Superteachers still tend to be thin on the ground in the North. John Howson reports
England still has fewer than 1,000 advanced skills teachers - less than a tenth of the Government’s ultimate target.
Recent figures from the Department for Education and Skills show that the number of teachers with AST status jumped from 563 to 925 between May and September of this year. But they still represent far less than 1 per cent of classroom teachers. Furthermore, they are unevenly distributed.
Sixty per cent of those in post this January were in local education authorities south of a line drawn from the Wash to the Avon even though they have only 49 per cent of the country’s pupils. Across the North-east there were just 24 ASTs and there were large differences in distribution in local LEAs.
The uneven spread was also evident in London. Fifty of the capital’s 97 ASTs were in Westminster, Bromley and Newham while 18 boroughs had none.
Essex, with 49, was the LEA with the largest number in May, followed by Kent (30) and Oxfordshire (21). Lancashire, another large LEA, had 13, one more than York, a relatively small unitary.
Some LEAs with few or none have begun to catch up since the ban on their appointment was lifted in April and the north-south balance has improved. Only 52 per cent of teachers who made the grade in recent months work in southern LEAs.
Leeds has the most new ASTs (43), followed by Lincolnshire, which has added 23 to its existing 15, and York, where the total has increased to 33. Sunderland has created its first 12 ASTs, and Gloucestershire has boosted its total by 17. However, about 40 LEAs still have no ASTs. Some are small authorities, such as Rutland, but others are cities the size of Bristol and Sheffield.
John Howson is managing director of Education Data Surveys. Email: john.howson@lineone.net
* AST status was introduced in September 1998 to reward the best teachers and encourage them to remain in the classroom.
* Initially only teachers in education action zones and specialist schools were allowed to apply.
* The scheme was extended to all maintained schools in 1999 but accreditation was suspended in 2000. The ban was lifted this April.
