New Teaching Regulation Agency to replace the NCTL

Staff at the National College for Teaching and Leadership (NCTL) and the Department for Education are set to team up to support teachers at “every stage of their career”.

The new department will be known in the future as the Teacher Regulation Agency, and will be led by existing teams at the NCTL.

The Department for Education says that the move will mean “even closer coordination between the work already underway to improve schools and strengthen the profession”,

Schools Standards Minister Nick Gibb said “There are now a record number of teachers in our schools – 15,500 more than in 2010 – and overall the number of new teachers entering our classrooms outnumbers those who retire or leave. We need to continue to attract the best and brightest into the profession, and to support their development throughout their careers.

“Bringing these teams together within the Department will enable us to build on the work already underway to invest in the profession and better support teachers in the classroom.”

The Teaching Regulation Agency will continue to be an executive agency of the Department for Education and will begin to operate from April 2018.

Chair of the National College of Teaching and Leadership Roger Pope said: “Having worked with the NCTL since October 2015, I have seen first-hand the benefits of the fantastic work by hard working staff across the organisation. It is right that as the education sector changes we adapt. This new approach will help ensure that all teachers get the support and recognition they deserve.”

The department will work closely with staff, unions and stakeholders in the education sector to deliver these plans.