How can we increase the supply of physics teachers?

Despite recent improvements in teacher recruitment, the supply of specialist physics teachers in England remains a significant challenge. This will matter even more given the Government’s ambition to expand access to triple science at GCSE, which would require substantially more physics specialists across schools. 

Long standing under-recruitment, combined with the fact that physics teachers leave the profession at greater rates than teachers of others means that schools continue to lack specialist physics teachers, with shortages particularly acute in disadvantaged areas.   

In this report for Gatsby, Jack Worth, NFER’s Education Workforce Lead, examines the outlook for physics teacher supply using a newly enhanced teacher supply simulation and forecasting model.  

The research explores how physics teacher supply is likely to change under current policy assumptions over the next four years. Although the recent rise in trainee numbers is expected to bring modest short-term improvements, modelling suggests that supply may plateau later in the decade as labour market conditions improve and pay fails to keep pace with wider earnings growth.  

With evidence indicating that existing policies on their own are unlikely to resolve shortages, what can the government do to address supply in the medium and longer-term?  

Authors looked at the potential impact and cost-effectiveness of a range of policy options, including higher teacher pay, increased training bursaries, and expanded retention incentive payments for shortage subjects. Their analysis highlights important trade-offs: while pay increases have the largest overall impact, targeted financial incentives for physics teachers can deliver meaningful improvements at far lower cost. 

It concludes that a carefully balanced package of targeted incentives and pay policy could offer a more sustainable and cost-effective route to strengthening the physics teaching workforce, helping to improve access to high-quality physics education nationwide. 

“Too many pupils miss out on high-quality physics because schools cannot recruit or retain specialists. This research shows, with clear evidence, which policies will genuinely strengthen physics teacher supply and which offer the best value for money – crucial insights at a time of tight budgets and ambitious curriculum goals.” 

Jenni French, Head of STEM, Gatsby Charitable Foundation

Read the full blog post on the NFER website.