DfE Cuts Teacher Training Bursaries Following Boost in Recruitment
Revamped Government Strategy Sparks Teacher Training Incentive Cuts
Government Strips Teacher Training Incentives
The government has enacted significant cuts to teacher training incentives, slashing bursary funding for several subjects, including key areas like maths and foreign languages. Of the 13 disciplines that previously offered bursaries, four will see a complete cessation, and funding for another five has been scaled back. This strategic shift in funding occurs in spite of election promises to bolster teacher numbers by 6,500. Although recruitment has seen a recent uptick, projections indicate that targets for secondary recruitment are likely to be missed.
Impact on Teacher Recruitment
The National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER) warns that these cuts could severely impact future teacher recruitment, potentially leading to 2,400 fewer trainees next year. Jack Worth, NFER’s workforce lead, described the cuts as detrimental to the government’s larger objective of increasing the teacher workforce.
Bursary Cuts Affect Key Subjects
Bursaries for upcoming trainees in English, music, art and design, and religious education have been entirely removed. Previously, these subjects offered bursaries ranging from £5,000 to £10,000. Reductions are also in store for subjects such as biology and geography, where funding will decrease from £26,000 to £5,000 by 2026-27. Design technology and modern foreign languages will see bursaries reduced from £26,000 to £20,000. Despite these cuts, bursaries for chemistry, computing, maths, and physics will remain unchanged at £29,000.
Loss of Maths Scholarships
The Department for Education (DfE) has also eliminated £31,000 scholarships for top graduates training in critical subjects like maths, chemistry, computing, or physics. Despite a 24% increase in maths trainees in 2024-25, the subject still fell short of recruitment targets, achieving only 73% of its goal. In a bid to sustain current projects, the Institute of Mathematics and its Applications (IMA) opted not to continue the funding agreement for these scholarships.
Challenges Facing Initial Teacher Training
Data from the 2024-25 academic year indicates that only 62% of postgraduate initial teacher training (PGITT) recruitment targets for secondary subjects were met, despite a slight improvement from the previous year. Recruitment targets have not been fully met since the 2012-13 academic year, with the exception of a surge in 2020-21 due to the pandemic. Forecasts suggest a possible 85% attainment of recruitment targets in the 2025-26 academic year.
DfE’s Justification and Industry Criticism
The DfE correlates its funding adjustments with the current teacher recruitment and retention landscape, pointing out that an additional 2,300 teachers have entered schools in the last year. However, Emma Hollis, CEO of the National Association of School-based Teacher Trainers (NASBTT), criticizes this economical approach, urging the government to focus on the ethical and developmental significance of teaching.
Changes to ITT Provider Grants
Additionally, the DfE has revised grants for ITT providers to cover salaries for postgraduate teaching apprentices. Chemistry, computing, maths, and physics will continue to receive £29,000 grants, but biology and geography will incur cuts from £17,000 and £5,000, respectively. Changes also affect teaching apprenticeship grants for many other subjects.
Education Secretary’s Vision
Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson affirmed the government’s commitment to recruiting more educators to improve student outcomes. She highlighted increased acceptance rates in subjects like chemistry, physics, and maths as encouraging signs but emphasized the ongoing need for talented individuals to inspire future generations.
