Q: I left teaching to start a family some years ago. I have heard that this year there are more teachers than ever before in training. I am not ready to return yet, but will want to in a couple of years. What are my chances of finding a job?

A: There are record numbers of trainee teachers this year, although there are still not enough in certain secondary subject areas. Primary trainees might struggle to find jobs in some parts of the UK for the next couple of years as school rolls are falling by approximately 50,000 pupils a year. However, by around 2006 the number of retirements on age grounds will begin to increase significantly from their current levels in primary and secondary schools. This means that there should be plenty of new posts available.

Even so, you should keep abreast of changes in schools while you are not working so you will be able to compete with newly qualified teachers, who are widely believed to be better trained than ever before.

If you have a question for John Howson, please email susan.young@tes.co.uk