Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she has taken to (a) recruit and (b) retain more male primary school teachers.

The Department wants to attract and retain diverse, talented teachers from all backgrounds, including male teachers.

In 2021, the Department’s new application service for initial teacher training (ITT) in England, ‘Apply for teacher training’, was rolled out nationally. It has been designed to be as user friendly as possible and has been extensively tested with a diverse range of potential applicants to ensure it helps remove barriers to great teachers applying for ITT courses.

The Department’s recruitment campaigns are targeted at audiences of students, recent graduates, and potential career changers, regardless of their identity or background. The Department takes every effort to ensure that advertising is fully reflective of this across the full range of marketing materials used.

The reforms outlined in the Government’s response to the ITT market review will help meet the commitment made in the teacher recruitment and retention strategy to create a world class teacher development system by transforming the training and support teachers receive at every stage of their career.

To ensure that all children and young people get the best education, it is essential that the Department has a workforce of well trained and well supported teachers, with the expertise needed to deliver great teaching every day.