A TEACHING union official has responded to the Prime Minister's plans for pupils in England to study some form of maths until the age of 18.

On Wednesday (January 4), Rishi Sunak spoke about the importance of improving numeracy, as he promised to make it a central objective of the UK education system.

He said: "Right now, just half of all 16 to 19-year-olds study any maths at all.

"Yet in a world where data is everywhere and statistics underpin every job, our children’s jobs will require more analytical skills than ever before, and letting our children out into the world without those skills is letting our children down."

The Prime Minister said the plan would not mean a compulsory A-level for maths for everyone and may not be achieved in this Parliament.

However, Steve Bird, negotiating secretary at the NASUWT Northumberland Association, said the Prime Minister's statement is "further evidence of his lack of understanding of the current issues in education".

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"We do not have sufficient teachers in schools and it is imperative that we recruit more, particularly in subjects such as maths and physics, in order to manage the current curriculums," he said. 

"This has to be the priority.

"The 2022 teacher recruitment figures show that the government managed to achieve just 59 per cent of the DfE’s annual target for secondary teachers, and well below the 79 per cent reached in 2021. This government has failed to reach its recruitment targets in nine out of the ten previous years and we are reaching a position where we simply cannot staff some schools. 

"Teachers are leaving the profession due to excessive workload and chronic low pay."

He added: "I would urge the PM to stop dreaming up headline-grabbing and impossible targets and instead to sit down with union leaders to discuss how to resolve the real issues that exist in schools today."

A Government spokesperson said: "The number of teachers in the system remains high and there are now more than 465,000 teachers working in state-funded schools across the country, which is 24,000 more than in 2010.

"Our bursaries and scholarships worth up to £27,000 and £29,000 tax-free are helping to encourage talented trainees to key subjects such as maths, physics, chemistry and computing. We are offering a Levelling Up Premium worth up to £3,000 tax-free for maths, physics, chemistry and computing teachers in years 1 to 5 of their careers.

"We are making the highest pay awards in a generation – 5 per cent for experienced teachers and more for those early in their careers, including an up to 8.9 per cent increase to starting salary."