Shadow Schools Minister Stephen Morgan MP has used education questions in the House of Commons to force the Government to address the crisis in teacher recruitment and retention.
It follows the latest workforce survey from the Department for Education which has found that 40,000 teachers resigned from state schools last year – almost 9% of the teaching workforce, and the highest number since it began publishing the data in 2011.
The survey also found that unfilled teaching vacancies were also at a record high, with more than 2,300 empty posts compared with 530 a decade earlier.
This challenge is particularly acute for secondary schools and STEM subjects, with the Government missing its secondary teacher recruitment target by 40% this year.
With the Conservatives’ under-resourcing of the education sector, uncompetitive pay, and teachers growing workloads, the crisis in recruitment and retention continues to grow, while the quality of education children receive continues to suffer.
Standing up for struggling schools, Stephen Morgan MP asked:
“Last week, the Minister’s Department celebrated the latest teacher recruitment and retention figures, with the numbers showing that 40,000 teachers left the profession last year—the highest number since records began. Does he really think that is worth celebrating?”
Labour has committed to a National Excellence Programme which will see the recruitment of an additional 6,500 new and specialist teachers, so that every child gets a brilliant education, paid for by ending tax breaks for private schools.
Commenting Portsmouth MP Stephen Morgan said:
“The Conservative’s disastrous management of our schools is not only driving existing teachers from the profession but also actively dissuading new recruits from joining.
The Government’s strategy to deal with the crisis in recruitment and retention has failed and it is children who are paying the price.
Labour will deliver high and rising standards in every school, for every child, by ending tax breaks for private schools and using that money to recruit 6,500 new teachers.”
You can view the City MP’s question and the Ministerial response here.
