Department for Education written question – answered at on 4 September 2018.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent steps his Department has taken to recruit and retain teachers and teaching staff in (a) Medway, (b) Kent and (c) England.
The number of teachers in schools remains high with almost 452,000 teachers in England, 2,500 teachers in Medway and 13,100 teachers in Kent. An additional 32,000 trainee teachers were recruited in England last year.
Based on analysis of the School Workforce Census, the Department published a methodology for better understanding local teacher supply, the Supply Index, which demonstrates that variations in teacher supply issues appear at school level, with no geographical trends: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/682023/SFR86_2017_Main_Text.pdf. The Department has also announced a £30 million investment in tailored support for these schools, designed to help schools improve existing plans, join national programmes, build local partnerships or fund new initiatives.
Earlier this year, my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State announced a new strategy to drive recruitment and boost retention of teachers across the country which will build upon the existing work already undertaken to support schools and continue to address the national drivers of workload, including through the Workload Reduction Toolkit and the Workload Advisory Group recommendations.
The Department has also taken a number of steps to improve this year’s initial teacher training recruitment figures including; increased generous bursaries (worth up to £26,000 for priority subjects); boosting marketing and support to applicants; making it easier to take the skills test; and working with providers to ensure every applicant is accepted who is ready to train to teach.
Yes1 person thinks so
No0 people think not
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