ASCL comment on NFER study of use of non-specialist teachers

Geoff Barton responded to the National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER) study on teacher supply and the use of non-specialist teachers

Barton, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, said:

“These findings underscore the scale of the recruitment and retention crisis in education. Our own recent survey of more than 750 state-sector school and college headteachers and principals found that 95% have been struggling to recruit teachers, with 65% experiencing difficulty with teacher retention. They also reported challenges in recruiting support staff. The department for education has repeatedly missed its targets for recruiting secondary teachers, while nearly a third of teachers leave the profession within five years of qualifying. All this has resulted in a severe shortage of teachers and left many schools with no choice but to use non-specialists for some lessons. Schools deploy and support these staff as best they can, and the staff involved work with great commitment and professionalism, but clearly this is not an ideal situation and teacher shortages represent a clear threat to educational standards.

“Workload pressures and pay levels are the main reasons for the difficulty in recruiting and retaining teachers. This is unsurprising when pay has fallen by 20% in real-terms since 2010, and school budgets have been squeezed by government underfunding leaving schools trying to do more with less. This year’s teacher pay award is significantly below the rate of inflation and yet no additional government funding was given to schools this year for them to be able to pay for it, putting even more pressure on their budgets.

“The money announced for education in last week’s autumn statement for the next two years is welcome, but far more needs to be done to tackle the major challenges faced by the sector and we echo calls for a renewed focus on recruitment and retention. The government must work with the sector to produce a long-term strategy, underpinned by fair pay and workload but also considering more opportunities for professional development and flexible working.”