DfE Announcements

What is RISE?
RISE is the service to help every school improve. Universal RISE is about making it easier for leaders to find relevant, high-quality resources, facilitating collaboration, and promoting the sharing of effective practice. We want every school to engage with Universal RISE, as a recipient and/or contributor. Universal RISE helps schools to: diagnose their school improvement needs, identify high quality support and implement that support.

Where can I find out more about RISE?
There is more information about RISE at a national level at https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/regional-improvement-for-standards-and-excellence-rise-school-support

RISE Attendance and Behaviour Hubs

The programme is a national initiative designed to support schools in improving pupil attendance and behaviour. Led by schools with strong practice, it aims to:
• support school leaders to reflect on current systems
• share effective practice
• implement changes
It is aimed at senior leaders with responsibility for attendance and behaviour who are seeking to strengthen their school’s leadership, culture and systems. You can find further information at: RISE attendance and behaviour hubs programme - GOV.UK

A list of lead schools is available at: RISE attendance and behaviour hubs programme: lead schools - GOV.UK.

The department has announced a new SEND CPD offer. The published press notice containing further information can be found here: £200 million landmark SEND teacher training programme Key features of the training package include:

• High-quality training materials, developed alongside the sector, and shared with every school and college to support the delivery of training to all staff on SEND and inclusion – ensuring every teacher is reached.

• New, free CPD courses for teachers and leaders in colleges.

• Investment in training for teaching assistants and support staff, developed in collaboration with the sector – ensuring support staff feel equipped and confident to support pupils with SEND.

• A new Early Years Continuing Professional Development programme, providing free, accessible training focused on inclusive practice, child development, and practical strategies for supporting children with SEND – available to all early years practitioners.

The department’s Improve workload and wellbeing for school staff service contains a range of supportive resources for schools to review and reduce workload, and improve staff wellbeing. They have recently worked with school leaders to create new resources for the service, including:

o Creating your own wellbeing charter commitments

o Activating Wellbeing Champions

o Easing the pressure of marking

o Identifying issues using a staff wellbeing survey

The department offers free online support for schools and Multi-Academy Trusts (MATs) to adopt and develop flexible working practices. The programme provides free ad hoc and bespoke peer support from ten ambassador schools. Schools can also find resources to help request and implement flexible working, including webinars and case studies, developed in partnership with the Flexible Working Ambassador Multi-Academy Trusts and Schools (FWAMS) and flexible working experts. Further details about the programme can be found here: Flexible working in MATs and schools. The contact details of the FWAMS can be found on the ‘About FWAMS’ page on the website.

Reception Networks

The DfE has launched new support to help improve reception year quality and strengthen EYFS Profile (EYFSP) assessment. Reception networks are school-led, locally delivered networks focused on sharing strong, evidence-informed reception practice. Each network is led by a Lead School with sustained strengths in early years outcomes and leadership. Through the networks, schools can take part in professional discussions, visit and observe reception practice in action, and access shared approaches that support high quality teaching and leadership. There are five reception networks in each region, as part of the universal RISE offer. Schools can contact their local Lead School to get involved or access support. The DfE has also published a comprehensive EYFSP package of support to improve assessment reliability and build teacher confidence as assessors. This includes online guidance, written materials, exemplification videos and case studies. 

RISE Reception Quality Webinar Series

The national RISE Reception webinar programme last year, the next series will be hosted during the summer term 2026. These sessions will focus on Early years foundation stage profile assessment, transitions into Reception, and preparing high quality Reception provision, offering practical, evidence-based support aligned with recent guidance. To register for these webinars, please use this link: RISE Reception Quality Webinar Series.

The Improving Education Together initiative has developed new resources to support equality and inclusivity in schools and colleges. The new resources are:
o An outline of schools’ and colleges’ legal responsibilities in relation to workforce equality
o New case studies on pregnancy, post-maternity support and menopause on the Improve Workload and Wellbeing for school staff service
o New studies on menopause support and menstrual wellbeing in FE colleges

Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) and induction requirements are changing on 1 September 2027. This update note explains who is affected and how exemptions will apply. Full guidance on the new requirements will be published in autumn 2026.

QTS and Induction legislation change in the Children’s Wellbeing Act (2026)
Having well trained, expert teachers in our schools is critical to children’s outcomes. Teachers in local authority-maintained schools and all special schools are already required to have QTS unless they are subject to one of the exemptions set out in secondary legislation. Through the Children’s Wellbeing and School Act (2026) we are extending the same requirements to teachers in primary and secondary academies from 1 September 2027. The Act also extends the statutory induction requirement to qualified teachers holding QTS and working in specified academies from 1 September 2027. This will ensure Early Career Teachers (ECTs) have the best possible support and training to support their professional development as they enter the profession. The new induction requirement will not apply to teachers who achieved QTS prior to 1 September 2027.

Exemptions to the requirement for QTS
QTS ensures that teachers have the fundamental skills that are essential for great teaching. However, there are some circumstances where it might be reasonable for school leaders to recruit a teacher without QTS, and there are existing exemptions set out in secondary legislation that allow for this (Schedule 1 to the Education (Specified Work) (England) Regulations 2012). The department has engaged extensively with the schools’ sector, including with the Local Government Association, school unions, the Confederation of School Trusts and leaders of academies, to ensure that the exemptions will work practically for academies and local authority-maintained schools. The department has also spoken to leaders of special schools and other specialist settings to ensure that the exemptions continue to provide them with the flexibility to recruit the specialists that they need. We have heard that there is a lack of awareness of the secondary legislation that sets out the exemptions, and that the way the secondary legislation is worded is unclear. We have therefore committed to updating and clarifying the secondary legislation, and to publishing guidance to schools on the exemptions. We will continue to engage with stakeholders as we develop this. The updated secondary legislation will be laid in autumn term 2026, alongside publishing full statutory guidance on the requirement for QTS and the exemptions. The clarified secondary legislation and guidance will reflect the following policy positions.

Instructors with special qualifications or experience
We expect instructors to be drawing on their expertise to lead particular parts of a curriculum, where their expertise is required, rather than leading teaching and learning for a full curriculum. Examples of good practice:
• Swimming teachers can deliver swimming lessons as part of the PE curriculum.
• A local businessperson can deliver particular elements of a business studies curriculum.
• Physiotherapists and occupational therapists delivering activities as part of a lesson, or multiple lessons, in specialist settings.

Teachers of Vocational courses
For vocational courses, particular training and experience may be required. The exemptions mean that these courses can be led by an appropriately qualified or experienced professional without QTS. Examples of good practice:
• For a motor mechanics course, an instructor with qualifications and experience relating to the vocation would be able to lead the course.
• A travel and tourism course may be led by an instructor with appropriate experience.

Overseas trained teachers, who can work in English schools for up to 4 years without QTS
DfE has a free Apply for QTS service for teachers who trained in some countries and who meet the eligibility criteria. Schools can still recruit teachers who trained in other countries (subject to immigration rules), but they need to undertake a recognised route to QTS. We allow 4 years to give these teachers reasonable time to go through this process, which sometimes includes needing to formally evidence their overseas teaching practice. Examples of good practice:
• A teacher who was trained in France applies for QTS using the DfE service. They can work in an English school while their application is considered (this can take up to a year).
• A teacher who was trained in Jamaica can work in an English school while they formally evidence the required experience to meet the criteria for the Assessment Only route to QTS.

Teachers on employment-based teacher training schemes that lead to QTS
The new regulations will clarify that teachers must secure a place with an accredited ITT provider on either an employment-based ITT course that leads to QTS or on the Assessment Only route to QTS. We will allow teachers up to 3 terms to secure a place on one of these two routes, which will ensure that the requirement for QTS does not hold up schools’ recruitment processes. Examples of good practice:
• A school has a maths vacancy and wants to recruit a maths graduate without QTS rather than a non-subject expert with QTS. Head teachers can recruit the maths expert without QTS, but they will then need to support that teacher to gain QTS through an employment based ITT course with an accredited provider.
• A school wants to recruit an experienced teacher from a private school who has a degree but not QTS. They recruit the experienced teacher and support them to get QTS through the Assessment Only route (which typically takes 12 weeks).

Individuals working under the supervision of a teacher with QTS
Supervision does not necessarily mean that a qualified teacher must be physically in the classroom with an unqualified teacher. However, robust, formalised arrangements must be in place to ensure that a teacher with QTS is overseeing the quality of teaching and learning so that children receive high quality teaching that meets the Teachers’ Standards. Examples of good practice:
• An ex-engineer wants to give back to society by teaching physics for a year or two at the end of their careers. While the expectation is that career changers gain QTS, it may not be appropriate for someone who planned to teach for one or two years to undertake teacher training. We would expect these individuals to be working under supervision arrangements.
• An unqualified teacher teaching individual, or groups of, pupils in a classroom, where a teacher with QTS is overseeing the teaching and learning of the whole class.

Teachers already working for an academy prior to September 2027
We recognise that in extending this legislation to academies, we need to ensure that we do not disrupt academies’ current contractual arrangements with unqualified teachers. We will therefore be introducing an additional exemption so that Teachers who commence their employment with an academy or academy trust before the implementation date will not be subject to the requirements for QTS. This means that they will be able to stay in their current role or move roles with their employer, including within their trust if the trust is their employer. However, if they were to commence employment with a new employer, they would be required to have QTS or meet one of the exemptions to the requirement for QTS.

Qualified Teacher Learning and Skills (QTLS)
QTLS is a professional teaching qualification that is available for further education teachers. Since 1 April 2012, teachers with QTLS status and professional membership to the Education and Training Foundation, have QTS and are able to teach in schools as qualified teachers. This change followed a recommendation from The Wolf Report, an independent review of vocational education in 2011, and
was made specifically to give secondary schools greater access to experienced teachers of vocational subjects.

Teaching Assistants (TAs) and Higher Level Teaching Assistants (HLTAs)
TAs and HLTAs undertake a hugely valuable role in schools, however they are not teachers and it is never appropriate for a school to expect a TA or HLTA to take on a full teaching role. The requirement for teachers in primary and secondary academies to have QTS will not impact the role of TAs and HLTAs who will continue to be able to support individual children or groups of children under the supervision of a teacher with QTS.

Academy Settings
The government will also specify in secondary legislation the types of academies the requirement for QTS will apply to. QTS is the professional status for primary and secondary teachers and as such 16 – 19 academies and academy nurseries will not be subject to the requirement. Other high quality professional training is available for those who wish to teach young children and babies or in further
education.

Additionally, University Technical Colleges, City Technical Colleges and Studio Schools offer a curriculum that focuses on technical and vocational education and need the flexibility to employ specialist teachers with a range of expertise, knowledge, and experience to deliver it effectively. These settings will also not be subject to the requirement for teachers to have QTS.