Government's Decision to Scrap Older Worker Teacher Recruitment Scheme Sparks Outcry: Crisis Worsening, Critics Warn

The UK government's decision to cancel funding for the Now Teach scheme, which helps older workers enter teaching, has drawn criticism.

The program has exceeded recruitment targets, but its termination is feared to worsen the existing teacher recruitment crisis.

Organizers warn that without a reversal of this decision, there may not be enough teachers to educate children.

The charity Now Teach, which helps recruit and train journalists and other professionals as teachers, announced that its £1.7m program would be ending due to the Department for Education (DfE) not renewing its contract.

The program, which had exceeded recruitment targets, will not recruit new teachers starting in September.

This comes after data suggesting that 10 out of 17 secondary school subjects are projected to under-recruit in the current financial year, with secondary school teacher recruitment forecasted to reach only 83% of its new target.

The text discusses cost-saving measures being implemented by the Department for Education (DfE) due to a projected shortfall of up to £1.5bn caused by teacher pay rises.

Existing budgets have been used to cover some of these costs, resulting in cuts to free national professional qualifications for schools, teacher training top-up courses, and a governor recruitment scheme, which will be discontinued in September.

Further cuts are anticipated.