The Government is being urged to consider a new apprenticeship scheme in an effort to solve the recruitment crisis in teaching, as Dorothy Lepkowska reports

Head teachers have asked the Government to approve the first apprenticeship scheme for teachers, as part of a series of measures to tackle staff shortages in schools.

The scheme, which is being proposed by the Teaching Schools Council (TSC), would see entrants as young as 18 learning on the job, being paid a salary and possibly, in the longer term, working towards a degree
The idea, submitted last month, is both controversial and timely. Many heads and teachers will not want to see teaching proceed along this route but, at the same time, teacher shortages are hitting schools badly.
Steve Munday, a TSC member and chief executive of the Cam Academy Trust in Cambridgeshire, said the proposal was “a serious win-win” situation for parts of the country where “youngsters might not necessarily take seriously the possibility of doing a degree” and where schools were struggling to recruit. The TSC believes the apprenticeships could play a significant role in attracting people from less affluent backgrounds into the profession.