Commenting on the latest Teacher Labour Market in England Annual
Report from the National Foundation for Educational Research
(NFER), which shows that teacher vacancies are almost twice
pre-Covid level, and that the initial teacher training (ITT)
recruitment target is likely to be missed for a second year, Paul
Whiteman, general secretary of school leaders’ union NAHT, said:
“This is another very worrying report on the state of the teacher
labour market, and one the government should be paying close
attention to. It is clear that teaching doesn’t look like a very
attractive career right now and we urgently need that to change.
“The government’s sole focus has been on starting pay and early
career pay, but differentiated pay awards have seen experienced
teachers’ pay falling further behind relative to early career
teachers. People looking at teaching as a career choice can see
that there will be inadequate pay progression as they gain
experience and responsibility.
“Leadership wastage rates are equally as worrying as the terrible
early career attrition rates. NAHT has previously revealed that
about a third of senior school leaders leave their post
within 5 years of appointment, and that only a quarter of deputy
and assistant heads aspire to headship.
“If the government are to improve recruitment and ensure adequate
supply of teachers to deliver for the pupils in our country, they
must look at the career of teaching as a whole and make changes
that mean a life-long career in education and progressing to
school leadership is attractive. They could start by restoring
pay and reducing the impact of workload and high-stakes
accountability.”
