94 unqualified teachers working at state schools

Teachers’ union NASUWT said that every child has the right to be taught by a qualified teacher, and called for the Government to force schools to hire fully trained staff.

Department for Education data shows there were the equivalent of 3,710 full-time classroom teachers in the area’s state-funded schools in 2018.

But 94 of those neither had qualified teacher status nor were working towards it.

Teachers require QTS to work in schools overseen by councils.

It means about one in 33 teachers in North Yorkshire state schools do not have QTS, which is gained after getting a recognised teaching qualification and completing practical training.

Chris Keates, general secretary of the teachers’ union NASUWT, said: “A child has the right to be taught by a qualified teacher. What we should be working towards is a qualified teacher for every child.

“Internationally, high-quality education is associated with employing high-quality staff in schools.”

A Department for Education spokesperson said: “More than 95% of teachers in state-funded schools have qualified teacher status and last year saw an additional 34,500 new trainee teachers recruited, despite an extremely competitive labour market and the lowest levels of unemployment for decades, showing that teaching continues to be an attractive profession.”

Article by data reporter Tommy Lumby