As well as high levels of teacher attrition, most countries around the world report some form of teacher recruitment crisis, exemplified by failed recruitment targets and high levels of demand for new teachers. These issues have reached crisis point in England. The impact of the controversial ITT Market Review, and subsequent accreditation process…

The Government published its teacher recruitment and retention strategy in January 2019 in response to a growing teacher supply challenge in England. Four years since the publication of the teacher recruitment and retention strategy, and despite the increases in recruitment and retention that came about due to the COVID-19 pandemic, teacher supply…

England has been facing a significant teacher supply challenge, marked particularly by undersupply of the maths, physics and chemistry teachers required to deliver a high-quality science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) education across the country. There has been chronic under-recruitment and higher-than-average leaving rates for maths…

This report draws on insight from a nationally representative survey of schools in England, a convenience sample of nearly 1,500 supply teachers and qualitative research with 60 supply teachers, 22 leaders, and seven supply teacher providers conducted in 2023. It explores individuals' motivations for entering the supply market, along with the…

To mark the ten year anniversary since the introduction of the free schools programme, New Schools Network (NSN) commissioned the National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER) to conduct an independent data-led investigation into what impact free schools have had since their introduction in 2010. The research examines the impact that free…

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, England's school system was facing an increasingly severe challenge of recruiting enough trainees to initial teacher training (ITT) to meet growing teacher demand. The pandemic has had a number of impacts on the ITT sector and on teacher supply more broadly. This report highlights some of the main opportunities and…

The crisis in teacher supply points to fundamental problems in the way teachers in England experience their work. In this contribution to debates about a National Education Service (NES) the author argues that a Labour government must be prepared to radically rethink how it engages with the teaching profession. The challenge is to shift from a…

There is widespread concern about the shortage of secondary school teachers in England. Recruitment to initial teacher training regularly fails to meet its intake targets. The secondary school pupil population is increasing. Teacher vacancies have risen, and more teachers are reportedly leaving the profession prematurely. Despite considerable…

The recruitment, development and retention of teachers and school leaders is a crucial underpinning for a successful education system. However, England's school system faces a substantial and growing challenge of ensuring there are sufficient numbers of high-quality teachers employed in schools. Meeting this supply challenge is necessary for the…

Ensuring there are enough high-quality teachers in England's schools is crucial for delivering a first-class education for young people. Attracting and retaining enough secondary teachers is a key challenge facing school leaders today. Providing more opportunities for part-time and flexible working may provide part of the answer. This NFER…

The 2020 COVID-19 pandemic has had profound impacts on society, the economy and on the entire education sector. Teachers' workload, well-being, recruitment and retention have been affected by the national crisis. The aim of the National Foundation for Educational Research's (NFER's) annual series of Teacher Labour Market reports is to monitor the…

Maintaining an adequate supply of teachers is a challenge in the education sector and an area of significant concern. Previous evidence shows that pay is deemed to be one of the most important factors influencing a teacher's decision to stay in a role, together with the workload and flexibility of working hours. However, up until now, no study has…

Maintaining an adequate supply of teachers in the education sector is both a challenge and an area of significant concern. Of the teachers who qualified in 2013, 67.7 per cent remained in service after five years. The number of secondary school teachers has been falling since 2010 and the number of teachers leaving for reasons other than…

This handbook presents a timeless, comprehensive, and up-to-date resource covering major issues in the field of teacher education research. In a global landscape where migration, inequality, climate change, political upheavals and strife continue to be broadly manifest, governments and scholars alike are increasingly considering what role…

When mechanics' and similar institutions became established for adults by the middle of the nineteenth century, there was goodwill amongst committee members and volunteers to teach the classes. The institutes were not government-funded and relied on patronage and membership fees to fund them. There was a shortage of teachers for the classes as…