Latest NFER research reveals the education system in England is facing a renewed challenge to ensure there are enough high-quality teachers.
Teacher recruitment and retention both temporarily improved during the pandemic due to the lack of alternative job opportunities in the wider labour market. However, the number of trainees entering initial teacher training in 2022 was further below target than at any point in at least the last decade. The number of teacher vacancies posted by schools in 2022 was two thirds higher than before the pandemic. More job adverts chasing fewer new teachers means that the 2023 teacher job market is likely to be extremely competitive.
The latest data on applications to teacher training also suggests that the recruitment lull is likely to continue, meaning further years of tight teacher recruitment.
This challenge is particularly acute for secondary schools, given the difficulties of recruiting enough teachers in STEM subjects such as physics, computing, chemistry and maths, and the demographic challenge of serving growing pupil numbers, while primary pupil numbers are projected to fall in the coming years.
