Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, for teachers who have qualified in each of the last three years, (a) how many teachers received SEND training before becoming fully qualified and (b) how many teachers received SEND training after becoming fully qualified.

Information on the school workforce is collected as part of the annual School Workforce Census each November. Information on the number of newly qualified entrants and deferred newly qualified entrants to teaching is published in the ‘School Workforce in England’ statistical publication, available at: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-workforce-in-england.

The Department is committed to ensuring that all pupils, including those with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) can reach their potential and receive excellent support from their teachers.

Alongside excellent teachers, teaching assistants play an important role in supporting pupils with SEND to fulfil their potential in mainstream and special schools.

Information on the number of qualified teachers trained to support pupils with SEND is not collected centrally.

As at November 2021 (latest data available) there were 465,500 full time equivalent teachers working in state funded schools in England. This is an increase of 4,400 since the previous year.

Almost 9 in 10 (87.5%) teachers who qualified in 2020 were still teaching one year after qualification, and just over two thirds (68.8%) of teachers who started teaching five years ago are still teaching.

One of the Department’s priorities is to continue to attract, retain, and develop the highly skilled teachers needed to inspire the next generation.