Teacher recruitment and retention have been in the headlines for so many years that the issue might have almost become background noise, although not for school leaders anticipating May half term resignations and wondering how they will staff their schools for September. A recent number of investigations into the UK teaching workforce underscore how critical the situation remains.
Recent and ongoing inquiries and research from the National Audit Office, the Public Accounts Committee, and the Teaching Commission, make it clear that lasting solutions must be found. However, one thing is certain: in the short term, we cannot afford to wait for these reports to be published and discussed before action happens.
According to NFER, if the government wants to meet its 6,500 secondary teacher recruitment target, it must act immediately. Schools are struggling to recruit enough teachers, and with teacher retention rates falling, the situation is only getting worse.
My recommendation to the government is that they fund a range of options right now and evaluate which should continue in the future based on clear evidence of impact.
It will come as no surprise that I’m advocating for ongoing support for the recruitment and retention of mid-late stage career change teachers.
Career changers bring unique experiences
Recently, I participated in a witness session with the Teaching Commission where we discussed the experiences and impact of career changers within the teaching profession.
It was a pleasure to be back at the Institute of Education where I trained 20 years ago and to be joined by Macrui Donastourian, a former lawyer who is now teaching Modern Foreign Languages in Lewisham.
We had the chance to share data and insights from Now Teach about why career changers are an essential part of the solution and have the potential, with the right support, to add real value.
Through a research project involving 400 members of our network, we've identified key actions that Now Teachers typically take in the classroom and within schools, as well as the areas where their prior professional experience enables them to have the greatest impact.
We’re going to be piloting work based on this research with Now Teachers and with some partner schools and trusts to think through how best it could be translated into professional development, link seamlessly to school improvement priorities and made most useful for the greatest benefit to pupils.
You’ll find the top themes of how Now Teachers make an impact in schools in our Impact Report which you can read here.
Describing the impact career changers make
Career changers contribute to schools in ways that go beyond simply filling a role; they have great experience and they have strong motivation. These are people that have made a serious decision to make a significant change in their lives, so it really matters to them. They are not just dipping their toe in a new sector.
Their top three motivations when we ask them?
- Giving something back
- A long-term feeling that they want to teach
- A desire to share their subject passion
When we asked them, 75% feel teaching gives them more of a sense of purpose than their previous industry.
Building on our research with the Now Teach Network, we've identified specific ways in which career changers are making a difference in the classroom and beyond, contributing to that sense of purpose they report.
The following stats showcase how their prior professional experience enhances their impact in key areas:
- 71% said they provide pastoral support, using their life experience to build trust and help students navigate both academic and personal opportunities, decisions and challenges.
- 62% said they inform the curriculum, bringing real-world experience into their lessons, making subjects like science, politics, and languages more relevant and engaging.
- 28% said they contribute to improving school operations, applying skills from their previous careers to help with data systems, tech solutions, and overall efficiency within schools.
- 74% said they offer valuable careers guidance, helping students with subject choices, university applications, and career advice, often drawing from their expertise in specific sectors like law, finance, and media and brokering links and opportunities between schools and the workplace.
These are areas that will make a real different to schools and to young people.
We need to retain these teachers
While recruitment is a pressing concern, retention is just as crucial. Our data shows that career changers who are part of the Now Teach Network are 36% more likely to stay in teaching compared to their age-matched peers. This is because they receive the support they need to thrive in the profession.
80% of our Network plan to continue teaching for another five years and, most joyfully, 45% hope to be teaching in more than 10 years’ time!
To ensure that career changers remain in the profession, we need to provide targeted support that helps them transition from one career to another and sets them up for long-term success. Here’s what works:
- Specialist support to translate their skills into a teaching context
- Coaching to navigate the shift from one professional identity to another.
- Support in schools to help them demonstrate the value they add and bring.
- Connection to a professional community for career change teachers.
- A safe and ‘third’ space where they can raise concerns, ask questions, and find solutions to the challenges they face.
This is the support that Now Teach provides, and it is why career changers in our network feel confident in their decision to join and remain in the profession for many more years.
It is clear to me that the overriding desire for greater sense of means that we can entice more career changers to make the switch to teaching. Moral purpose is the driver for so so many.
63% of our Network became teachers to share their expertise with students, 47% wanted to work with young people, and 40% wanted to work in schools with the greatest needs.
These experienced professionals come ready to learn and determined to stay the course. But their prior experience must be understood and used by school leadership teams for the benefit of pupils, colleagues, and the wider school. That’s what will retain career changers: feeling useful while they learn a new craft.
The sector must recognise the distinct needs they have and the huge potential they bring, and tailor approaches to recruitment, to initial teacher training and the Early Career Framework accordingly. This is an opportunity not to be missed.
