Commenting on the UCAS data for the 2023 cycle of admissions to universities, Helen Osgood, National Officer for Education and Early Years at Community Union, said:
“These figures are astounding. The fact that applications for teacher training degrees have dropped by over 1,000 from 6,395 to 4,945, since 2021, only serves to reinforce that there is a recruitment crisis of teachers in this country.
“More needs to be done to attract the brightest and the best to teaching. A good start would be to overhaul the student loans system, and reintroduce bursaries for teaching, for all subjects, to ensure that there is adequate investment into the future of teaching – or we risk a very bleak picture of a deskilled workforce.
“This would have a huge impact, the ripples of which would be felt by generations of learners to come.”
Join Community, the union for teachers today
Teachers play a pivotal role in shaping the minds of children and teenagers, and at Community, we’re proud to represent teachers across the UK. Together with our members, we’re campaigning together for real, lasting change to deliver on teacher pay, recruitment, retention and workload. Find out more below about our membership benefits, and how we can help you at work.
If you are a member of Community and need advice or support, please contact our Service Centre at help@community-tu.org or on 0800 389 6332.
© Community Trade Union 2025
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