Teachers no longer routinely have to do a list of tasks

The Workload Agreement, which puts tasks like taking the register and photocopying in the hands of classroom assistants, came into effect last term.

But the Times Education Supplement survey of 500 teachers found 45% had freed up no extra time as a result.

Meanwhile, only a quarter had saved more than an hour each week.

Ordering supplies

The agreement, signed a year ago, described 21 tasks which got in the way of effective teaching.

These also include collecting money from parents, filing and typing.

The TES survey found that seven of the 21 tasks were still being carried out by teachers.

Four out of five respondents said they still put up classroom displays, while almost two-thirds ordered supplies.

The National Union of Teachers was the only education union not to sign the agreement, described as a "remodelling of the [teaching] profession" by the government.

The agreement has been blamed by local authorities for adding to school expenses, which contributed to the recent funding crisis.

A Department for Education and Skills spokesman said: "Workforce reforms mean that teachers are being freed from administrative tasks to focus on their main role - teaching - to the benefit of both them and their pupils.