Thank you for contacting me about the Government’s ambition that all school pupils in England study some form of maths until the age of 18.
Maths, and education more broadly, is important for people’s everyday lives and their ability to do their jobs well.
Maths to 18 will equip young people with the quantitative and statistical skills needed for the jobs of today and the future. This includes acquiring confidence with finances in later life, including finding the best mortgage deal or savings rate. The Government’s focus on literacy since 2010, including phonics, has led to significant improvements in standards. In 2012, only 58 per cent of six-year-olds were able to read words fluently. By 2019, the figure had risen to 82 per cent. The Government’s renewed focus on numeracy will aim to match this achievement.
The Government does not envisage making maths A-Level compulsory for all 16-year-olds. Further detail will be set out in due course, but the Government is exploring existing routes, such as the Core Maths qualifications and T-Levels, as well as more innovative options.
Maths to 18 will build upon the Government’s existing maths policies. This includes the Maths Hubs programme, in which mathematics education professionals collaborate in a national network of 40 hubs, each locally led by an outstanding school or college, to develop and spread excellent practice, for the benefit of all pupils and students. It also includes the Government’s £560 million investment in the Multiply programme, an adult numeracy programme that gives thousands of adults the opportunity to gain employer-valued maths qualifications and improve their skills through a new digital platform.
This work is crucial as the UK has some of the poorest levels of adult numeracy, with around 8 million adults in England having the numeracy skills of primary school children. Currently, only around half of 16-19-year-olds study any maths at all, and the problem is particularly acute for disadvantaged pupils, 60 per cent of whom do not have basic maths skills at age 16. Despite this, the UK remains one of the only countries in the world to not require children to study some
form of maths up to the age of 18. This includes the majority of OECD countries, including Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Finland, Japan, Norway and the USA.
More broadly, education is a top priority for this Government. In the Autumn Statement, the Chancellor announced that the Government will be investing an extra £2 billion into schools next year and the year after. This will be the highest real terms spending on schools in history, totalling £58.8 billion by 2024/25.
The Government already offers financial incentives for new maths teachers, in recognition of the fact that STEM graduates have higher earnings potential outside teaching. That is why the highest bursary and scholarship amounts, £27,000 and £29,000 respectively for 2023/24, are for STEM subjects, including maths.
On top of this, there is a Levelling Up Premium worth up to £3,000 tax-free for mathematics, physics, chemistry and computing teachers in the first five years of their careers who choose to work in disadvantaged schools. This will support recruitment and retention of specialist teachers in these subjects and in the schools and areas that need them most.
The Government has already made the highest pay award for teachers in 30 years – 5 per cent for experienced staff and 8.9 per cent for new teachers – and wants to do everything possible to avoid damaging strike action which will be harmful for children, schools, teachers, or our wider society. A teacher entering the profession will now have a basic salary of £28,000 with an ambition to see that figure rise to £30,000.
The Government is also investing in solutions to reduce teacher workload and improve teacher retention, for example via Oak Academy, which gives teachers access to thousands of teaching resources.
The Government is also supporting teachers’ professional development, with National Professional Qualifications (NPQs) continuing to be free for teachers to take for the next two academic years (2022/23 and 2023/24), following Government investment of £184 million. This means teachers can study high-quality, Government-accredited training programmes.
Thank you again for taking the time to contact me.