The government’s announcement of new financial incentives as a way of recruiting more maths and physics teachers in England addresses some of the symptoms of the problem but not the cause, according to a leading educational recruitment specialist.

Darryl Mydat, Managing Director of TLTP Education (The London Teaching Pool) says that whilst the incentives may have some success, improving the working environment, reducing stress levels and improving the status of the profession are also needed if teaching talent is to be retained within the profession.

The Prime Minister recently announced a £15,000 university bursary for teenagers with good A-level maths and science grades, if they commit to enter teaching. The £15,000 offer to help would-be teachers taking maths and physics courses would be in addition to incentives of up to £25,000 to attract high-flying graduates into teacher training for maths, physics, chemistry and computing. It means that an individual student could receive incentives of £40,000 to become a maths teacher. The £15,000 over three years for potential teachers would help with living costs and would be repayable if students did not go on to teach for three years after graduating.

“We understand the potential attraction that financial inducements could play in attracting new entrants to the teaching profession,” explains Mydat. “However, once we have attracted people into the profession, much more needs to be done to retain them. The investment in new trainees will be wasted if teachers continue to leave the profession at the present rate.”

Mydat says that there is an appetite for recruiting teachers into permanent positions in schools but there is both a skills and an experience shortage that makes this a challenge.

“Too many UK teachers are still looking overseas for jobs or away from teaching completely as they feel that changing OFSTED criteria, the new curriculum and the ever-changing teaching landscape mean it is a less secure and less rewarding career than it has been for many years. By all means, do whatever we can to introduce students to teaching but this must be married to a plan to attract former teachers back to the profession and smooth the way for UK teachers to get their QTS accreditation. There are jobs out there to be filled.”

Founded in 2006, TLTP Group is a privately owned recruitment consultancy specialising in the supply of professionals to both the public and private sectors worldwide. At the heart of TLTP’s role as a vendor manager is the guarantee to provide people who are unquestionably fit for purpose. At the same time it ensures that its workforce is placed on assignments to which they are suited as individuals, where they are happy and content – assignments which suit their personal agendas and circumstances, where their contribution is appreciated, where they can provide the vital services for which they were trained and where they can further develop their skill-sets.