It is well known that it is hard to recruit teachers right now. The government missed its secondary school recruitment target by 52 per cent last year. Applications were thankfully up this year, but the sector still missed the target by 38 per cent – a welcome improvement, but still a large gap. The government has recognised the challenge by setting a target of adding 6,500 new teachers to the system. The question is how.
The teaching profession has fallen behind on both pay and working conditions compared to other graduate professions. The teaching sector is relatively weak on flexibility and our own research on the Gen-Z cohort shows they perceive teaching as stressful (42 per cent), having a poor salary (36 per cent) and that schools lack sufficient funding (36 per cent). Challenges on working conditions have a double impact: they mean that we don’t attract as many talented people as we need to plug teacher shortages, and we don’t keep as many as we need of those who do join.
With nearly one million young people now classified at NEET (not in education, employment or training), solving the teacher recruitment problem is crucial for achieving two government missions. First, it can expand opportunities, especially for disadvantaged youth who are twice as likely to be NEET and most in need of excellent teachers, while often being the least likely to have access to them. Second, it can boost economic growth by spreading the skills and the aspirations our economy needs.
In the face of this, Teach First was pleased to have increased our numbers to the highest level since 2021 – bringing in 1415 new teachers to work in the most disadvantaged communities. This year we recruited one quarter of all business studies teachers and 15 per cent of all English and history Teachers. Moreover, 37 per cent of the cohort identify as coming from a minority ethnic background and 28 per cent were eligible for free school meals themselves when at school. We think this shows we can combine both excellence and equity.
There are many great ways to train as a teacher, meaning that Teach First has a very specific role in the world of teacher recruitment. We are looking for high potential individuals that may not otherwise have considered a career in the classroom. We place them in schools serving low-income communities that are too often last in line for getting all the talent they need. Those who choose to train through our training programme are known to progress rapidly into leadership positions and to improve the attainment of the pupils in their classrooms. By competing alongside the top graduate recruiters outside of teaching, we hope to raise the profile and standing of the teaching profession in general and forge networks across the worlds of education, business, government and third sector to tackle the underlying barriers to educational equity and attainment.
Although we are pleased with progress, we know there is still much to do. Our goal is to continue improving by reaching the harder to-recruit areas, especially in rural and coastal communities. We aim to further raise standards for quality and diversity while helping our alumni to step into leadership roles. Through our different leadership programmes, we’re committed to supporting our alumni and teachers working in the hardest schools. By equipping them to thrive as leaders, we ensure they can better support the pupils who need their help the most.
We believe change is possible and are pleased with the government’s clear recognition of the recruitment challenge and the early steps taken to improve salaries and improve the relationship with the profession. The system can go further by increasing flexibility and by directing limited funding to where it is most needed.
The hopeful note is that, if we do these things together, we are pushing on an open door. Gen-Z are open to teaching – our research found they want a career with purpose and that three-quarters of current graduates believe it’s the most meaningful career there is. They are just unwilling to sacrifice financial security and opportunities for progression to achieve that purpose: they believe they deserve both. Salaries are improving; career progression and variety are a hidden strength of teaching, and managing workload and flexibility are within our grasp if we want. We can make teaching a top profession and, if we do so, can spread opportunity to every part of our country and reignite economic growth.
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