TV report into teacher recruitment—industry response

A recent investigation by ITV’s Good Morning Britain into teacher recruitment has provoked strong responses from both industry bodies and recruiters.

ITV’s report focused heavily on the issue that recruitment firms charge what some school leaders believe are unreasonable fees for sourcing candidates, highlighting that £1.26 billion was spent on supply teachers in England in 2014/2015. Among its findings, it was revealed that some recruitment agencies are sending teachers on assignment who are not suitably qualified for particular roles and that take-home pay has dropped by £100 a week in just five years.

Speaking on behalf of the professional recruitment sector, Samantha Hurley, Operations Director of APSCo, which represents over 50 education recruiters, commented: “Some headteachers dispute an introduction fee for supply teachers working through a recruitment firm who then get an offer of a permanent post – on the basis that the school has been paying ‘agency fees’ throughout the lifecycle of the contract.

“The fact that this issue is even being debated seems to stem from a fundamental misunderstanding of how the supply chain actually works. Let’s not forget that most of the ‘fee’ goes to pay the teacher – the margin that goes to the recruitment firm is relatively small. Country-wide talent shortages mean that an increasing number of schools are relying on supply teachers.”

Former education recruiter, Baljinder Kuller, who is now Managing Director of online supply teacher portal, The Supply Register, also commented on the shortage of teachers being a key factor on schools’ reliance on agencies. He said: “According to the National Audit Office, the number of teachers leaving the profession has increased by 11% over three years. Ultimately, the ‘solution’ to the acute teacher shortage is actually part of the problem.

“Of course, there are many shining examples of agency best practice. The majority are businesses which provide a professional and highly valuable service to the education sector. I recruited teachers for over a decade, both on behalf of local authorities and as an agency recruiter. When I started out, agencies were working with £35 a day margins. Now it’s not unheard of for recruiters to be banking £100 per day for each individual assignment. Agencies know that if faced with a choice between a classroom with no teacher or spiralling budgets, a compassionate head will be forced to choose the latter. Unethical agencies capitalise on this.”