My debate in Parliament on Degree Apprenticeships for Teachers
"In the last few days I secured what is known as a Westminster Hall debate (WMH) on something I’ve been interested in for some time - expanding undergraduate degree apprenticeships as a route into teaching. A WMH allows a Member of Parliament to bring to attention an issue to a relevant Minister and other MPs to take part too. In this case, Jonathan Gullis MP, Minister for School Standards responded for the Government.
"Given that we now have degree apprenticeship routes to becoming a: doctor, lawyer, nurse, accountant, etc, I feel the restriction of routes into teaching, especially for early years and infants is slightly strange. Teachers usually do a 3-year undergraduate degree in, say, English, and then go on to do their Post Graduate Certificate of Education (PGCE) or post-graduate one year apprenticeship and learn how to be a teacher. But there is no undergraduate apprenticeship route to a degree apprenticeship in teaching.
"Surely, a route to enable learning and earning, to do that PGCE training during their 3-year degree, alongside giving them practical experience: a teaching apprenticeship is not beyond the wit of man. We already have teaching assistants doing apprenticeships up to level 5 (level 6 is degree level) and opening up a degree apprenticeship route for those who are already teaching assistants or early years staff sounds like a sensible way forward to me to also provide progression.
"In the debate, I said that “Apprenticeships are a vital but criminally underutilized part of our educational mix. They drive productivity and growth in our economy, as well as allowing young people to earn why they learn.”
"The Labour Spokesman said that this was something that they’d support more work looking into this too, it’s always good to get cross party support. The MPs for Mansfield and Darlington both supported the idea too and another MP raised the important point of ensuring that standards are maintained to ensure the best quality of teachers.
"From this debate, the Minister also committed to continue to look at “how best to support talented non-graduates to gain the necessary qualifications to train to teach.” I want to keep ministers looking I to this as to me it seems a logical way forward to allow skilled people in the teaching workforce to up skill further and crucially provide role models in schools of apprentices to ensure that career option is properly presented too."