Number of teachers in England’s state schools drops for second year in row

Despite Labour’s promises to increase recruitment, school census shows a fall of nearly 2,000 teachers since last year

The number of teachers working in England’s state schools has shrunk for the second year in a row, even as the government said it was meeting its promises to increase recruitment where needed.

The annual school workforce census shows there are 466,300 teachers in state schools this year, a fall of more than 1,900 since last year due to declining numbers in mainstream primary and secondary schools.