People in primary and secondary teaching jobs across England have tried to make the government listen, telling education secretary Michael Gove and other ministers there has been a deterioration in working conditions in recent years.

Despite this, the coalition has been reluctant to make positive changes and now a new survey has revealed more than a third of school and college staff witnessed a rise in mental health issues among colleagues in the past two years.

Furthermore, 55 per cent of the 925 teachers polled by the Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL) last month said their job is having a detrimental impact on their mental health, with 80 per cent of these stating they were stressed.

The ATL said many teachers could be afraid to discuss their issues with heads due to the stigma attached to mental health issues. The poll found 68 per cent of teachers who believe they could have an issue decided to keep it a secret from their bosses.

Dr Mary Bousted, general secretary of the ATL, said the findings were shocking.

She commented: "Education professionals do more unpaid overtime than any other group and are put under constant intense pressure to meet targets, with excessive observation, changes in the curriculum and Ofsted inspections.

"Those working in education need to be supported better, with schools and colleges making adjustments to their jobs and working conditions where necessary."

The findings come just after a spokeswoman for the Department for Education said census statistics show teaching had never been "more attractive, more popular or more rewarding".

Who is right? Have you seen evidence of working conditions affecting your mental wellbeing? Are existing safeguards in place to allow teachers to talk about mental health?

It's a subject set to be discussed at the ATL conference in Manchester this week - let us know what you think about it.