What are the problems with teacher supply?

This paper is based on our studies of teacher recruitment and retention. Using official statistics from a variety of secondary sources, it builds on our previous work on the changing demand for teachers by exploring issues of teacher supply in the UK. Our findings suggest there is no overall shortage of applicants to initial teacher education and training (ITET), and the number of applicants and places are now higher than at any time since 1982. There were, however, almost as many unsuccessful as successful applicants to ITET courses, despite some recruitment targets not being met. Furthermore, it was not clear how these targets were set and whether they included an estimate of trainee attrition and/or the number of successful trainees expected to enter the teaching profession. There were imbalances in the supply of teachers, with many more female than male trainees. The majority of trainees were in their twenties, with the chances of being offered a training place decreasing with age, despite the uneven age profile of the contemporary teaching profession. There are important structural limitations to teacher supply, particularly in relation to the number of graduates in maths and science subjects. Improving teacher recruitment in these areas is, thus, dependent on increasing the number of students continuing to study these subjects in post-sixteen and higher education.