One hundred teachers were welcomed to Downing Street for a
reception to celebrate their hard work, talent and
commitment to giving every child an excellent education.
Teachers from schools across the country attended an
evening reception yesterday, which was hosted by the Prime
Minister and Secretary of State for Education.
Both paid tribute to the hard work and dedication of the
profession which, alongside the government’s bold reforms,
have helped to raise standards – with 1.9 million more
children now in good or outstanding schools than in 2010.
There are 15,500 more teachers than in 2010 and the quality
of new entrants into the teaching profession is at an
all-time high, with almost a fifth of new teachers starting
this year holding a first-class degree.
Prime Minister said:
We know that the success of every young person, in
whatever they go on to do in life, is shaped by the
education they receive at school.
That’s why I was delighted to welcome over a hundred
teachers from across the country to Downing Street to
celebrate their achievements and to thank them for the
vital work they do day-in and day-out.
We now have nearly two million more children being taught
in schools that are good or outstanding compared with
2010, we’ve raised teacher numbers to record levels and
we’re working with the profession on a new strategy to
drive recruitment and boost retention.
Teachers are key to making Britain the great meritocracy
it can and should be, and I am committed to working with
them so that every child has the best possible start in
life.
Education Secretary said:
Whenever I ask people about what they most remember from
school, they always talk about the teacher who inspired
them. There are no great schools without great teachers
and the reception today is a small recognition of the
incredible dedication and hard work we see day in, day
out, across the teaching profession.
We now have the most remarkably talented generation of
teachers, and it was a pleasure to recognise the
commitment and hard work of just some of the 457,000
teachers we have working in classrooms across the country
to raise standards for pupils.
The Education Secretary has made it his top priority to
ensure teaching remains an attractive and fulfilling
profession.
Earlier this month, in a speech at the
National Association of Head Teachers’ annual
conference, he set out plans to boost early career
support and development for teachers and pledged to
introduce more flexible working practices that will put the
profession on a par with other industries, including a £5
million fund to help experienced teachers take a
sabbatical.
The speech also set out plans for a recruitment and
retention strategy to build on the 32,710 trainee teachers
recruited last year by attracting, and keeping, the
brightest and best in our classrooms. It also updated on
the department’s response to its consultation on Qualified
Teacher Status, outlining the intention to develop new
high-quality training opportunities to boost career
progression and support the record number of teachers in
our schools to become leaders in their field.
