Fewer teachers working in London schools as recruitment crisis deepens | My news from London

London schools are seeing a fall in teacher numbers despite a slight increase in the national school workforce, recent figures show. While the number of teachers in England has seen a small increase, London’s state schools have seen a decline, with thousands of educators leaving the sector.

School leaders’ union NAHT is urging the incoming government to take immediate action to tackle the “recruitment and retention crisis facing our schools”. According to the Department for Education, 75,079 teachers were employed in London’s 2,587 state-funded schools in November, down from 75,284 the previous year.

In contrast, the overall school workforce in England rose “marginally” by around 300 teachers to 468,700, which includes some without qualified teaching status. The statistics reveal that around 44,000 qualified teachers entered the school workforce, a reduction of 3,900 from new entrants the previous year. At the same time, 43,500 qualified teachers left the public school sector.

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Paul Whiteman, NAHT General Secretary, commented on the worrying figures: “These alarming figures are clear evidence of the recruitment and retention crisis facing our schools and the need for whoever forms the next government to commit to urgent action to solve this”. He said there are 18,000 more students in schools this year, while fewer new teachers have joined compared to previous years. He added that vacant teaching posts are causing difficulties in delivering the full curriculum, with subjects taught by non-specialists and additional teachers.

Teacher vacancies in England’s state schools have more than doubled in the past three years, reaching an all-time high of 2,800 in November. In London schools, 366 teaching posts needed to be filled, compared to 372 the previous year. Of these, 348 were for classroom teachers. There were also 868 posts that were temporarily filled.

Pepe Di’Iasio, General Secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, commented: “What these figures show, and what all school and college leaders know too well, is that it is becoming increasingly difficult to fill teaching posts. requires advertising roles multiple times and the use of supply staff in the interim, all of which have a financial cost attached.”

He further added: “Teachers are the most precious resource of the education system and the next government cannot afford to be complacent. We need a comprehensive plan to tackle the recruitment and retention crisis and ensure that schools and colleges can attract and retain the teachers they need to maintain a high standard of education for all students.”

The average salary for classroom teachers in London has increased by 7% from 2022, with those teaching in inner London schools earning £47,700, while those outside were paid £46,000.

The DfE said: “The number of teachers entering and leaving the service has fallen, although entry numbers continue to outnumber those leaving. the number of teachers in England”.

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