Student teachers taken on bus tours around Bradford as drive continues to improve city's struggling schools

The tours, organised by Bradford Council, are aimed at giving those training to be teachers an insight into what life is like in the district’s schools to get them to consider beginning their careers in the city.

They have been organised as part of the authority's drive to recruit and retain the best teachers - with £660,000 earmarked over three years on work to help achieve this.

It comes after secondary school league tables, published by the Government last month, revealed more than 23 schools in Yorkshire were deemed to be under-performing, including three in Bradford.

Department for Education (DfE) figures for 2015 showed pupils in Bradford were under the national average in GCSE attainment.

The most recent tour saw four buses take students from the Bradford Birth to 19 Teaching School Alliance around 12 schools in the district.

Tours have also taken place for students from Leeds Beckett and Leeds Trinity Universities and another is taking place for Bradford College trainees next month.

In total around 400 students will tour the district’s schools this academic year.

Last year around 360 took part, and the drive has helped to secure 90 teachers in the city's schools so far.

Bradford Council’s recruitment and retention strategy manager Sara Rawnsley said: “The first year of the bus tours and talent bank has been hugely successful. It was launched in nursery and primary schools in its first year and is now being extended into secondary schools.

“The talent bank benefits both new teachers and schools. It provides teachers with preparation for their job interviews and gets them to think about the type of school they would like to work in and it has provided our schools with access to a pool of talented newly qualified teachers.

“But the talent bank is not just restricted to newly-qualified teachers. I am keen to hear from experienced teachers, especially out of Bradford district, who would like the opportunity to come and work in our vibrant, diverse city – there is something for everyone here - from small rural schools to large inner city successful schools.

“The aim of our work is to get people who are thinking about going into teaching to think about Bradford and to see for themselves what life is like inside our schools.

“We also want people in Bradford to think about teaching. We want to make sure that we recruit and retain the best teachers possible. We know this approach is working with 90 teachers starting their careers in the district this year after having come on our bus tours.”

The bus tours are followed by a Journey to Your First Teaching Post workshops, where candidates are given advice about applying for jobs, writing personal statements and preparing for their job interviews

The newly-qualified teachers are then invited to apply to a talent bank, which has been set up by Bradford Council to allow the district’s schools to find the best candidates for their vacancies.

The talent bank is the first of its kind in the country. It has allowed the council to use local expertise to match newly-qualified teachers to suitable jobs which they can then apply for.

Among the teachers who have now started their careers in Bradford school following a bus tour is Olivia Rawson, 21, from Wakefield, who is teaching at Bowling Park Primary.

She said: “Had I never visited Bowling Park on the bus tour, I may have never applied. The bus tour gave me an opportunity to look at a variety of schools in an area that I would probably have never thought about. The wide range of schools we toured helped me to address any misconceptions about Bradford I may have had.

“Before the bus tour my perception of Bradford was very uncertain. I was unsure of what to expect from schools in the Bradford area or if I would be suited to the challenge of working there. However, the environment schools create in the Bradford area and the inspirational work that goes on to build aspirations for each individual quickly met the challenge I was looking for in a school.

“I would definitely recommend teaching in Bradford. It has such a diverse culture and environment that brings along new challenges each day. The children in Bradford are brilliant as they want to and deserve to come to school. I believe that by working in Bradford, you can have a much bigger impact on the children as they deserve to have the opportunities to learn and enjoy school. I think many people may have the wrong perception on Bradford – it provides excellent opportunities for teachers, children and the whole community.”

Councillor Imran Khan, Bradford Council’s executive member for education, said he was delighted that the initiative was continuing to attract teachers to the area.

He said: “Our work on teacher recruitment and retention has made a real difference to Bradford schools with 90 teachers in post thanks to the bus tours and talent bank.

"We know that teaching in Bradford schools can be very rewarding and we are keen to hear from newly qualified and experienced teachers who are up for the challenge of making a difference to the lives of children in our district.”