Colleges to start recruiting teachers from industry

The first 37 providers to receive funding from the Taking Teaching Further (TTF) programme, which has been set up to help recruit people from industry into further education, have been announced.

The colleges and providers will aim to recruit the country’s first 80 TTF teachers from specific sectors and encourage them to retrain to work in those institutions.

Alongside the support to train new teachers, 20 projects are also being funded totalling over £900,000 to explore how industry and the further education sector can work together to make sure students gain the knowledge and skills businesses really need.

Taking Teaching Further was launched in June as a pilot programme to further boost the quality of the post-16 teaching workforce by bringing in more diverse experiences and skills.

Apprenticeships and Skills Minister Anne Milton said: "Attracting talented people to teach in Further education has never been more important. We are transforming technical education in this country with the introduction of new T Levels. We want staff with industry skills to pass on their expertise to the next generation.

"I’m thrilled that we have a chance to bring industry to colleges and it will be exciting to see the differences they can make to their colleges and the students they teach. Further education changes lives, and our inspiring teachers are a huge part of that."