachcoreSister company specialising in supporting pupils' social, emotional and mental wellbeing through evidence-based approaches. Provides free resource packs for schools and Thrive training for educators.
- Team TeachcoreAccredited training programme partnership providing behaviour management training for educators. Protocol Education offers Team Teach Level 1, Level 2 Blended, and Level 2 Face-to-face courses for SEND and SEMH settings.
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves2 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Protocol Education competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- PK Education: North-East England-based education recruitment agency supplying teachers and support staff to primary, secondary, and SEND schools. Comparable on SEND specialism and consultant-led supply model, though smaller in geographic reach.
- Academics: UK specialist education recruitment agency placing teachers, TAs, and SEND staff in primary, secondary, and SEN schools. Directly comparable on customer segments, SEND focus, and regional consultant-led service model.
- Career Teachers: UK education recruitment agency placing teachers, NQTs, TAs, and SEND specialists into schools. Comparable in service mix (supply, long-term, permanent) and SEND staffing emphasis.
- Reed Education: Education arm of Reed, a major UK recruitment group, placing teachers and support staff across mainstream and SEND settings nationwide. Comparable in offering supply, long-term, and permanent recruitment with strong regional coverage.
- Simply Education: Specialist UK education recruitment agency focused on supply teachers, NQTs, and support staff across primary and secondary schools. Comparable on temporary staffing focus and school-led customer base.
- Teaching Personnel: One of the largest UK specialist education recruitment agencies, supplying daily cover, long-term, and permanent staff to primary, secondary, and SEND schools. Directly comparable to Protocol Education in customer base, service mix, and branch-led distribution model.
- Randstad Education: UK education arm of global staffing firm Randstad, supplying supply teachers, cover supervisors, and support staff to schools and local authorities. Comparable in core recruitment offering with a strong public-sector framework footprint.
- Hays Education: Education division of Hays, a global staffing firm, placing teachers, leaders, and support staff into UK schools and MATs. Comparable on customer type and recruitment services, though typically weighted toward permanent and senior roles.
Others
- Thrive Approach: Sister company within Supporting Education Group offering evidence-based SEMH training and Thrive-licensed practitioners to schools. Comparable as an ecosystem partner that supports Protocol Education's SEND and behaviour management offering.
- Best Practice Network: UK teacher training provider offering Fee-Funded ITT, PGCE, and Teaching Assistant apprenticeships, partnered with Protocol Education for the Future Teachers pathway. Comparable as an upstream pipeline partner rather than a direct recruiter.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Protocol Education social profiles
Digital presenceProtocol Education compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance3 records
Protocol Education financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Protocol Education leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles7 records
Protocol Education funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Protocol Education M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Protocol Education
What does Protocol Education do?
Protocol Education is a UK specialist education recruitment agency that connects schools (early years, primary, secondary, and SEND) with qualified teachers, teaching assistants, and support staff through daily supply cover, long-term placements, and permanent recruitment. The company operates 25+ local branches and nine offices across England and matches schools with educators using proprietary mobile apps (myProtocol Staff for schools and myProtocol Work for educators), a public job board with 2,300+ live vacancies, and dedicated regional consultants. Supporting offerings include a free CPD Academy for educator development, accredited Team Teach behaviour management training, an Early Career Teacher (ECT) Pool, a Future Teachers Programme for graduates, and specialist SEND and Multi-Academy Trust staffing solutions.
Is Protocol Education a public or private company?
Protocol Education is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was Protocol Education founded?
Protocol Education was founded in 1995. It employs 251 to 500 people.
Where is Protocol Education based?
Protocol Education is headquartered in London, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does Protocol Education make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Education Staffing Recruitment is the primary driver. The others are temporary/Supply Staffing.
Who are Protocol Education's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are PK Education, Academics, Career Teachers, Reed Education, Simply Education, Teaching Personnel, Randstad Education and Hays Education. Others are Thrive Approach and Best Practice Network.
Does Protocol Education have an API?
No public API is recorded for Protocol Education.
What industry is Protocol Education in?
Protocol Education's product category is Education Staffing Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EDAJAKAL, Special Education Staffing & Contracted Providers (Paras, Therapists, Specialists), with a secondary code of EDAAALAE, Education Professionals (Teacher/Administrator CE, CPD). Its NAICS code is 611710 and its SIC code is 8200.