Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of reductions in levels of academy staffing on the range of subjects offered in those academies for students already enrolled in (a) GCSE and (b) A Level courses.

The government has a central mission to break down barriers to opportunity and boost life chances for every child. High-quality teaching is the factor that makes the biggest difference to a child’s education. This is why the department will recruit 6,500 new expert teachers. We will get more teachers into shortage subjects, support areas that face recruitment challenges and tackle retention issues.

There are now 468,693 full-time equivalent teachers in state-funded schools in England. The department’s initiatives are aimed not only at increasing teacher recruitment in key subjects and areas, but also at ensuring teachers stay and thrive in the profession, including by improving teacher wellbeing and workload.

All state schools are free to decide which qualifications they will offer in each subject they teach, including GCSEs and A levels. All schools must appoint staff in accordance with employment law.

Academies and free schools have greater freedom and autonomy in how they operate, including staffing and the curriculum, but they are expected to teach a curriculum that is broad and balanced. Schools' decisions on curriculum will be determined by a range of factors, including the level of demand from pupils for particular courses, the availability of suitably qualified teaching staff, accommodation and facilities, and the practical constraints of the timetable.

All state schools, including academies and free schools, will be held accountable for their performance, including in tests and exams. We publish key stage 2 and key stage 4 school attainment data every academic year.

Key stage 2 data can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/key-stage-2-attainment/2023-24.

Key stage 4 data can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/key-stage-4-performance.

This government is committed to enabling schools to support children and young people’s mental health and wellbeing. This is critical to breaking down barriers to opportunity and learning. The right support should be available to every young person that needs it, which is why the department will provide access to specialist mental health professionals in every school.