A new school year is under way, and already pressures are acute. The six-month freeze on energy bills promised by the prime minister offers short-term relief but leaves headteachers to puzzle over what happens next. Schools in England are expected to turn to reserves – if they have them. With a 5% pay rise for teachers also due to come out of existing budgets, finances are precarious.
Teaching assistants’ jobs are at risk, along with educational trips. Senior Conservative figures are among those warning that high inflation and funding shortfalls are placing headteachers in an impossible position. The post-pandemic catchup is far from complete, after the botched outsourcing of the main tutoring contract. Added to these problems is a shortage of teachers that ministers have known about for years. A recruitment and retention strategy announced in 2019 has not brought results. Instead, new figures show that the situation is getting worse, with vacancies at their highest level since 2010. This year just 25% of the required number of trainee physics teachers have been recruited. Almost half of teachers say they plan to quit within five years.
