The government has announced plans to invest £65 million in 81 new teaching school hubs.
The expansion means every school in England will now have access to a “local centre of excellence for teacher training” for the first time, the Department for Education (DfE) said.
The 81 hubs, announced today, will run for an initial three years, starting in September. They will have their own “defined geographical patch”, and will serve an average of roughly 250 schools each, the DfE said.
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They are in addition to the six “test and learn” teaching school hubs appointed by the DfE in January, which were assigned joint annual funding of £1.1 million.
The hubs will receive a yearly grant, subject to conditions, including “demonstrating progress against key performance indicators”, according to DfE guidance.
“Each hub will have its own defined area and must serve all schools within it, although this will not prevent hubs from working with schools outside their area,” the department said.
The teaching school hub programme forms part of the implementation of the DfE’s recruitment and retention strategy, designed to “raise teacher quality and effectiveness”.
The department said the hubs are intended to “provide high-quality professional development to teachers at all stages of their careers”, and will be expected to play a significant role in delivering:
Richard Gill, chair of the Teaching Schools Council, said: “The Teaching Schools Council (TSC) congratulates all 81 schools and/or trusts which have been designated as a teaching school hub. They will now join the existing six ‘test and learn’ hubs that were announced in January 2020 to form a national network of excellence in teacher training and development.
“The work of the TSC has been instrumental in supporting this programme to date and we are proud to be the sector body that will continue to be a key partner in these reforms.”
Schools minister Nick Gibb said: “We know teachers are already providing the best education possible for pupils, and this is especially true while schools are closed to most pupils. These new teaching school hubs will further support the profession by providing the best possible training and development opportunities.
“It is important that teachers and school leaders feel supported in their career. The hubs will make this substantially easier, with expert practitioners able to give experienced advice to those schools able to benefit from it.”
