Religion: Education

(asked on 30th March 2022) - View Source

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the Schools White Paper, what plans he has to help ensure there is (a) adequate funding for and (b) uptake of ITT bursaries for religious education; and if he will make a statement.


Answered by
Robin Walker Portrait
Robin Walker
This question was answered on 21st April 2022

Legislation does not specify that teachers must have a post-A level qualification in a particular subject or discipline. It is the Teachers’ Standards that specify the subject knowledge required for the award of qualified teacher status. All trainee teachers must meet these by the time they complete their training.

25.2% of religious education (RE) hours taught were by a teacher with no relevant post-A level qualification in that subject in the 2019/20 academic year. This compares with 12.2% across English Baccalaureate subjects.

Information on subjects taught and teacher post-A level qualifications is published in the annual ‘school workforce in England’ statistical publication at: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-workforce-in-england/2019.

To reduce the burden on schools during the COVID-19 pandemic, schools were not required to provide information on teacher qualifications in the November 2020 school workforce census. Therefore, the information provided relates to the 2019 school workforce census. Figures for the 2021/22 academic year will be published in June 2022.

The bursaries that the department offers for initial teacher training (ITT) are intended to incentivise applications to ITT courses. The department reviews the bursaries on offer each year to take account of factors, including historic recruitment, forecast economic conditions, and teacher supply need in each subject. This provides flexibility to respond to the need to attract new teachers, and means the department is spending money where it is needed most.

In the 2020/21 academic year, the department exceeded the postgraduate ITT target in RE (129% of target). In the 2021/22 academic year, the equivalent target for RE was extremely close to being met (99% of target). As a result, the department has focused the bursaries on subjects where it is hardest to attract sufficient applicants. The department will review the need for financial incentives across all subjects again, using the latest available data, before announcing the bursaries for the 2023/24 academic year.

RE trainee teachers can apply for student finance. This includes a tuition fee loan, maintenance loan and additional means-tested funding for trainees in particular circumstances, including those with children, adult dependants, or a disability. Trainees on employment-based courses are ineligible for student finance as they earn a salary whilst they train instead.

The department continues to support RE trainee teacher recruitment through subject knowledge enhancement courses. These are available for applicants who have the potential to become outstanding teachers, but who need to increase their subject knowledge before the Teachers’ Standards can be met.

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