A new report by the Education Policy Institute (EPI),
commissioned by the Welsh Government, reviews the existing
literature to identify policies that might attract and retain
teachers in challenging schools across Wales. The report focuses
on schools with high socio-economic disadvantage and those
located in isolated, rural areas, addressing the pressing need
for effective teacher recruitment and retention strategies.
Key Findings:
- The analysis shows that primary school teacher recruitment in
Wales has increased, with the highest entrants to Initial Teacher
Education (ITE) in a decade; however, secondary ITE entrants have
declined.
- Teacher attrition in Wales is low, with only about 4% of
teachers leaving their jobs each year, much lower than the 9-10%
seen in England. This may be due to an older, more experienced
workforce. However, the report also highlights challenges in
recruiting secondary school teachers, particularly in rural areas
of North and West Wales, as well as in urban areas outside
Cardiff and Swansea.
- There are greater challenges in recruiting teacher trainees
in subjects such as maths, science, Welsh, modern foreign
languages, and IT. Despite existing programs and incentives,
there is consistent evidence of recruitment difficulties in these
areas.
- There is strong evidence that targeted financial incentives
can significantly improve teacher retention rates. Successful
schemes typically offer incentives worth 5-10% of base salary,
often focused on early career teachers in shortage subjects and
disadvantaged areas.
- The report finds limited evidence on non-financial incentives
but what does exist suggests potential improvements through
enhanced job marketing and alternative ITE models.
Recommendations:
- The government should consider introducing salary supplements
of 5-10% of salary for early career teachers in shortage
subjects, especially in disadvantaged areas.
- The government should develop a pilot scheme to develop new
teachers in challenging areas. These “grow-your-own” schemes have
promise, but evidence is required before they are more widely
rolled out.
- The government should also trial 'Realistic Job Profiles'
with individual schools and contexts to offer transparency about
the benefits and difficulties of teaching in challenging
schools.
- The government should publish detailed retention data by
years of teacher experience and socio-economic disadvantage
levels.
- The government should invest in research on effective teacher
support during initial teacher education, mentoring, and
induction.
James Zuccollo, Director for School
Workforce said:
“Wales is facing serious difficulties in recruiting secondary
teachers in shortage subjects, in remote areas, and in
Welsh-medium schools. The government is sensibly looking for
schemes to support recruitment and retention in the most
challenging schools but there is limited evidence of what works
from within Wales.
Overseas, many school systems have found financial incentives to
work well, if they are sufficiently large. Non-financial schemes
to improve teacher training, recruitment, and development have
far less evidence to support them but might also be worth
trialling.
However, whatever the government chooses to do, it must commit to
it. The evidence is clear that poorly funded or supported schemes
of any kind are unlikely to succeed.”
