ASCL comment on Education Committee’s report on teacher shortages

Responding to a report from the Education Select Committee, which calls on the government to invest in programmes to boost recruitment, training and retention, Pepe Di'Iasio, General Secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, said:

“The Education Committee has identified the problem but not the solution. Piecemeal incentives to get and keep people in teaching are not working, and excessive workload can only be fully addressed by schools having enough money to afford enough staff – which is currently not the case. This comes down to funding – for pay which is sufficient to attract and retain teachers, and to properly resource schools. But the financial position is actually getting worse, not better, with many schools setting deficit budgets while they make more cuts. You cannot turn around an ocean liner without enough fuel, and the current government just does not understand that.”