Teachers: Worcestershire
The question
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate her Department has made of the number of additional teachers funded in Worcestershire with the proceeds from VAT on school fees.
Answered by Georgia Gould
Reforms to VAT and business rates will raise around £1.8 billion a year by 2029/30, helping to deliver the government’s commitments relating to education and young people. This measure will raise essential revenue that will be invested in our public services, including the £1.7 billion increase to the core schools budget in 2026/27, taking total funding to £67 billion. This increase will support schools to recruit the staff they need, including in Worcestershire.
The department is investing further to deliver on our pledge to recruit 6,500 additional teachers and ensure sufficient high-quality teachers in all schools. These include teacher training bursaries worth up to £29,000 tax-free and a targeted retention incentive (TRI) worth up to £6,000 for early career teachers in disadvantaged areas. 19 schools in the Worcestershire local authority area are eligible for the TRI.
We are making good progress with the workforce growing by 2,346 full-time equivalent between 2023/24 and 2024/25 in secondary and special schools, the schools where they are needed most. In Worcestershire local authority area, the number of secondary and special school teachers has grown to 4,797, the highest on record for this area.
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