Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to increase the number of teachers working in creative subjects.

The number of teachers remains high, with over 465,500 full time equivalent teachers (FTE) working in state funded schools across the country. This is over 24,000 more than in 2010.

The Department’s School Workforce Census shows that as of November 2021, there were 12,212 teachers of art and design, 8,976 teachers of drama, and 7,003 teachers of music at Key Stages 3, 4, and 5 in state funded secondary schools in England.

The Department wants to ensure it continues to attract, retain, and develop highly skilled teachers. Reforms are aimed not only at increasing teacher recruitment, but also at ensuring teachers stay and thrive in the profession. These reforms will support teacher recruitment and retention across all subjects.

The Department is driving an ambitious transformation programme to overhaul the process of becoming a teacher, from stimulating initial interest through marketing and to the start of training. In October 2021, the Department rolled out its new digital service, ‘Apply for teacher training’. This is a key milestone in the delivery of a more streamlined, user friendly application route. The Department’s teaching marketing campaign provides inspiration and support to explore a career in teaching and directs prospective applicants to the Get Into Teaching service.

The Department remains committed to delivering £30,000 starting salaries to attract and retain the very best teachers. The Department has implemented the School Teachers Review Body’s recommendation of a significant 8.9% pay uplift to teacher starting salaries outside London in 2022/23, bringing them up to £28,000, and a 5% pay rise for experienced teachers. This is the highest pay award in 30 years.

The Department has created an entitlement to at least three years of structured training, support and professional development for all new teachers, including those of creative subjects. Underpinning this is the new Initial Teacher Training (ITT) Core Content Framework and the Early Career Framework. Together, these ensure that new teachers will benefit from at least three years of evidence based training, across ITT and into their induction.

Teacher retention is key to ensuring effective teacher supply and quality. The Department has published a range of resources to help address teacher workload and wellbeing, and support schools to introduce flexible working practices.