A Tyne & Wear MP has demanded government answer on the worrying decrease of teachers in North East.
In a debate in House of Commons on September 10 2018, Labour MP for Houghton and Sunderland South, Bridget Phillipson, put a spotlight on what she claimed to be “growing crisis” regarding the teachers in North East.
Mrs Phillipson stated: “In the North East, as classes continue to grow, the number of teachers has fallen by almost 500 in the past year alone.”
She handed a question on how the Ministers would cope with the issue.
Nick Gibb, Minister of State for Education, said:
“We have record number of teachers. The number actually fell this year, but there are 450,000 teachers in our school system – 10,000 more than in 2010.
“The average class size in secondary schools has risen only slightly since 2010 despite the fact that there are 32,000 more secondary school places, and similarly in primary schools, despite the fact that there are over 500,000 more primary school pupils in our schools.”
Mr Gibb added that the government are working in areas around the country, including North East, on the teacher recruitment and retention.