The speech made by Michael Gove, the then Secretary of State for Education, on 14 June 2012.

Thank you Steve for that introduction and thank you for all the great work you and the College have done over the past year.

Can I also take this opportunity to thank Steve’s tireless deputy Toby Salt – who is about to take up a new challenge as Chief Executive of the Ormiston Academy chain – and Andy Buck, who has done a brilliant job in establishing Teaching Schools – who is going to work for ULT?

It turns out that a downside of devolving power from the centre is that is creates great career opportunities for some of our best people.

But I think that’s a price worth paying…..

Those of you who have heard me speak before are probably expecting a brief tour around the educational policies of those countries that dominate the OECD’s PISA league table.

And it’s true we have looked all over the world in developing our policies.

Our curriculum reforms were inspired by the high expectations for all children in Singapore and Hong Kong.

The success of Finland and South Korea has informed our focus on getting more of our very best graduates into teaching.

The example of charter schools in New Orleans and New York – which have transformed the life chances of poorer children in those cities – have been critical in developing free school policy.

London

But while I’ve been inspired by Singapore, Finland and New Orleans another success story has perhaps had an even greater influence on my thinking. And it’s one that’s closer to home. London.

Until 2004 London always underperformed the rest of the country in exams. In the seventies and eighties inner London schools were seen by many as a by-word for failure. While some were, in fact, doing well in difficult circumstances there were serious problems. Poor behaviour was endemic, aspiration was low, life chances were stunted.

But over the last few decades there has been a transformation.

The difference between London and the rest of the country may not seem that great at first glance. 62 per cent of children achieve five good GCSEs with English and Maths compared with 58 per cent nationally.

Dig a little deeper, though, and there are some startling results. Across the country just 35 per cent of children on free school meals achieve five good GCSEs with English and Maths – a scandalously low figure – but in inner-London 52 per cent meet it – just a few points off the average for all children.

And this gap between the achievement of children in the capital and elsewhere exists for all ethnic groups and all income bands. For instance almost half of London’s poorest white pupils get five good GCSEs with English and Maths compared with 37 per cent nationally.

Nor has the success been patchy – there have been big improvements across the capital. There is now just one London secondary school below the floor standard.

So how has this happened?

Of course London has many advantages – it is a dynamic city with a fantastic cultural heritage. It benefits from a diverse mix of, often highly aspirational, communities. As the centre of so many professions – politics, media, the law – it is much easier to identify role models for young people than in other parts of the country.

But those things have been true for many years and London’s success is a more recent phenomenon. What’s really made the difference is that London has been the laboratory for educational reform over the past decade.

The last Government launched the London Challenge in 2003. There were several elements to this but the three most important were:

• Sponsored Academies
• The use of outstanding schools to mentor others
• A focus on improving the quality of teaching – especially through Teach First

Each of these strands has had a profound effect on performance and on my thinking. In each case this Government has learnt the lessons and is spreading the benefits of these reforms across the rest of the country.

The sponsored academy revolution began in London. Until 2010 there were more in London than the rest of the country put together – and there are still more than in any other region.

Nearly all of them have seen massive improvements from their predecessor school – given a new lease of life by a committed sponsor and the independence to innovate. But some in particular have been so incredibly successful that they’ve had a transformative impact on expectations in their area.

There are a small number of schools where children on free school meals both represent more than a third of all pupils and achieve above the national average. These are the jewels in the crown of the state education system – a standing rebuke to everyone who claims poorer children are destined to do worse than others. And when you look for them across London you start to see a pattern.

In Hackney there is one such school. It won’t surprise anyone to learn that it’s Mossbourne Academy.

In Southwark there are two – ARK Walworth Academy and Harris Bermondsey Academy.

In Westminster there are three – Pimlico Academy, Paddington ULT Academy and one non-academy: St. Marylebone Church of England School.

In each of these local authorities the incredible performance of new sponsored academies has acted as a spur to others. In Southwark the percentage of free school meal children achieving five good GCSE with English and Maths has increased by 23 percentage points in 4 years; in Westminster 18 percentage points; in Hackney by 15.

Since the election this Government – inspired by these successes – has turbo-charged the sponsored academy programme. By this September we will have increased the number we inherited by well over 100 per cent. And, crucially, we have expanded the programme into primary schools – more than 200 have now been brokered and 34 are already open.

I know this has been one of our more controversial reforms – some of the usual suspects have sought to protect underperforming schools from necessary change. But it seems deeply irresponsible to me to allow schools to fail year after year when organisations, like Harris, that have proven their ability to turn round schools time and time again are willing to help.

Academies, though, are only part of what made the London Challenge successful. The leadership strand of the programme focused on identifying “system leaders” to support weaker schools. This proved extremely successful. Schools in Tower Hamlets and Newham – like Swanlea and Rokeby – have been amongst the fastest improvers in recent years – and have done so by working closely with each other to drive up standards.

The legacy of this success is widespread support for system leadership as the best method of school improvement. As former chief inspector Christine Gilbert put it in a recent speech: “we’ve reached a tipping point in favour of schools, school leaders, and teachers themselves, as the primary drivers of systemic improvement”.

That is reflected both in the National Leader of Education programme – which is being massively expanded by this Government – as well as the great work being done by good and outstanding schools that have converted to academy status to help others.

Indeed one of the Tower Hamlets’ schools originally identified as requiring support under the London Challenge – Bethnal Green Technology College – converted to academy status as an outstanding school in January this year and is, as a condition of that status, supporting Dartford Technology College, a school currently in special measures.

Increasingly the very best schools are going beyond ad hoc support for weaker schools and establishing their own chains and federations – in the same way Harris, Haberdashers and John Cabot City Technology Colleges did in the early years of the academy programme. 85 outstanding schools are now signed up as academy sponsors.

The third key strand of the London Challenge was a focus on increasing the number of outstanding teachers through professional development and recruitment of the best graduates via Teach First – which was in its first few years a predominantly London centred programme.

Of the 1,000 Teach First trainees who completed training under the last Government over three-quarters were based in a London school.

While these 750 plus teachers represent a small percentage of the London workforce they have had a disproportionate impact. It is notable that the schools I mentioned earlier that help children on free school meals outperform the average have all relied heavily on Teach First in their recruitment.

Indeed many Teach Firsters have already reached leadership positions in these schools and others like them. They are often young people who would not have considered teaching without the additional prestige of Teach First, or the opportunity to start working in a challenging school straight away, but who have now decided to commit their lives to helping some of the most disadvantaged children in our society match – or supersede – their own achievements.

The Importance of teaching

Their success emphasises one of the key messages of international research over the past few years: no education system can outperform its teachers and the most successful jurisdictions, though they may differ hugely in other aspects, share a focus on recruiting the very best graduates and training them in outstanding institutions.

Under this Government Teach First have been given the funding to grow in commensurate proportion to their ambitions. By the end of this Parliament they plan to train 1,500 graduates a year; three times as many as they were doing at the beginning. They have developed a bespoke primary programme and expanded to all parts of the country.

But we are not just growing Teach First itself we are also applying the key lessons of that programme to the whole teacher training system. And how we’re doing that is what I want to focus on today.

Some changes we’ve already made.

One lesson from Teach First, as well as of PISA, is the importance of attracting the best graduates.

So we have introduced bursaries of up to £20,000 to attract the very best science and maths graduates. And we have raised the bar for potential trainees – they now need at least a second class degree to receive a bursary – to signal to undergraduates the intellectual rigour required to become a teacher.

We know that a big reason for Teach First’s success in recruiting hundreds of graduates from our best universities is the sense of prestige attached to a programme badged as elite. We now need to extend that sense of prestige to teaching as a whole.

As a result of these changes we have already seen a 12 per cent increase in the proportion of candidates with a 2:1 or first class degree accepted on to maths, physics, chemistry and modern foreign languages teacher training courses.

In physics – traditionally the hardest subject to recruit for – there has been an incredible 29 per cent rise in the proportion of graduates with a good degree accepted on to courses.

And attitudes are changing too.

In their annual survey of final year undergraduates the Teaching Agency found that:

81 per cent agreed that teaching had real status and kudos – up 4 per cent since 2010.

72 per cent thought their friends and family would react positively to them becoming a teacher – up 6 per cent since 2010.

And, encouragingly, 71 per cent thought the image of teaching is improving.

Schools at the heart of teaching training

But it’s not just about ensuring that we recruit the very best talent available. We also need to make sure that our very best educators are at the heart of training each new generation of teachers.

And the best vehicle for doing this is something else that started in London as part of the Challenge – the Teaching School – pioneered by George Berwick the visionary headteacher of Ravens Wood School.

There were just a handful of Teaching Schools in 2010 but the potential was obvious. The idea is a simple one: take the very best schools, ones that are already working to improve other schools, and put them in charge of teacher training and professional development for the whole system.

Via the great work of the National College this Government has already set up a network of 200 Teaching Schools – with the aim of opening 500 by the end of the Parliament. Their impact has been immediate and profound.

Fantastic projects have popped up all over the country – not driven by the demands of Government or by Ministers’ prejudices but by school leaders.

Whether it’s Fairlawn Primary in Lewisham supporting Maths teaching across the borough.

Or Wroxham school in Hertfordshire working with Cambridge University to develop a new pedagogy that breaks free of previous obsessions with ability-labels.

Or the network of Teaching Schools across the North-West who are developing their own school improvement programme for local schools.

And, of course, nearly all Teaching Schools are getting much more involved in teacher training.

Pushing more teacher training through schools has been an aim of successive Governments since the late eighties. And there have been important initiatives. The last Conservative Government allowed groups of schools to form together to offer teacher training. The Labour Government introduced the Graduate Teacher Programme – allowing typically older trainees to learn on the job – as well as Teach First.

In fact this is a global shift. As the OECD’s head of education Andreas Schleicher put it in a speech last year “many countries have shifted the emphasis from academic preparation to preparing professionals in schools instead. Teachers now get into classrooms earlier, spend more time on-site in schools, and get more and better support in the process”.

But previous efforts in this country have always been piecemeal – hamstrung by the lack of a proper network of outstanding schools to deliver training on a serious scale.
Now we have the Teaching School network.

Earlier this year we launched a pilot version of a new programme called School Direct. Teaching Schools were offered the opportunity to bid for teacher training places.

Those participating will be able to recruit their own trainees and develop their own training programme in partnership with a university. In return for this additional control the schools will be expected to find a job for the trainee once they finish their training. As such it represents a better deal for both schools and trainees.
Because of the short notice and the select group of schools involved we expected a maximum of 500 places would be bid for – instead it was over 1,000, of which 914 were allocated. We were blown away by schools’ enthusiasm.

Now these places have been allocated, the schools involved are already recruiting trainees; and working with a wide-range of universities to develop high-quality training programmes; and putting teacher training at the heart of their plans for the future.

For example Harris academies have decided to partner with Canterbury Christ Church university and have worked closely with them to select trainees and design a training programme. Harris staff will be as closely involved as possible in the core teaching days on the programme, and will increase this involvement as the programme evolves. Staff from Harris have already accompanied staff from Canterbury Christ Church on a research trip to Finland.

And Cabot academies have developed a programme that will see each trainee mentored by an existing outstanding teacher in their chain – following a bespoke 10 day induction in their schools before Autumn term begins.

As we grow the Teaching School network, many more heads have come to us, asking to be involved.

So we are going to expand School Direct significantly over the next few years.

Schools won’t have to be part of a Teaching School alliance to get involved but we envisage that most will – because of the advantages of training across a group of schools.

And while we anticipate that the majority of schools participating will want a strong partnership with a higher education institution, we expect that some of the very best schools will want to become their own provider.

Indeed some of the most forward thinking Teaching Schools and academy chains have already gone down this route.

Like the Kemnal academies trust who will use the wealth of experience in teacher training across their member schools to offer courses in English, mathematics, physics, chemistry and MFL from September.

Or Tudor Grange Teaching School alliance who will offer courses in the same subjects from September 2012 with Masters level credits awarded by Cumbria University.

By the end of the Parliament we expect as many as 10,000 students a year could be trained by schools that are either offering Schools Direct places or are full providers of teacher training.

So there will be a spectrum of engagement for those schools that want to get involved. Some schools may not want to get involved at all. Many will want to participate in School Direct – having the opportunity to recruit staff and develop training programmes with the support and assistance of existing providers. Others will want to run the whole show – taking control of the process from start to finish.

As these programmes grow, more and more schools will be able to recruit, train and hire their own teachers; working in partnership with other schools and top-quality ITT providers to give new teachers the best possible start to their careers.

New recruits will learn and train in schools, working with experienced teachers and putting their lessons into practice from day one.

And they will be recruited with the expectation that they will be employed at the school at the end of their training – something which the traditional, university-based PGCE could never offer.

Of course, for existing providers involved in teacher training this will mean some big changes.

We want to ensure the very best providers remain committed to teacher education so universities, and others, rated “outstanding” by Ofsted will be guaranteed their existing level of places for the next two years.

But we will no longer guarantee places to institutions rated good or lower. They will compete for training places through School Direct, designing courses in collaboration with schools. If schools don’t rate their provision, they will go out of business.

And we’re going to work quickly in identifying and shutting down providers which simply aren’t good enough. If they receive two “Requires Improvement” judgements under the new – tougher – Ofsted framework – they will be swiftly de-accredited.
If an ITT provider isn’t delivering the sort of high-quality, highly-respected training which each new teacher deserves and needs – then they have no place delivering training at all.

Recruiting the best career changers

Along with recruiting the best university-leavers and ensuring they are trained in the best schools and universities, I also want to do more to attract more of the best and brightest career-changers.

The Graduate Teacher Programme, or GTP, has been in place since 1998. In that time it has delivered some superb training, and recruited some brilliant teachers.

But it has also suffered from some serious flaws. Recruitment has been ad hoc – there has never been a sense that the programme is targeted at high-fliers.

There has never been a central website that any career-changer interested in becoming a teacher could go to to find places.

And sometimes schools have felt frustrated by restrictions over salary and training.

So we are going to close the GTP, but build on its strengths to launch a new, school-led teacher training programme for the best career-changers.

From September 2013, a new employment-based strand of School Direct will be available for candidates who have already gained at least three years valuable experience in other careers.

Any school that wants to participate will be asked to advertise places on a single website which will allow the Teaching Agency to better market the programme to the target audience.

Schools will have much greater control of funding – they will be able to decide how much to spend on trainees’ salaries and how much on training – giving them the autonomy and flexibility to decide how to get the biggest possible bang for their buck.

And to help schools in deprived areas to recruit and train the very best teachers, schools with 35 per cent or more of their pupils on free school meals will receive a 10 per cent funding premium.

In 2013-14, we will fund up to 5,000 places on employment-based School Direct- more than the number of places on the GTP this year.

Conclusion

The cumulative impact of these changes on initial teacher training will be revolutionary. By the end of this parliament well over half of all training places will be delivered by schools whether through direct provision; Teach First; School Direct; or our new employment-based route.

Most of the rest will be doing PGCE courses in existing providers rated outstanding.

The weakest providers will no longer be in business. They will have been de-accredited following Ofsted inspections or unable to persuade schools to commission support from them.

This represents a huge opportunity for school leaders – to take control of teacher training – to create programmes that reflect their school’s ethos – to recruit better trainees.

I was delighted to read in the National College’s independent survey of 2,250 school leaders that 98 per cent think it’s a great job. It is a great job and one that makes such a difference. I want to thank you for all that you have done so far as leaders to improve the life chances of the children and young people in your care. I know that your roles are challenging and that this government is asking even more of you but that is because I believe the children and young people in this country deserve the very best.

I am asking you to work with me to move these important proposals forward. It is a big responsibility – you will need to show that you can manage the development and improvement of the profession rather than looking to others to do it for you. But if London’s improvement has taught us anything it is that putting schools in control of their own destiny is the key to success.

The press release issued by the Department for Education on 14 June 2012.

Education Secretary Michael Gove has today (14 June) announced that the government will provide further funding to accelerate the expansion of Teach First – the successful charity which recruits top graduates to work in the most challenging schools.

Tens of thousands of children across England will benefit from a £32.4 million government investment in the programme next year – an increase of more than £3 million. The majority of this funding goes to Teach First’s 14 university training partners.

The funding will help the charity train 1,250 top graduates, from 70 different universities, next year before they go on to join schools in the most challenging circumstances – double the number who took part in the charity’s Leadership Development Programme in 2010.

The Government has also announced its support of Teach First’s goal to train 1,500 participants in 2014 to 2015 – triple the number who took part in the Leadership Development Programme in 2010.

Education Secretary Michael Gove said:

The countries which give their children the best education in the world are those which value their teachers most highly and where the profession attracts the brightest graduates.

Our priority is to deliver robust standards and high quality teaching to all pupils, whatever their background. To do this we must attract highly talented people into education because the quality of teachers has a greater influence on children’s achievement than any other aspect of their education.

By expanding Teach First, the government is delivering on this commitment.

Teach First works in primary and secondary schools where more than half of pupils come from the poorest 30 per cent of families in the UK.

This expansion will mean that Teach First would be able to reach 90% of eligible schools by 2016, boosting the government’s commitment to recruit more top teachers across England.

It will also make Teach First the largest graduate recruiter in the country. It recruits exceptional graduates – those having at least a 2.1 degree – who go through a thorough assessment process and intensive 2-year training programme.

The announcement comes as part of the coalition government’s drive to raise standards in our schools, by making it a highly attractive career for top graduates.

Welcoming the additional Government support, Brett Wigdortz, CEO and Founder of Teach First, said:

I’m delighted that in our 10th anniversary year the coalition government has confirmed this significant contribution to support the growth of Teach First.

We have always been extremely grateful for the cross party support Teach First has received from governments over the past decade, as well as the support of our other partners, including schools, universities and businesses, who collectively ensure that we can achieve our goals.

This decision will help us to get one step closer to our ambitious aim to ensure that no child’s educational success is limited by their socio-economic background.

The press release issued by the Department for Education on 11 June 2012.

Plans to restore rigour in the key primary subjects are today set out by Education Secretary Michael Gove.

The draft primary national curriculum programmes of study for English, maths and science are more demanding than the existing national curriculum. They align England with those countries that have the highest-performing school systems.

By raising standards in basics such as reading, grammar, fractions and basic scientific concepts, children will be equipped to do more advanced work once they start secondary school.

The draft programmes of study published today will be subject to an informal consultation so they can be widely discussed. Some will think aspects are too demanding, others that they are not demanding enough, and there will be debate about what is appropriate at different ages. The Department for Education will consider the public debate and re-draft the programmes before re-publishing them later in the year for formal consultation. The final programmes will be introduced in primary schools from September 2014.

The drafts include the following:

Higher standards in maths

• Pupils will be expected to be able to add, subtract, multiply and divide fractions in primary school so they can progress to more advanced topics like algebra when they go to secondary school. These four operations are not in the current primary curriculum. The proposed change is consistent with expectations in the high-performing education jurisdictions of Singapore and Hong Kong.
• By age 9, pupils should know their times tables up to 12×12. This is in line with expectations in the high-performing jurisdiction of Massachusetts. Currently pupils only need to know up to 10×10 by the end of primary school.
• By age seven, pupils should know “number bonds” up to 20. These are simple addition and subtraction facts that pupils should be able to recognise and use instantly (e.g. 9+9=18 or 16-7=9).

Higher standards in English

• Pupils will be taught to read fluently through systematic phonics. There will be a much stronger emphasis on reading for pleasure.
• There will be a focus on spelling – for instance, there will be a list of words that all children should be able to spell by the end of primary school. There is currently no such list in the national curriculum.
• There will be a focus on grammar – for instance, children will be expected to understand how to use the subjunctive and correct use of the apostrophe – for example, not using it to indicate plurals such as “I went to buy some apple’s” or using “it’s” as a possessive.
• There will be an expectation that pupils master formal English through poetry recitation, debate and presentation.

Higher standards in science:

• There will be a greater focus on the acquisition of scientific knowledge with new content on the solar system, speed and evolution.
• There will be an increased focus on practical scientific experiments and demonstrations, similar to the approach taken in Alberta and Massachusetts.

Additionally, there will be a consultation later this summer on our plan to introduce foreign languages from age seven at the start of key stage 2.

There will be no other changes to the structure of the primary curriculum. The government will maintain the requirement for the teaching of art and design, design and technology, geography, history, ICT, music, and physical education across all the primary years.

Programmes of study for these subjects will follow later this year. They will be much shorter than the drafts for English, maths and science being published today. This will give teachers much more freedom in these areas.

Education Secretary Michael Gove also announced today that the current system of levels and level descriptors – which is confusing for parents and bureaucratic for teachers – will be removed and not replaced.

The publication of the draft Programmes of Study for English, Maths and Science follow a report by an expert panel, chaired by Tim Oates, which made recommendations on the framework for a new national curriculum, and a parallel report by the Department for Education which identified the key features of curricula for maths, science and English in high-performing jurisdictions.

The press release issued by the Department for Education on 11 June 2012.

The Richard Review of Apprenticeships will look at how to build upon the record success of recent years by:

• Ensuring that apprenticeships meet the needs of the changing economy
• Ensuring every apprenticeship delivers high quality training and the qualifications and skills that employers need
• Maximising the impact of Government investment.

Looking to the future, the review will examine how apprenticeships can continue to best meet the needs of employers, individuals, and the wider economy; which learners and employers can and should benefit most from apprenticeships; and what the core components of a high quality apprenticeship should be.

Mr Richard was selected by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and the Department for Education for his strong reputation in the spheres of both business and business education, enabling him to provide an independent analysis of the future priorities of the Government’s scheme.

A senior figure in the UK and global business communities, with over 20 years’ experience in the development and leadership of start-ups and established businesses, Mr. Richard will bring unrivalled commercial insight to the study.

His commercial expertise is matched by hands-on experience in the teaching of business skills. Through his social enterprise, School for Startups, Mr. Richard has delivered practical and theoretical instruction to more than 10,000 business owners and in 2009 he received the Enterprise Educator of the Year award for the excellence of his teaching.

Today’s announcement marks the continuation of Mr. Richard’s involvement in enterprise policy. He previously published the Richard Report in 2008, his investigation into the British government’s support of small businesses. Earlier this year he partnered with the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills to stage his ‘Web Fuelled Business’ initiative – a nationwide series of bootcamps helping small businesses exploit and leverage the internet.

Business Secretary Vince Cable said:

“To build a prosperous economy we need a skilled workforce. The apprenticeship programme has been a real success, not only boosting chances for young people, but also helping businesses to address their skills gaps.

“However in the past vocational youngsters have been let down by weak courses and our competitors have stolen a march. I have just come back from a fact finding mission to Germany where two-thirds of young people take some form of apprenticeship by the time they are 25.

“To keep pace it is vital that we build on our initial success and continue to look at how apprenticeships can adapt to meet our future needs in the fast-evolving global economy.

“The Richard Review will do just that, establishing the core principles that will keep apprenticeships relevant to the future needs of individuals, employers and the wider economy. Doug Richard’s experience as a business mentor and setting up his School for Startups make him the perfect candidate to complete this task.”

Secretary of State for Education Michael Gove said:

“Doug Richard is a proper entrepreneur not a corporate bureaucrat. That’s why he’s the right man to get apprenticeships right. It’s great that the numbers taking up apprenticeships has grown. But there are still serious issues – there is still too much bureaucracy getting in the way of small firms taking people on, too much money appears to be going to middle men and the quality of some vocational qualifications taken by apprentices is still not good enough. Doug will help us get that right.”

Mr Richard said:

“I am delighted to have been given this commission to lead the review into the future of apprenticeships. In today’s challenging climate, apprenticeships will and must play a vital role in equipping our young people with the skills they need to succeed.

“As an entrepreneur, but also as an educator, I am convinced of the importance of business education in helping not only individuals but society at large. For our economy to recover and flourish, we need a workforce that possesses the requisite skills of twenty-first century commerce and industry. A strong apprenticeship programme is essential in delivering that.”

Skills Minister John Hayes said:

“The government has built the biggest and best apprenticeships programme of modern times. Last year there were over 457,000 apprenticeship starts and we have set out rigorous new standards to guarantee all apprenticeships are of the highest quality. Apprenticeships have never before been given the status or significance that I, as the Minister responsible, has afforded them.

“However, if we are to ensure that apprenticeships continue to meet the skills needs of our constantly evolving economy then we must take every opportunity to re-examine the why, what and how of apprenticeships, to ensure they are equipping learners and employers for the future.

“I’m delighted that Doug Richard will be leading this review. His personal commitment and track record in training, developing and inspiring people speaks for itself, and as an entrepreneur and educator who has helped thousands of fledgling businesses get off the ground, his insight and expertise will be invaluable.”

The press release issued by the Department for Education on 7 October 2022.

The press release issued by the Department for Education on 31 May 2012.

New research, released from the Teaching Agency (TA) today, reveals that perceptions of teaching are changing for the better. 81% of final year students view the occupation as one which has real status and kudos and 72% of students felt that their friends and family would react positively if they decided to enter the profession, up six per cent from 2010.

According to the UK Graduate Careers Survey, conducted by High Fliers Research, schools and universities have moved up to become the second most popular type of employer, with nine per cent of graduates saying they wanted to work in this area, beaten only by advertising, PR or marketing at 11%. An additional piece of research showed that well over half of final year students (58%) have considered applying for teaching, up five per cent on 2010, with students increasingly recognising it as a career for people with drive (67%) and a great option for the long term (72%).

Despite increased recognition of the rewarding career teaching provides, misconceptions still persist when it comes to the earning potential of teachers. In fact, one in three students are being deterred from a career in teaching because of inaccurate salary perceptions, with four in five (82%) of final year university students underestimating the figure, by as much as £4000.

Whilst over a quarter of students thought the starting salary for a teacher in the capital was £23,000, the reality is that these teachers can now expect to earn £27,000 in Inner London. Similarly, most students (61%) thought teachers outside London earned £19,000 or less, while in reality salaries are more likely to be £21,588. The average starting salary for a UK teacher is £23, 010 (1), a figure that now compares favourably with other graduate jobs which range from £17,720 to £23,335 (2).

The research also revealed that the majority of students, 64%, do not realise the long term earning potential of teachers. Teachers are seeing their salaries rise by an average of around 30% after their first four years in the job. Experienced primary and secondary teachers, achieving the appropriate standards, can earn up to £64,000 (in London) and up to £56,000 (in other parts of the UK). Students may also be surprised to learn that the average salary for headteachers is £62,600, rising to £84,600 for secondary headteachers (3) and 700 heads are earning at least £100,000 this year following a rise in average salaries for senior staff members (4).

The TA is calling upon graduates to take a fresh look and reflect upon the modern day realities within this valued profession.

In addition to competitive salaries, the coalition government has introduced a number of financial incentives in the last 12 months such as tax free bursaries of up to £20,000 to attract the recruitment of top graduates to train to teach in maths, physics, chemistry or modern foreign languages.

Lin Hinnigan, chief executive of the Teaching Agency commented:

While it’s heartening to see the positive attributes of teaching being recognised by top graduates, it appears that some graduates are basing important career decisions on inaccurate perceptions. Teaching is increasingly a career for the most able graduates as demonstrated by its pay, benefits and prospects that compare favourably to other graduate professions. I’d urge anyone considering a career in teaching to investigate just how well the profession compares to alternative careers.

Neil Dhanda, who earns £45,000 as Curriculum Team Leader for Modern Foreign Languages at Saint Cecilia’s school, Wandsworth, Church of England School said:

Pay in teaching definitely compares favourably with the private sector. If you are ambitious and take up additional responsibilities, then you can expect increased financial rewards.

Having become head of department within four years, I have first-hand experience of the progression opportunities available within the profession and as such, it’s fair to say that aspirations for moving up the career ladder are wholly realistic and achievable.

I love my job and I think that teaching is a career which I’ll stay in for the rest of my working days; it’s varied, challenging, demanding and rewarding, I think that’s more than many would say about their chosen careers.

To find out more about a career in teaching, please visit get into teaching.

The press release issued by the Department for Education on 30 May 2012.

Ofsted today announces the results of its consultation on changes to the way it inspects schools, further education and skills, and initial teacher education. The changes, which come into effect from 1 September 2012, are intended to support headteachers and principals in their work to provide the best possible education for pupils and learners.

Ofsted’s consultation was launched by Sir Michael Wilshaw, HMCI, in February 2012. The 12-week consultation received over 5,000 responses and the views received have directly shaped the announcements made today.

Announcing the results of the consultation, Sir Michael Wilshaw, HMCI said:

All schools and colleges can, and should, provide at least a good level of education. Parents and employers, children and learners, expect nothing less. That is why we are introducing these changes to the way we inspect. Inspectors will be clear about what needs to improve, and will return sooner to those that are not yet good to check their progress.

We want to work with good headteachers and principals as they strive to provide the best education possible for pupils and learners. These new arrangements have benefited from extensive consultation and I am grateful to all those who took the time to respond.

Sir Michael stressed that inspectors’ evaluation of the progress made by pupils and learners will be central to their judgment on whether a school is providing a good education. This means if pupils are making good progress, a school can be found good or better even where attainment is below average.

Sir Michael confirmed that Ofsted will no longer describe schools, further education and skills providers and teacher training providers as ‘satisfactory’ where they are not providing a good level of education. From September 2012, the ‘satisfactory’ grade will be replaced with ‘requires improvement’ and inspection reports will be clear about what needs to improve.

Ofsted will re-inspect those found to ‘require improvement’ sooner than under current inspection arrangements. Schools will have a full re-inspection within two years. Further education and skills providers found to ‘require improvement’ will be re-inspected within 12 to 18 months. Initial teacher education providers will be re-inspected normally within a year of their last inspection.

Recent independent studies have shown that an inadequate judgment from Ofsted acts as a catalyst for improvement for schools. From September, Ofsted will work with schools found to ‘require improvement’ in much the same way as it does with schools found to be inadequate: checking action plans, monitoring progress and re-inspecting within a shorter period of time. Extending this way of working to more schools is intended to help tackle the number of coasting schools that have remained stubbornly ‘satisfactory’ over many years.

Sir Michael confirmed that if a school has been judged to require improvement at two consecutive inspections, and is still not providing a good education at the third, Ofsted is likely to find the school to be inadequate at that inspection. This means it will be placed in ‘special measures’ unless there are exceptional circumstances. Ofsted will therefore expect schools to improve to ‘good’ within four years.

Inspectors will continue to focus on the quality of teaching but Ofsted will be clear that it does not expect to see a particular teaching methodology. From September, only schools and further education providers with outstanding teaching will be awarded Ofsted’s ‘outstanding’ grade. It does not mean that every lesson seen during an inspection needs to be outstanding. It does, however, mean that over time teaching is enabling almost all pupils to make rapid and sustained progress.

Sir Michael confirmed that inspectors will evaluate the robustness of performance management arrangements and consider whether there is a correlation between the quality of teaching and salary progression.

Ofsted also announced further reductions to the notice of inspections. Currently further education and skills providers can receive up to three weeks’ notice of an inspection, and initial teacher education providers up to eight weeks. From September, the notice period for both further education and skills and initial teacher education providers will be reduced to two working days.

Under the new arrangements, schools will receive almost no notice of an inspection with inspectors calling headteachers the afternoon before an inspection takes place. Ofsted proposed conducting school inspections without any notice but listened to headteachers’ concerns about this during the consultation. Calling the working day before an inspection will enable headteachers to make any necessary logistical arrangements including notifying parents and governors of the inspection. Parents can be reassured that inspectors are seeing schools as they really are.

The press release issued by the Department for Education on 29 May 2012.

Fifteen brand new University Technical Colleges (UTCs) have today been approved to open in 2013 and 2014. They will have involvement from around 200 high-profile employers – including household names like Jaguar Land Rover, British Airways and Virgin Atlantic. They will also have significant input from world-class universities, such as Cambridge and Warwick.

They range from a UTC specialising in aviation engineering, located close to London Heathrow Airport, to one in Warwick that will focus on delivering a business-like education – with input from over 30 employers – in engineering with digital technology. One project will also be based at the new MediaCityUK in Salford – home to much of the BBC and other media outlets.

UTCs will create opportunities for more than 20,000 young people to train as the engineers and scientists of the future – playing a crucial role in the UK’s long-term economic growth. They will offer hands-on technical learning alongside academic GCSEs and A levels.

The projects approved today join 17 UTCs that are already working to open this September or next. The number of UTCs in the pipeline now exceeds the Government’s ambition to create 24 by 2014.

Schools Minister Lord Hill said:

I am very pleased to be announcing another wave of strong UTC proposals. Right around the country there is a lot of enthusiasm from employers, universities, pupils and parents for high quality rigorous technical education. They provide more choice for children as well as helping provide the kind of highly skilled technicians our economy needs. The response from employers to UTCs speaks for itself.

UTCs are Academies for 14-19-year-olds. Pupils choose to go to them at ages 14 or 16. They focus on providing technical education that meets the needs of modern business. Each has one or two specialisms – ranging from engineering, to manufacturing, to construction or bio-medical sciences. Students spend around 60 per cent of their time on core academic subjects, and the rest of their time learning specific technical skills and qualifications.

All UTCs are sponsored by a local university and employers. The involvement of universities and employers means that students benefit from work placements, guest speakers, and a curriculum designed by experts in the field. Many also run longer term times and operate business hours to help prepare students for the world of work.

The combination of a strong technical and academic education ensures that students are ready for work or further study at college or university.

The projects approved today include:

• Warwick UTC has involvement from the University of Warwick and Jaguar Land Rover, amongst other local stakeholders. It will offer a business-like education to 640 pupils – working to business hours – and will specialise in engineering with digital technology.
• Heathrow Aviation Engineering UTC will specialise in aviation engineering. Its sponsors include Brunel University, BAA, British Airways, Virgin Atlantic and RAF Northolt. It will offer 600 students the opportunity to acquire the skills for an industry which contributes around £17billion to the UK economy in economic output.
• UTC Cambridge is sponsored by Cambridge Regional College, Cambridge University Health Partners and a range of employers which are leaders in biomedical and environmental science and technologies. The UTC will specialise in these areas. It will cater for 670 students.
• The MediaCityUK UTC will be based in the heart of the country’s first media city on Salford Quays. It will cater for 720 pupils, who will specialise in skills linked to the creative and digital industries. It will help ensure that employers at MediaCityUK and their supply chains have access to the enterprising, skilled talent pool they need to flourish. It is also important for the local area, as some neighbourhoods immediately surrounding MediaCityUK are within the top one per cent most deprived in England.
• Elstree UTC will be based in Hertfordshire and will offer a technical education to 600 students. It will offer two specialisms: entertainment technologies and crafts, and electronic engineering and digital technologies. Elstree students will also have a longer school day than students at a traditional secondary school. Its proposed location in Elstree means it will benefit from the knowledge and expertise of high-profile entertainment and creative industries in Hertfordshire and London.

The press release issued by the Department for Education on 24 May 2012.

Parents and communities should be able to have a greater say in running their local children’s centre, Children’s Minister Sarah Teather said today (24 May 2012).

The government is seeking views on how to encourage groups of parents, families and community members to get involved in the planning and delivery of early education services.

Evidence shows that empowering parents through involving them in the planning and delivery of Sure Start services can lead to better outcomes for families.

The government also invited expressions of interest from groups of parents who are interested in setting up their own community body so that they can bid to run their local children’s centre. The department announced it will procure an organisation to provide advice and guidance to help a number of groups to develop and test their proposals. Local authorities will still have the final say on whether bids are successful.

Speaking at the Daycare Trust’s London Childcare Providers’ Forum, Sarah Teather said:

It is important that children’s centres are at the heart of community life and we are committed to maintaining a strong and effective national network of centres across the country.

I want to make sure they are delivering the best service possible to their local community. That’s why we want to hear views and new ideas on how parents and communities can help run children’s centres. I believe this will give local people more control and influence over the services they use.

Many children’s centres already involve parents and their local community and now we want to build on this to find ways of enabling them to have a stronger voice in how they are run and what they can offer.

The discussion paper on parental involvement was published today ahead of a new right coming into force later this year called the ‘Community right to challenge’.

The press release issued by the Department for Education on 24 May 2012.

Education Secretary Michael Gove has today made a statement in relation to school funding and the Priority School Building Programme.

In tackling the challenges we face on school building I have been determined to use the capital funding at my disposal to best effect, seeking value for money and efficiency from every pound spent. Sebastian James’ review of capital recommended a complete overhaul of the system for allocating capital investment so that we can focus on the repair and refurbishment of schools in the greatest need alongside meeting the pressure for new, good school places.

Over the past two years we have allocated £2.7 billion to local authorities to support the provision of new school places and £2.8 billion for the maintenance of the school estate to meet the needs of maintained schools and academies. Over the spending review period, total capital investment will be over £17 billion.

In addition, last year I invited bids to a new programme from schools in need of urgent repair. 587 schools applied for the programme on the basis of their condition need. Today I can confirm that 261 schools will be rebuilt, or have their condition needs met through the Priority School Building programme (PSBP) and a copy of the list has been placed in the House Libraries. Officials have today written to all schools who applied for the programme to confirm whether their application has been successful. Work will begin immediately and the first schools will be open in 2014.

I recognise that many of the schools that applied to the PSBP and have been unsuccessful will also have significant condition needs. Some of those will have their needs addressed through the other funding we have made available for maintenance. Where that is not the case, I will use the information from the national programme of surveys we are currently conducting to ensure that, subject to funds available in the next spending review period, those schools which need renovation will have their needs addressed as quickly as possible. By next autumn we will have details about the condition of every school in the country. Information on the condition of all schools was last collated centrally in 2005.

I know that many schools will be disappointed not to be included in the programme. We have had to take difficult decisions in order to target spending on those schools that are in the worst condition. In order to ensure that the process was robust and fair, a qualified surveyor has visited every school for which an eligible application was received to verify the condition of the buildings. This was necessary to make sure the schools being taken forward are those with the greatest overall condition need.

The condition need of some schools is so severe that urgent action is necessary. I have decided to make a limited amount of capital grant available to address the needs of the highest priority schools in the programme. 42 schools – those in the very worst condition and all special schools included within the programme – will be taken forward straight away using capital grant. It is right that the condition needs of special schools – where some of our most vulnerable children are educated – are met as quickly as possible.

This limited capital funding has become available by taking a more disciplined approach to managing my department’s capital budgets. Savings have been made by driving down the cost of new schools, shortening procurement times and challenging contractors to look for savings in all areas. These savings mean that more schools will benefit from the programme.

The PSBP will build on the progress we have already made in delivering a more efficient, faster, less bureaucratic approach to building schools. We are determined to reduce the wasteful processes of the past. That is why we have developed new baseline designs which will speed up the process and increase efficiencies and we are reducing the regulations and guidance governing school premises. This will encourage lower-cost build processes to be designed-in from the start.

I have previously expressed my strong support for the government’s agenda on reforming the PFI model and we are working closely with the Treasury to ensure the PSBP is aligned with this model in providing cost effective and more transparent delivery of services. Schools will have greater flexibility with soft facilities management services, such as cleaning, catering, security and some grounds maintenance being managed and controlled by schools themselves.

In addition to targeting spending on those schools which are in the worst condition, my priority in spending capital has been increasing the number of new school places in order to correct previous failures to meet that need. Since announcing the PSBP last July, the government has allocated £1.1 billion in additional funding to address the need for new school places.