The removal of bursaries for English teacher trainees from 2026–27 has prompted widespread concern, with NATE warning the decision will deter talented graduates and deepen the national shortage of English teachers
The Department for Education has announced that bursaries for trainee English teachers will be scrapped from 2026–27, a move that has sparked serious concern across the education sector, including from the National Association for the Teaching of English and the English Association.
The decision means that those training to teach English next academic year will receive no financial support, while trainees in STEM subjects such as maths, physics, chemistry and computing will continue to receive tax-free bursaries worth £29,000. Those in Design & Technology and Modern Foreign Languages will receive £20,000.
Until now, English trainees have been eligible for a £5,000 bursary, already one of the lowest of any subject.
Concern over teacher shortages
While data shows an increase in postgraduate initial teacher training recruitment in 2024–25, there remains a national shortage of English teachers. The National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER) has warned that the wider teacher training bursary cuts could lead to around 2,400 fewer trainees across all subjects next year, undermining the government’s own target of recruiting 6,500 more teachers.
NATE shares these concerns, warning that the removal of financial support risks deterring talented graduates from entering English teaching, particularly those from lower-income backgrounds.
‘This decision feels incredibly short-sighted given the problems many ITE providers have had with English recruitment in 2025,’ says NATE’s vice-chair Sue Pinnick. ‘Yet again, government policy indicates that it does not value the arts or humanities subjects. This decision is particularly surprising given Bridget Phillipson’s recent announcement that the National Year of Reading is needed to revive enjoyment in books and improve children’s literacy. Surely, recruiting new, enthusiastic English specialists into the profession, rather than English being taught by non-subject specialists as is currently the case in many schools, is the way to do this.’
Impact on teacher training providers
The decision also poses challenges for universities and school-based Initial Teacher Education (ITE) programmes, many of which already face difficulties in attracting enough English trainees to remain financially viable.
‘Trainee teachers simply cannot afford to pay their rent or their travel costs to get to their placement schools without any kind of financial support, warns Sue Pinnick.
A call for rethinking priorities
NATE joins colleagues across the sector in urging the Department for Education (DfE) to reconsider the funding cuts and adopt a more consistent, values-driven approach to teacher recruitment and retention.