Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking to ensure supply teachers are sufficiently trained in the subjects they teach.

Headteachers use their professional judgement to decide the structure of the school’s workforce, including recruiting and deploying staff in a way that best meets the needs of their school and pupils. Schools, academies, and local authorities are responsible for the recruitment of their supply teachers, which includes deciding whether to use private supply agencies to fill temporary posts and teacher absences, and the level of training required to teach those subjects.

The Education (Specified Work) (England) Regulations 2012 set out the qualifications for teachers employed by schools, including supply teachers. In maintained schools, teachers must hold Qualified Teacher Status (QTS), except those who satisfy the requirements for non-qualified teachers to carry out specified work set out in the Education (Specified Work) (England) Regulations 2012, for example, instructors with special qualifications or experience.

Academies and Free Schools can employ teaching staff without the automatic requirement for them to hold QTS. This applies equally to supply teachers and teachers employed by schools. The Education (Specified Work) (England) Regulations 2012 are available here: http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2012/762/introduction/made.

To be awarded QTS, a teacher must demonstrate that they meet all of the Teachers’ Standards at the appropriate level, including those relating to subject knowledge. The Teachers’ Standards are available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/teachers-standards.

The Department has launched a new deal in conjunction with the Crown Commercial Service to improve agency practices and support schools with getting value for money when hiring agency workers. Agencies on the deal must be open with schools and staff about the rates they charge, conduct consistent, rigorous background screening checks, and adhere to strict controls around the charging of temp-to-perm fees. Information on the guidance included in the deal is available here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/deal-for-schools-hiring-supply-teachers-and-agency-workers.