Academic year 2021/22

Initial teacher training performance profiles

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Introduction

National and provider-level information about the outcomes for teacher trainees in England in the academic year 2021/22. Outcome measures presented are the proportion of trainees with course outcomes that gained qualified teacher status, and the employment rates of these qualified teachers. The publication also includes information on the number of assessment only candidates and the outcomes for early years ITT trainees.

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Releases in this series

View releases (11) for Initial teacher training performance profiles

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Headline facts and figures - 2021/22

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  • ITT Performance Profiles 2021/22 Provider Tables (xlsx, 869 Kb)

    These provider level tables contain the qualified teacher status and employment outcomes of postgraduate and undergraduate ITT trainees. Table 8 contains data on trainee characteristics by ITT provider and table 9 contains data on trainee qualified teacher status (QTS) and employment outcomes by ITT provider, subject phase and training route. The data in these tables cover 2017/18 to 2021/22 for qualified teacher status and 2017/18 to 2020/21 for employment outcomes.

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About these statistics

The initial teacher training (ITT) performance profiles are designed to: 

  • provide transparent information on outcomes of trainee teachers to the public
  • help potential trainee teachers make informed choices about where to train

These statistics are based on trainees with course outcomes, i.e. those trainees who have been awarded QTS or ended their training but were not awarded QTS [1]. In previous publications, trainees estimated to be in their expected final year who were yet to complete their ITT course were also included, but these have been removed this year due to a change in data source meaning data are no longer comparable (see methodology section for more detail on this change). For comprehensive statistics about new entrants to ITT and their characteristics, please refer to the ITT census publications, available on the ITT statistics webpage. 

These statistics cover those training to teach via both postgraduate and undergraduate routes, as well as separate sections on those undertaking early years initial teacher training (EYITT) and assessment only (AO) courses.

The following tables are included. All contain data on QTS award rates and employment rates. Employment rates for the latest year are provisional estimates and all previous years are revised:

  • national tables for the academic years 2017/18 to 2021/22 by route, subject phase (primary or secondary), subject, region, and trainee characteristics (main postgraduate and undergraduate routes).
  • provider-level tables for the academic years 2017/18 to 2021/22 by route and phase (main postgraduate and undergraduate routes). Provisional employment rates for the latest academic year are not published at provider level.
  • a national table from the academic years 2017/18 to 2021/22 by subject (AO route).
  • a national table for the academic year 2017/18 to 2021/22 by route and trainee characteristics (EYITT route).

In this year’s publication, the main tables contain five years of data, from 2017/18 to 2021/22. Please see the methodology for more details on how provisional and revised employment rates are calculated.

 

Footnotes

[1] Trainees who were not awarded QTS includes those who left the course before the end (excluding those who left the course within 90 days of the start) and trainees who did not meet the standards. 

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Background on mainstream initial teacher training

To become a qualified teacher in England, trainees typically complete a programme of initial teacher training (ITT). This provides them with training, mentoring and teaching practice in schools, and leads to the award of qualified teacher status (QTS) for successful trainees.

There are several pathways into teaching which include an undergraduate route, over a three or four-year course, and postgraduate routes which normally run for one year full-time. Postgraduate fee-funded courses can be undertaken through a higher education institution (HEI), or via a group of schools delivering a school-centred initial teacher training (SCITT) programme or a School Direct fee-funded programme. Postgraduate salaried routes include the School Direct salaried programme, the High Potential ITT programme and, since the 2018/19 academic year, the Postgraduate Teaching Apprenticeship (PGTA) [1][2]. Two non-mainstream routes, early years ITT (EYITT) and assessment only (AO), are covered in separate sections below.

At HEIs, the university or college delivers the pedagogy of teaching supplemented by placements in schools. Successful trainees are awarded QTS and a postgraduate certificate in education (PGCE). On school-led routes, trainees are placed in a school from the first day of training [3]. Most school-led routes also include a PGCE as many school-led providers will pair with an HEI.

 

Footnotes

[1] High Potential ITT trainees, formerly reported as Teach First.

[2] The postgraduate teaching apprenticeship (PGTA) was a new route introduced in 2018/19. It is a growing route, although relatively small (1133 trainees with course outcomes in 2021/22) compared to other routes.

[3] School-led routes include all postgraduate routes except the Higher Education Institution Route.

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Overall QTS and employment rates of trainees

Postgraduate Summary

  • There were 31,747 postgraduate trainee teachers with course outcomes in the 2021/22 academic year, compared to 31,698 in 2020/21 [1][2]. Numbers have increased each year since 2017/18 and remained high following an unprecedented increase in 2020/21 which was likely to be a direct result of the impact of Covid-19. The continued high number of trainees with course outcomes this year may be due in part to trainees completing their course this academic year after receiving course extensions at the end of 2020/21 due to the disruption to training caused by Covid-19 [3]. An improvement in end date data quality due to a change in data source may have also affected the numbers.
  • Of these postgraduate trainees with course outcomes, 29,511 were awarded qualified teacher status (QTS), down from 30,101 in 2020/21 having increased each year since 2017/18 to this. 
  • When comparing award rates, 93% of postgraduate trainees with course outcomes were awarded QTS in 2021/22. This is a 2 percentage point decrease compared to 2020/21 (95%) and a 3 percentage point decrease compared to 2019/20 (96%). Prior to this, the proportion of postgraduate trainees with course outcomes awarded QTS remained stable at 95% for the 2017/18 and 2018/19 academic years. 
  • For postgraduate trainees on a school-led route, 94% were awarded QTS compared to 92% on a Higher Education Institution (HEI) route [4]. This compares to 95% for both in 2020/21 and is the first year we have seen a difference in QTS award rates between school-led and HEI routes from 2017/18 onwards.
  • At the end of the 2021/22 academic year, 2,236 (7%) of postgraduate trainees with course outcomes were not awarded QTS. This is an increase in comparison to the 2020/21 figures - where 1,597 (5%) were not awarded QTS. 
  • We provisionally estimate that within sixteen months of the end of the 2021/22 academic year, 22,276 postgraduate trainees awarded QTS in 2021/22 will be employed as a teacher in a state-funded school in England, up from 21,889 in 2020/21 [5]. This represents 75% of postgraduate trainees awarded QTS, reversing a downward trend from 80% in 2017/18 to 73% in 2020/21 [6][7].
  • Provisional employment rates were 81% for those on a school-led route compared to 69% for those on a Higher Education Institution (HEI) route, with the highest rates seen for those on the High Potential ITT (90%), School Direct Salaried (84%), and Postgraduate Teaching Apprenticeship (83%) routes [8][9]. These three routes have had the three highest employment rates since the Postgraduate Teaching Apprenticeship was introduced in 2018/19, with High Potential ITT having the highest employment rate every year since 2017/18 (joint highest in 2019/20).

 

Undergraduate Summary

  • There were 5,210 undergraduate trainee teachers with course outcomes in the 2021/22 academic year, an increase from 4,488 trainees in 2020/21. Of these undergraduate trainees, 4,162 (80%) were awarded qualified teacher status (QTS) [10]. Although this is an increase in the number of undergraduate trainees awarded QTS it is a decrease in the proportion, compared to 2020/21 where 3,934 (88%) were awarded QTS. Until 2021/22, the total number of undergraduate trainee teachers had decreased each year since 2017/18. The proportion of undergraduate trainee teachers awarded QTS in a given academic year has decreased from 92% in 2017/18. Undergraduate award rates have also been lower than postgraduate award rates each year since 2017/18. 
  • In the 2021/22 academic year, 1,048 (20%) undergraduate trainees with course outcomes were not awarded QTS. This is an increase in comparison to the 2020/21 figures - where 554 (12%) undergraduate trainees were not awarded QTS. Prior to this the number of undergraduates with course outcomes had remained relatively stable each academic year at 406 for 2017/18 (8%), 473 for 2018/19 (10%) and 427 for 2019/20 (9%). The sharp increase this year may in part be due to increased numbers of undergraduate entrants to ITT in 2020/21 and 2021/22 during the Covid-19 pandemic, and consequently more first or second year undergraduates leaving their course before the end.
  • Provisional undergraduate employment rates indicate 66% of the trainees awarded QTS in 2021/22 will be employed as a teacher in a state-funded school in England, within sixteen months of the end of the academic year, representing a drop of 2 percentage points compared to 2020/21 (68%) and continuing the downward trend from 78% in 2017/18.

 

Footnotes

[1] Trainees who were not awarded QTS are those who ended their training during the year and either left the course before the end (excluding those who left the course within 90 days of the start) or did not meet the standards.

[2] Only trainees who have completed ITT and been awarded QTS, or who were not awarded QTS, have been included in these statistics. Previously, trainees who were “yet to complete” were included so figures are not comparable with previous publications. For more details, see the methodology section.

[3] Due to the disruption to training caused by Covid-19, a small proportion of 2019/20 & 2020/21 trainees were offered course extensions into the following academic year to enable them to gain adequate evidence of meeting the Teachers’ Standards.

[4] School-led routes include all postgraduate routes except the Higher Education Institution route.

[5] Provisional figures are estimated as it is too early in the reporting cycle to capture everyone who is employed in a state school. Revised figures will be calculated following collection of the November 2023 school workforce data and will be published as part of the 2022/23 performance profiles publication; see the methodology section for further details.

[6] Note that the 2019/20 & 2020/21 cohorts will have been seeking employment during the Covid-19 pandemic.

[7] Revised figures for 2020/21 are calculated from more complete data using the November 2022 school workforce census; see the methodology section for further details.

[8] High Potential ITT trainees were formerly reported as Teach First trainees.

[9] The postgraduate teaching apprenticeship (PGTA) was a new route introduced in 2018/19. It is a growing route, although relatively small (1,133 trainees with course outcomes in 2021/22) compared to other routes.

[10] Please note that the undergraduate cohort includes trainees who completed their course and were either awarded QTS or not awarded QTS following the final assessment as well as trainees who left the course before end (regardless of which year of their training they were in). As full-time undergraduate courses often run for 3 or 4 academic years, some trainees recorded as not awarded QTS here will have been on the first or second year of courses which began during the Covid-19 pandemic. The decrease in QTS award rate may in part be due to the higher volumes of trainees starting undergraduate ITT courses in the latest 2 years and/or increased rates of withdrawal. 

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Outcomes of postgraduate trainees by subject

Summary

  • There were 15,098 primary postgraduate trainees with course outcomes in 2021/22 [1]. Of these 14,140 were awarded QTS, an increase compared to 12,361 in 2020/21. This represents 94% of primary postgraduate final year trainees, a 1 percentage point decrease on 2020/21 (95%). The proportion of trainees who were awarded QTS remained stable at 96% from 2017/18 to 2019/20.
  • There were 16,649 secondary postgraduate trainees with course outcomes in 2021/22. Of these, 15,371 were awarded QTS, down from 17,740 in 2020/21. This represents 92% of secondary postgraduate final year trainees, a 3 percentage point decrease on 2020/21 when 95% were awarded QTS. The proportion of trainees with course outcomes awarded QTS remained stable at 95% from 2017/18 to 2020/21, except for 2019/20 when 96% were awarded QTS.
  • QTS award rates varied by secondary subject from 86% for computing to 97% for physical education and classics. Of the secondary subjects, biology, chemistry, physics, computing and business studies all had lower QTS award rates than the secondary average. Until 2021/22, physics had the lowest QTS award rate from 2017/18 (joint lowest in 2019/20).
  • Of those postgraduate trainees awarded QTS in 2021/22 we provisionally estimate that within sixteen months of the end of the academic year, 10,390 (73%) primary postgraduate trainees and 11,886 (77%) secondary postgraduate trainees will be employed as a teacher in a state-funded school in England [2]. This compares to 8,856 (72%) for primary and 13,033 (73%) for secondary in 2020/21 [3]. Employment rates were higher for primary trainees compared to secondary trainees in 2017/18, equal in 2018/19 and higher for secondary trainees in subsequent academic years.
  • Provisional employment rates vary by secondary subject from 56% for classics (very small numbers) and 70% for physical education (lowest excluding classics) to 83% for design & technology. Design & technology has had the highest employment rate since 2019/20 and the second highest in the two previous years (joint second highest in 2017/18) and classics has had the lowest since 2017/18.

 

Footnotes

[1] Only trainees who have completed ITT and been awarded QTS, or who were not awarded QTS, have been included in these statistics. In previous publications, trainees who were “yet to complete” were included. For more details, see the methodology section.

[2] Provisional figures are estimated as it is too early in the reporting cycle to capture everyone who is employed in a state school. Revised figures will be calculated following collection of the November 2023 school workforce data and will be published as part of the 2022/23 performance profiles publication; see the methodology section for further details.

[3] Note that the 2019/20 & 2020/21 cohorts will have been seeking employment during the Covid-19 pandemic.

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Outcomes of trainees by route

Summary

  • QTS award rates vary by postgraduate route. In 2021/22, 94% of postgraduate trainees with course outcomes on a school-led route were awarded QTS, compared to 92% on a Higher Education Institution (HEI) route, with the highest rates seen for those on the School Direct (salaried) (97%), Postgraduate Teaching Apprenticeship (95%) and School Direct (fee-funded) (95%) routes [1][2][3]. In 2020/21, total school-led routes and the Higher Education Institution route both had QTS award rates of 95%. This is the first year we have seen a difference in QTS award rates between the total for school-led routes and the Higher Education Institution route from 2017/18 onwards.
  • Provisional employment rates vary by route [4]. They were 81% for those on a school-led route compared to 69% for those on a Higher Education Institution (HEI) route, with the highest rates seen for those on the High Potential ITT (90%), School Direct Salaried (84%), and Postgraduate Teaching Apprenticeship (83%) routes [5]. This is in line with previous years as school-led routes have had higher employment rates than the Higher Education Institution route since 2017/18 [6].

 

Footnotes

[1] Only trainees who have completed ITT and been awarded QTS, or who were not awarded QTS, have been included in these statistics. In previous publications, trainees who were “yet to complete” were included. For more details, see the methodology section.

[2] School-led routes include all postgraduate routes except the Higher Education Institution route.

[3] The postgraduate teaching apprenticeship (PGTA) was a new route introduced in 2018/19. It is a growing route, although relatively small (1133 trainees in 2021/22) compared to other routes.

[4] Provisional figures are estimated as it is too early in the reporting cycle to capture everyone who is employed in a state school. Revised figures will be calculated following collection of the November 2023 school workforce data and will be published as part of the 2022/23 performance profiles publication; see the methodology section for further details.

[5] High Potential ITT trainees, formerly reported as Teach First.

[6] Note that the 2019/20 & 2020/21 cohorts will have been seeking employment during the Covid-19 pandemic.

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Outcomes of postgraduate trainees by trainee characteristics

Summary

  • For postgraduate trainees with course outcomes in 2021/22, 95% of female trainees were awarded QTS compared to 89% of male trainees; these rates have decreased when compared to 2020/21, which were 96% and 92% respectively [1]. Female trainees have had higher QTS award rates than male trainees since 2017/18.
  • In 2021/22, 94% of postgraduate trainees with course outcomes aged under 25 were awarded QTS, compared to 92% of those aged 25 and over, in comparison to 2020/21 figures of 96% and 94% respectively [2]. This is in line with previous years as trainees aged under 25 have had higher QTS award rates than those aged 25 and over since 2017/18.
  • In 2021/22, 89% of postgraduate trainees with course outcomes who declared a disability were awarded QTS compared to 93% for those who did not [3]. This is a decrease of 2 and 3 percentage points respectively when compared to 2020/21 and a continuation of historical trends as trainees who declared a disability have had lower QTS award rates than those who did not declare a disability since 2017/18. 
  • In 2021/22, for postgraduate trainees with course outcomes who declared their ethnicity, QTS award rates were similar for all ethnic groups ranging from 92% for Black and Mixed ethnicity trainees to 93% for trainees of all other ethnic groups [4]. QTS award rates by ethnic group have not varied substantially each year since 2017/18.
  • Provisional employment rates for females in 2021/22 (76%) were higher than those for males (74%) [5][6]. This is an increase from 2020/21 for both females (from 74%) and males (from 70%) [7]. Female trainees have had consistently higher employment rates than male trainees since 2017/18.
  • Of those awarded QTS, it is estimated that 75% of those aged under 25 will be in employment at a state-funded school within sixteen months of qualification compared to 76% of those aged 25 and over. This is an increase of 2 percentage points for those aged under 25 and 3 percentage points for those aged 25 and over compared to the previous year. This differs to what we have seen in previous years, as trainees aged under 25 had higher employment rates in 2017/18 and 2018/19 and employment rates were level for 2019/20 and 2020/21.
  • Provisional employment rates for those with a declared disability (73%) are lower than for those with no declared disability (75%). Employment rates for those with a declared disability have increased by 6 percentage points compared to 2020/21. For those with no declared disability, employment rates have increased by 2 percentage points from 2020/21. Rates for 2021/22 are in line with previous years as trainees who declared a disability have had lower employment rates than those who did not since 2017/18.
  • For trainees who declared their ethnicity, provisional employment rates were lowest for Asian trainees (69%), and highest for White trainees and Mixed ethnicity trainees (76%). Asian trainees have had the lowest employment rates since 2017/18, except for 2019/20, when ‘Other’ ethnicity trainees had the lowest rates [8]. White trainees have had the highest or joint highest employment rates since 2019/20. Prior to that, Mixed ethnicity trainees had the highest or joint highest employment rates in 2017/18 and 2018/19. Employment rates have increased for all ethnic groups in 2021/22 compared to the previous year.

 

Footnotes

[1] Only trainees who have completed ITT and been awarded QTS, or who were not awarded QTS, have been included in these statistics. In previous publications, trainees who were “yet to complete” were included. For more details, see the methodology section.

[2] Trainees' age is as recorded on 31st July 2022.

[3] For 2021/22, 3,088 (10%) out of 31,747 postgraduate trainees with course outcomes had an unknown disability status. For 2020/21, 1% of postgraduate trainees with course outcomes had unknown disability status. This increase should be considered when comparing trends.

[4] For 2021/22, 3,168 (10%) out of 31,747 postgraduate trainees with course outcomes had unknown ethnicity. For 2020/21, 5% of postgraduate trainees with course outcomes had unknown ethnicity. This increase should be considered when comparing trends.

[5] Provisional figures are estimated as it is too early in the reporting cycle to capture everyone who is employed in a state school. Revised figures will be calculated following collection of the November 2023 school workforce data and will be published as part of the 2022/23 performance profiles publication; see the methodology section for further details.

[6] For 2021/22, 249 (1%) out of 31,747 of postgraduate trainees with course outcomes had unknown sex. Please note that sex was previously reported as gender. This has been updated as it was previously mislabelled. For 2021/22, trainees who chose not to provide data on sex have been included in an 'unknown' category. For previous years they were grouped with ‘Other sex’. 

[7] Note that the 2019/20 & 2020/21 cohorts will have been seeking employment during the Covid-19 pandemic.

[8] Other ethnicity includes the Arab ethnic background.

 

Summary of postgraduate trainee outcomes by characteristic for the 2021/22 academic year

Percentage awarded QTSPercentage of those awarded QTS teaching in a state school
AgeUnder 2594%75%
25 and over92%76%
DisabilityDeclared89%73%
None declared93%75%
Ethnic groupAsian93%69%
Black92%71%
Mixed ethnicity92%76%
Other93%71%
White93%76%
SexFemale95%76%
Male89%74%
Other92%76%

Footnotes

  1. Only trainees who have course outcomes are included. Previously, trainees who were 'yet to complete' were included so figures are not comparable with previous publications. Historical figures have been revised in this publication. See methodology for further details.
  2. There were 764 postgraduate trainees awarded QTS of 35,371 total postgraduate trainees who were included in the 2020/21 release, for whom the end date has subsequently been revised to 2021/22. Figures for 2020/21 have been revised to reflect this.
  3. This publication was produced using data extracted from the Register Trainee Teachers service for the first time. This is a move from the previous data source, DTTP (Database of Teacher Training Providers). See methodology for further details.
  4. Warning: percentages have been rounded and therefore may not sum to 100%.
  5. Teaching in a state-funded school is the number of trainees registered as employed in a state-funded school in England within 16 months of the academic year end. For 2021/22, figures are provisional (uplifted), previous years are revised. Due to rounding, the sum of constituent parts may differ from the reported total. See methodology for further details.
  6. Percentage of those awarded QTS teaching in a state-funded school is the percentage of trainees awarded QTS who are employed in a state-funded school in England within 16 months of the academic year end. For 2021/22, employment rate figures are provisional (uplifted), all prior years are revised.
  7. Trainees' age is as recorded on 31st July 2022.
  8. Sex was previously reported as gender. This has been updated as it was previously mislabelled.
  9. For 2021/22, trainees who chose not to provide data on sex have been included in an 'Unknown' category. Prior to this they were included in 'Other'.
  10. Other ethnicity includes the Arab ethnic background.
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Outcomes of postgraduate trainees by degree class on entry

Summary

  • This section looks at the first degrees obtained by postgraduate trainees before entering ITT.
  • In 2021/22, for postgraduate trainees with course outcomes and known previous degree class, QTS award rates ranged from 91% for trainees with  lower second or other degree classes to 96% for those with a first class degree class on entry [1][2][3][4]. QTS award rates have decreased for trainees across all degree classes compared to 2020/21, but trends are in line with historical data, with trainees with higher degree classes having higher QTS award rates than those with lower degree classes.
  • Provisional employment rates were highest for trainees who had a first class or upper second degree on entry (79% and 76%, respectively) compared to those with a lower second or other degree class (72% for both) [5].

 

Footnotes

[1] Only trainees who have completed ITT and been awarded QTS, or who were not awarded QTS, have been included in these statistics. In previous publications, trainees who were “yet to complete” were included. For more details, see the methodology section.

[2] For 2021/22, 2,225 (7%) out of 31,747 postgraduate trainees with course outcomes had unknown degree class. For 2020/21, 3% of postgraduate trainees with course outcomes had unknown degree class. This increase should be considered when comparing trends.

[3] From 2021/22, where possible, the first UK degree awarded has been selected. If no UK degree was awarded, the first non-UK degree awarded was selected. 

[4] Other degree class includes third class honours degrees, and ‘ordinary’ or ‘general’ degrees awarded after a non-honours course, and degrees awarded after a non-honours course that was not available to be classified. It also includes other categories from non-UK degrees.

[5] Provisional figures are estimated as it is too early in the reporting cycle to capture everyone who is employed in a state school. Revised figures will be calculated following collection of the November 2023 school workforce data and will be published as part of the 2022/23 performance profiles publication; see the methodology section for further details.

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Outcomes of postgraduate trainees by region

Summary

  • In 2021/22, QTS award rates varied across English regions, from 87% in the North East to 94% in the East of England, South East and London [1][2]. QTS rates have fallen in all regions compared to 2020/21, except for the South East where the QTS award rate remained the same [3]. Historically, there has been a smaller range of award rates across regions (range of 2 percentage points for 2017/18 to 2019/20, 3 percentage points in 2020/21 and 7 percentage points for 2021/22).
  • Provisional employment rates were lowest in the North West (64%) and highest in the East of England (85%) [4]. Although this trend is in line with 2020/21, the range has decreased (from 26 percentage points to 21 percentage points respectively) [5].

 

Footnotes

[1] Only trainees who have completed ITT and been awarded QTS, or who were not awarded QTS, have been included in these statistics. In previous publications, trainees who were “yet to complete” were included. For more details, see the methodology section.

[2] Region is determined by the location of the provider, which is not necessarily where the trainee is located.

[3] Please note that in 2021/22, all High Potential ITT trainees are now reported under the Teach First provider which is located in London. Previously, High Potential ITT trainees had been reported under providers across all regions.

[4] Provisional figures are estimated as it is too early in the reporting cycle to capture everyone who is employed in a state school. Revised figures will be calculated following collection of the November 2023 school workforce data and will be published as part of the 2022/23 performance profiles publication; see the methodology section for further details.

[5] Note that the 2019/20 & 2020/21 cohorts will have been seeking employment during the Covid-19 pandemic.

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Outcomes of candidates undertaking assessment only (AO)

Background

Gaining QTS through AO is a way for existing unqualified teachers, support staff or teaching assistants to demonstrate that they already meet all the QTS standards, without the need for any further training. AO is open to those with relevant teaching experience who hold a degree, or for those with a teaching qualification from another country. Candidates undertaking AO do not complete a course to achieve QTS but are instead assessed against the Teacher’s Standards. The entry criteria for AO are the same as those for all initial teacher training (ITT) courses and must be met in full prior to registration. Only DfE-approved accredited providers of ITT can assess and recommend AO candidates for QTS. 

Typical candidates for AO might include:

  • unqualified teachers with experience in settings where QTS is not a requirement, for example independent schools, who wish to move into state-funded schools
  • unqualified teachers with significant teaching experience
  • teachers from overseas who wish to be awarded QTS in England [1]
  • higher level teaching assistants with the necessary qualifications and teaching experience

 

Summary

  • The number of assessment only (AO) candidates decreased by 3% in academic year 2021/22, to 1,431, from 1,471 in 2020/21 [2].
  • In 2021/22, 99% of AO candidates achieved qualified teacher status (QTS), a 1 percentage point decrease compared to 2020/21 (100%) and 2019/20 (100%).
  • This higher rate of QTS award for candidates undertaking AO compared to mainstream ITT candidates is likely to be because candidates should already be experienced teachers, or hold a teaching qualification from another country, who can demonstrate that they meet all of the Teachers’ Standards without any further training.

 

Subject breakdown of AO candidates

  • In 2021/22, 43% of AO candidates took primary assessments, which is less than the mainstream ITT routes where primary trainees made up 47% of postgraduates for the same academic year [3].
  • The highest number of AO candidates in secondary subjects were for English (10%), mathematics (9%) and physical education (7%). This is consistent with previous years as these subjects have had the highest numbers since 2017/18 [4].

 

Footnotes

[1] Some qualified teachers from overseas can obtain professional recognition and the award of QTS without undertaking ITT or AO. This applies to fully qualified teachers who trained in the European Economic Area (EEA), under the terms of Council Directive 2005/36/EC. Teachers who trained outside the EEA must have their qualifications recognised by an EEA member state and must have 3 years of experience in that state to be eligible to apply for QTS in England without undertaking ITT or AO. Teachers from Australia, Canada, New Zealand and United States can also apply for mutual recognition and must be fully qualified and eligible to teach permanently in the country in question. This must be documented from the recognised authority in that state. There is further information on the award of QTS on our webpage.

[2] Only trainees who have completed ITT and been awarded QTS, or who were not awarded QTS, have been included in these statistics. In previous publications, trainees who were “yet to complete” were included. For more details, see the methodology section.

[3] Revised figure for 2020/21 taken from ITT Census 2021/22.

[4] Total trainees for 2017/18 excludes one AO trainee with missing subject information.

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Outcomes of trainees undertaking early years initial teacher training (EYITT)

Background

  • Early years initial teacher training (EYITT) provides specialist training covering the education and care of children from birth to the age of five and is distinct from primary education. Training is delivered by accredited ITT providers [1]. 
  • Successful EYITT trainees are awarded early years teacher status (EYTS). They are not eligible for the award of qualified teacher status (QTS) and are therefore not qualified to lead classes in a maintained nursery or school, unless they also hold QTS [2][3]. Early years teachers can lead teaching in all other early years settings in the private, voluntary and independent (PVI) sector.
  • There are several routes leading to the award of EYTS. Trainees can undertake an undergraduate course, which allows them to earn a degree in an early childhood related subject and EYTS, normally over a three-year period full-time. Postgraduate EYITT courses can be undertaken through the graduate entry route (full time study, which includes the early years School Direct route) or the graduate employment based route (a one-year part-time route for graduates working in an early years setting) [4]. Postgraduate EYITT normally runs for one year full-time. 

 

 Summary

  • There were 484 postgraduate EYITT trainees with course outcomes in the 2021/22 academic year, of which 431 (89%) were awarded early years teacher status (EYTS) [5][6]. This is a decrease compared to 2020/21 when 93% of the 496 postgraduate EYITT trainees with course outcomes were awarded EYTS. Prior to this, the EYTS award rate remained relatively stable following a drop in 2018/19 (96% for 2017/18, 93% for 2018/19 and 94% for 2019/20). When considering trends it should be remembered that numbers on the EYITT route are relatively low compared to mainstream ITT.
  • EYTS rates were highest for the EYITT graduate entry route compared to the Graduate employment based or Undergraduate routes, although there were small numbers on the Graduate entry and Undergraduate routes (57 and 13 trainees respectively) so this trend should be treated with caution. Prior to this year, EYTS rates had been highest for trainees on the Graduate employment based route since 2017/18 [7].
  • There were also differences in the EYTS award rates across several postgraduate trainee characteristics (age, sex, ethnicity and declared disability). Trends for age and sex broadly mirror the equivalent differences seen in mainstream ITT, whilst trends for disability status and ethnicity show some differences. However, once again, these comparisons should be treated with caution due to very small numbers of EYITT trainees in some of the groups (see chart).

 

Footnotes

[1] Providers graded by the Office for Standards in Education, Children’s Services and Skills (Ofsted) as ‘requires improvement’, or a lower quality, cannot provide EYITT.

[2] ‘Maintained’ refers to schools or nurseries where funding and oversight is provided through the local authority.

[3] Trainees with EYTS can work as level 3 support workers in a maintained nursery or school. They can work as unqualified teachers in maintained schools or academies but this status is dependent on the school.

[4] Trainees can also undertake an assessment only route to earn EYTS. This is designed for graduates with experience of working with children from birth to five, who are able to demonstrate the Teacher’s Standards (early years) without further training; for example, overseas trained early years teachers. This route is self-funded and runs for roughly three months. The EYITT assessment only route is not included in this publication.

[5] Only trainees who have completed ITT and been awarded EYTS, or who were not awarded EYTS, have been included in these statistics. In previous publications, trainees who were “yet to complete” were included. For more details, see the methodology section.

[6] There were also 17 undergraduate early years trainees with course outcomes in the 2021/22 academic year.

[7] Twelve 2017/18 trainees on the EYITT – School Direct (Early Years) training route were previously grouped in EYITT Graduate entry but are now correctly grouped in EYITT Graduate employment-based.

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2021/22 year specific methodology

Data collection

The initial teacher training performance profiles are collected each year for trainees with ITT course outcomes in a given academic year. For 2021/22, trainees are included if they:

  • were awarded Qualified Teacher Status (QTS),
  • completed their course but were unsuccessful and not awarded QTS,
  • or left the course before end

between 1st August 2021 and 31st July 2022 (inclusive).

In previous publications, trainees were included if they had a course outcome in that academic year, if they had a recorded end date in that academic year but were yet to complete, or if they had no recorded end date and were a postgraduate on a full-time programme starting in that academic year. Postgraduate trainees with no recorded end date and a start date in that academic year were assumed to be on a one-year course and therefore, if there was no course outcome, they were recorded as ‘yet to complete’. 

This year, the DfE has for the first time extracted all data from Register Trainee Teachers. We have seen an improvement in the completion of the end date variable which means that data are not directly comparable with data from previous academic years in relation to those identified as being in their expected final year. To aid comparison and ensure consistency of time series, the publication methodology has been revised to only include trainees with course outcomes in a given academic year. Trainees who were yet to complete their course have not been included in this release and we have included data from 2017/18 onwards, with all trainees deemed yet to complete removed. The previous versions of the tables, including trainees who were yet to complete their course, are still available in historical publications but will not be comparable with the latest year of data.

For the academic year 2021/22, we extracted data for 234 providers. This consisted of 164 SCITTs, and 70 HEIs. All data were reviewed, confirmed and signed-off by a designated person at each provider.

This statistical release presents trainee outcomes and provisional employment data for 2021/22 as well as revised employment data for 2020/21.

 

Quality assurance 

Data for the ITT performance profiles were completed, reviewed and signed-off by providers. The data collection and publication team within DfE carried out additional quality checks and data validations throughout the data entry process. After data were extracted on 11th June 2023 (excluding employment data which were extracted at a later date), a quality assurance process was undertaken by the publication production team. This process included detailed quality checks across the dataset. 

This quality assurance process identified a small number of issues. These, along with the solutions that have been implemented, are outlined below.

  • There were 975 trainees awarded QTS who were included in the 2020/21 release, for whom the end date has subsequently been revised to 2021/22. 2020/21 figures have therefore been revised to reflect this.
  • Some data previously used to identify self-funded trainees is no longer collected by Register Trainee Teachers. To ensure consistency with previous publications, the data has been taken from an alternative source and matched to the publication data to enable these trainees to be identified and removed from the cohort.
  • Due to a change in how previous degree information is extracted and a subsequent review of the methodology for identifying trainees eligible for bursaries, table 4 (Bursary eligible postgraduate trainee outcomes by subject) has not been included in the initial release. This table will be published in an amendment.

 

Measuring Employment

The Department uses internal administrative data sources to estimate how many final year trainees awarded QTS go on to employment in a state-funded school in England. For full details on the methodology for measuring employment, see the publication methodology. 

For this publication, we calculate two employment rates:

  1. A provisional employment rate for final year trainees in the 2021/22 academic year
  2. A revised employment rate for final year trainees in the 2020/21 academic year 

Provisional employment rate: Departmental analysis has found that matching ITT trainee data to school workforce census data from the year following qualification does not fully capture how many trainees go onto employment because some teachers do not start in time to be recorded in that SWC, while others start up to sixteen months after the end of the academic year. We account for these teachers by applying an uplift to the 2021/22 employment figures to estimate a provisional employment rate for 2021/22. The uplift is derived by comparing with data from previous years to determine what proportion of new teachers employed during the year were not included in their first school workforce census but were captured in the following year’s census (the uplift applied for 2021/22 was around 31% of those not captured in the first school workforce census). 

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Methodology

Find out how and why we collect, process and publish these statistics.

Official statistics

These are Official Statistics and have been produced in line with the Code of Practice for Official Statistics.

This can be broadly interpreted to mean that these statistics are:

  • managed impartially and objectively in the public interest
  • meet identified user needs
  • produced according to sound methods
  • well explained and readily accessible

Find out more about the standards we follow to produce these statistics through our Standards for official statistics published by DfE guidance.

Our statistical practice is regulated by the Office for Statistics Regulation (OSR).

OSR sets the standards of trustworthiness, quality and value in the Code of Practice for Statistics that all producers of official statistics should adhere to.

You are welcome to contact us directly with any comments about how we meet these standards. Alternatively, you can contact OSR by emailing regulation@statistics.gov.uk or via the OSR website.

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If you have a specific enquiry about Initial teacher training performance profiles statistics and data:

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Email: ittstatistics.publications@education.gov.uk
Contact name: Sarah Amis

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