Over 130 Yorkshire schools to train own recruits

The School Direct Programme is being expanded this year with the aim of getting more teachers involved in training and attracting thousands of career-changers into the profession.

Figures from the Teaching Agency show that 133 schools from across the region have expressed an interest in training teachers through the classroom-based scheme.

Under the programme, schools will train graduates as teachers in the subjects they need, and work with accredited providers – such as universities and other schools – to shape the way they are trained.

The Government believes this approach will help drive up the quality of teacher training. It is also hoped it will lead to more school-led partnerships for teacher training.

The School Direct scheme ran as pilot last year and is being launched in schools nationally this year.

The Government has also created a new Salaried School Direct scheme which will replace the Graduate Teaching Programme. The aim is to attract up to 4,900 high-quality career-changers into the profession.

On this programme, schools will receive direct funding to help pay trainees’ wages while they are completing their training.

Like School Direct, schools will choose which training partner to use and decide on the nature and content of the course.

The deadline for schools to apply for places on either of the programmes passed last week.

Schools need to tell the Teaching Agency how many teachers they plan to train and which training provider they would be working with.

Graduates interested in becoming teachers can start applying for places on either course at the beginning of next month.

Those on the salaried scheme will receive a training wage while applicants joining the School Direct will pay fees.

However, there are bursaries available for those training to be teachers in “priority subjects” such as maths, physics and modern languages, as well a job at the end of their training.

The bursaries are increased if people work in schools in “challenging” circumstances where more than 35 per cent of the pupils are eligible for free school meals.

A partnership between Birley Spa Community Primary School and Silverdale School in Sheffield is one of the first to take part in School Direct in the region. It has taken on five graduates with the help of Sheffield Hallam University.

Kirsty Ridley, who is the Initial Teacher Training (ITT) lead at Birley Spa Community Primary, said: “With succession planning in mind, we selected candidates that filled the gaps and appointed trainees that service our school’s specific requirements.

“School Direct will also enable us to retain our trainees for their first year of teaching, which means the resource we’ve dedicated to the trainees won’t be wasted.”

Teaching Agency chief executive Charlie Taylor said: “We were thrilled with the quality of trainees and schools on the scheme last year and are looking forward to attracting more high-quality candidates in this year’s uptake.”