New teacher bursaries and scholarships announced

The government has announced a new package of bursaries and scholarships worth up to £31,000 to train to teach in subjects including chemistry, maths, physics, and computing.

As part of the package, bursaries for teacher trainees in further education will also be available, with £31,000 for those teaching in key shortage STEM subjects, £15,000 for SEND-specialist trainees and £10,000 for those training to teach English. 

The government is also offering schools up to £29,000 to cover the cost of training apprentices in mathematics, chemistry, physics, and computing, as well as £20,000 in modern foreign languages, meaning apprentices pay nothing for their training and will earn a salary while they are training before moving on to a qualified teacher salary. The Postgraduate Teaching Apprenticeship (PGTA), a popular route into teaching, has seen a 55 per cent growth offering a brilliant way for people to gain the hands-on skills and experience they need in the classroom from day one to become expert teachers and build a successful career in teaching. PGTA funding will for the first time, will be equivalent to the ITT incentives in all subjects.

Education Secretary, Bridget Phillipson said: "Inspirational teachers changed my life and change the lives of millions of children every day - this government is determined that we have more brilliant teachers, in more schools, improving the life chances of more children and young people.

"Through our Plan for Change we’ve already begun to move the dial, with more teachers in our schools this year than last, and big increases in people accepting teaching training places in subjects including chemistry, physics, and maths.

"But there is more to do, and we need talented people with the passion and drive to inspire the next generation - working their magic, making school a place pupils want to be, boosting outcomes and transforming the lives of our young people."