Nick Clegg is offering teacher across the country an opportunity to have their say on what they think causes unnecessary workload.

Launching the scheme the Workload Challenge, the deputy prime minister and leader of the Liberal Democrats acknowledged that teachers have long felt undervalued and "browbeaten" by the demands of their profession.

Appreciative that this is a matter that needs urgent addressing – and in doing so, acknowledging the fact that countless governments have failed to resolve this historic issue – Mr Clegg wants teachers to be forthright in their assessment of their respective workloads.

At the launch of the consultation, he started by first acknowledging that teachers – and indeed other professionals like nurses, social workers, police officers and council workers – have, time after time, explained to him their dissatisfaction with their everyday experiences.

Instead of focusing on teaching, he explained, teachers have to continuously "battle with bureaucracy". Poor management and an obsession with processes has contributed to this culture and made it the norm.

"Some people are still under the misguided impression that it’s a profession built around short days and long holidays," Mr Clegg continued. "But talk to a teacher and they’ll tell you about their working week of 50 hours or more. They’ll also tell you how much of this time they feel is wasted on unnecessary processes, box ticking and form filling."

The deputy prime minister said that teachers have explained to him that they will spend hours "struggling" to cope with the deluge of paperwork that their profession demands.

This includes having to contend with "piles" of incident reports, having to fill out over-detailed lesson plans that serve no other function than satisfying an administrative requirement and rattling through departmental updates that distract them from coming up with engaging, creative and productive lessons.

"Some of this work is unavoidable," Mr Clegg expanded. "Every school needs to ensure the safety of its pupils and staff and maintain the highest standards possible. But should you really have to fill in multiple risk assessment forms for every school trip when just one form would be better?"