£10m boost to aid teachers

Teachers and leaders in schools along the North Yorkshire coast could have the full costs of their national leadership qualifications paid for out of new Government funding.

The Department for Education has launched a £10 million scholarship fund for leadership development for schools in those areas with the lowest rates of social mobility in England, which includes the Government’s 12 designated ‘opportunity areas’.

The funding will be eligible to fund participants taking National Professional Qualifications for Middle Leadership, Senior Leadership, Headship or Executive Leadership.

Tarun Kapur of Outstanding Leaders Partnership, one of the few approved licencees able to deliver them nationally, said: “This opportunity for scholarships will help schools in this area secure, retain and develop more excellent teachers and leaders, who are making a difference to the prospects of children in these schools.

“Knowing how hard teachers work, the partnership has adopted a flexible learning approach, with local face to face days plus online materials, and we support our participants with care throughout the programmes.

“The new funding is excellent news as the full costs of the courses are covered, although we understand that this is on a first-come, first-served basis.”