Teacher vacancies in England have virtually doubled since before Covid, with school leaders increasingly forced to use non-specialist teachers, which threatens to drive down pupil attainment, according to research.
A report by the National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER) found that teacher vacancies posted by schools were 93% higher in the academic year up to February 2023 than at the same point in the year before the start of the pandemic.
The findings indicate staff turnover is still rising, with vacancies in schools in England up 37% compared with 2021/22. “This likely indicates that teachers who may have put off the decision to leave teaching during the pandemic are leaving now that the labour market is recovering,” the report said.
The NFER, which describes itself as the leading independent provider of education research, calls on the government to agree a long-term strategy on teacher pay to try to halt the growing school workforce crisis.
The NFER’s annual report on the teacher labour market in England was published on Thursday, after a series of damaging teacher strikes by members of the National Education Union. They are demanding a fully funded, above-inflation pay rise, which they say will help make the profession more appealing to graduates. The government is currently in talks with unions to try to reach a settlement.
