The teaching profession has lacked the “flexibility” now available in other graduate jobs since the pandemic, a Department for Education minister has warned.
Baroness Barran, minister for the schools’ system, was asked in the House of Lords today why the government has failed to meet teacher recruitment targets.
She told peers that there was “no single reason” why the recruitment market for teachers was so challenging but highlighted a lack of flexibility compared with other sectors.
Lord Lexden asked the minister today: “What does the government attribute its inability to meet the teacher training targets to?”
Baroness Barran replied: “I think there is no single reason why the recruitment market is so challenging but clearly there is a very competitive labour market and historically teaching has not offered the same flexibility that is now offered post-pandemic for many graduate jobs.”
Teacher training: the shortfall in entrants
She was also asked to defend the government’s initial teacher training (ITT) market review, which has seen some providers not receive reaccreditation to enable them to continue offering training courses from 2024.
In October a Tes analysis revealed that some regions could lose up to a third of their teacher trainees after the results of the second and final round of the DfE’s reaccreditation of providers.
Members of the House of Lords also voiced concerns that the number of secondary teacher trainees entering courses this September missed the DfE target by 41 per cent.
Asked how the government could “justify cutting the number of ITT providers” in light of these latest figures, Baroness Barran said that the government was “focused on ensuring there is the right capacity in the market”.
She added that the government is working with unsuccessful providers “to make sure that they can work in partnership with accredited providers to make sure we have the capacity all across the country”.
Commenting on teacher trainee shortages in certain subjects, the Earl of Clancarty asked Baroness Barran if she agreed that bursaries should be introduced “for all subjects not reaching their recruitment targets”.
The minister replied that bursaries are taken “very seriously” and are reviewed every year.
She said the amounts granted in the 2021-22 academic year “took account of the extraordinary circumstances of Covid but we are increasing bursaries in 2022-23 and 2023-24” “similar to the levels offered pre-pandemic”.
In October the DfE announced an increase to bursaries across several subjects for 2023-24 and reinstated the English bursary at £15,000 after this was removed two years ago.
But school sector leaders warned that although increased bursaries are welcome, they “only scratch the surface” in dealing with the ongoing teacher recruitment crisis.
Despite the number of primary trainees entering courses in September missing the DfE target by 7 per cent, the DfE has not reintroduced financial help for this phase.
Baroness Donaghy said she felt the ITT market review “was wasteful and badly timed”.
“New national providers are untested and there’s no guarantee they’ll be able to recruit,” she added.
Baroness Donaghy asked if the government would “bear in mind those areas that are not yet covered” in the appeals decisions.
While Baroness Barran said she could not comment on the appeals process, she said there are “some very strong” new providers, including the National Institute of Teaching and Ambition Institute.
She said the department was focusing “on building partnerships with those who have received accreditation and those who were unsuccessful”.
Providers are currently waiting for the results of their appeals to gain accreditation.
Tes understands that around a third of current providers that were unsuccessful in gaining accreditation were expected to appeal the decision.
