The number of applicants for teacher-training courses is now 23 per cent lower than it was this time last year.

This means that the year-on-year drop in the number of applicants - which stood at 29 per cent last month - may be slightly smaller than previously feared. 

The latest figures from the university admissions service, Ucas, show that there had been 21,190 applicants for teacher-training courses, as of 18 February this year.

At the same time last year, 27,570 people had applied to train as teachers: 23 per cent more than this year.

However, this year-on-year gap is shrinking on a monthly basis. In December, Ucas released figures that revealed a 43 per cent drop in the number of applicants since the previous year. 

Candidates can apply for up to three courses, meaning that the number of applications is always greater than the total number of applicants. Across all routes, there have been 56,440 applications received for teacher-training courses: a drop of 25 per cent on February last year, when 75,580 applications had been received.

Again, this represents a slight increase in year-on-year figures: last month’s application statistics revealed a 31 per cent drop since January 2017.

The Department for Education has been contacted for comment.

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