Step Into Teaching

🌱 𝗔𝗿𝗲 𝘄𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗼𝗽𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝗺𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗹𝘆 𝗦𝗨𝗥𝗩𝗜𝗩𝗘 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗳𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻, 𝗼𝗿 𝗙𝗟𝗢𝗨𝗥𝗜𝗦𝗛 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻 𝗶𝘁? A question raised at the recent CST Annual Conference that really got me thinking. We talk a lot about attracting more people into teaching. But are we doing enough to prepare them for the realities of the profession BEFORE they begin formal teacher training? 𝗜𝗳 𝘄𝗲 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗙𝗟𝗢𝗨𝗥𝗜𝗦𝗛, 𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲𝗹𝘆 𝘄𝗲 𝗺𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗳𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗽 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺 𝗱𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗼𝗽 𝗦𝗧𝗥𝗢𝗡𝗚 𝗥𝗢𝗢𝗧𝗦. At Step Into Teaching, this thinking is central to our national pre-teacher training programme. We give academically qualified graduates the opportunity to spend a full academic year supporting schools and colleges, gaining valuable classroom and SEND experience before potentially progressing into Initial Teacher Training. But it's about much more than experience. 🎓 Pre-placement training in SEND, classroom management and de-escalation. 🧠 Developing resilience, adaptability and problem-solving skills through real classroom experience. 🤝 Dedicated pastoral and wellbeing support throughout the year. 🏅 Digital accreditation recognising professional development. And the results speak for themselves. Graduates completing our programme are 𝟰× 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲𝗹𝘆 to commence Initial Teacher Training than those following traditional routes. 𝗕𝘂𝘁 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲'𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗶𝗴𝗴𝗲𝗿 𝗾𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻. Could investing earlier in aspiring teachers be one of the keys to improving long-term teacher retention? I certainly believe so. The earlier we develop their confidence, resilience, SEND knowledge and understanding of education, the stronger their foundations could become. And just like a thriving plant, 𝗶𝘁'𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗴𝘁𝗵 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗼𝗼𝘁𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗴𝗶𝘃𝗲𝘀 𝗶𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗳𝗹𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗵. 🌱 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗿 𝗿𝗼𝗼𝘁𝘀. 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗿𝘀. 𝗔 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗿 𝗳𝘂𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗿𝗲𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻. Perhaps the solution to retaining more teachers doesn't begin when they're thinking about leaving. 𝗣𝗲𝗿𝗵𝗮𝗽𝘀 𝗶𝘁 𝗯𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗻𝘀 𝗯𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆'𝘃𝗲 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗱. 💡 𝗔𝗻𝗱 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲'𝘀 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗵 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴… Schools and colleges can access our structured graduate development programme at a cost comparable to employing a permanent Teaching Assistant. 𝗦𝘂𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆'𝘀 𝗰𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘀𝗿𝗼𝗼𝗺𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝘃𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗼𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗿𝗼𝘄'𝘀 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗿𝘀. I'd be interested to hear what others working in education think. #StepIntoTeaching #TeacherRetention #TeacherTraining #EducationLeadership #SEND

👀 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗴𝗴𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁 𝗮𝘀𝗽𝗶𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗱𝘂𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗿𝘀? 𝗙𝗮𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗴𝗿𝗼𝘄𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗦𝗘𝗡𝗗 𝗱𝗲𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗱𝘀? 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗳𝘂𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗰𝗲? 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗶𝗳 𝗢𝗡𝗘 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗺𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗽 𝗮𝗱𝗱𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗧𝗛𝗥𝗘𝗘? 💡 Imagine a Psychology graduate with ambitions to teach spending a full academic year in your school or college, developing classroom skills, gaining valuable SEND experience and understanding the realities of education BEFORE beginning Initial Teacher Training. What a difference that experience year could make to their confidence, resilience and future teaching career. 𝗦𝗼𝗹𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆'𝘀 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗰𝗲 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗴𝗲𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗼𝗽𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗿𝗼𝘄𝘀 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗲𝗻𝘁. Could Step Into Teaching be the education sector's best-kept secret? Our national pre-teacher training programme helps academically qualified graduates gain meaningful experience while supporting schools and colleges. 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘀 𝘂𝘀 𝗱𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁? 🎯 𝗨𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗲𝗻𝘁. We attract graduates who might never apply directly to schools or colleges, opening doors to future teachers you might otherwise miss. 🤝 𝗦𝗺𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴. Our sector experience helps us match graduates' resilience, motivation and suitability to each environment. 🎓 𝗣𝗿𝗲-𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴. SEND, de-escalation and classroom management training before starting. 🤝 𝗢𝗻𝗴𝗼𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘄𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗯𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝘂𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁. Dedicated Attendance & Wellbeing Officer supporting graduates throughout the year. 🏅 𝗗𝗶𝗴𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗮𝗰𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗱𝗶𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻. Recognising graduates' developing resilience, adaptability and professional skills. 𝗔𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁? 🎓 𝟰× 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲𝗹𝘆 to commence ITT after completing our programme, compared with traditional routes. 🏫 𝟳𝟬𝟬+ graduates supported pupils with SEND in 2025/26. 📈 𝟯𝟮% improvement in graduate attendance following our investment in wellbeing support. 𝗜𝗳 𝘄𝗲 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝗮 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗦𝗘𝗡𝗗 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗰𝗲 𝘁𝗼𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗿𝗼𝘄, 𝘄𝗲 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗱𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗼𝗽𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝘁 𝘁𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆. 🎥 Watch my short video to discover how were helping schools and colleges do exactly that. Could your school, college or trust be missing out? #StepIntoTeaching #SEND #TeacherTraining #TeacherPipeline #FurtherEducation

👀 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗶𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘀𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗼𝗹, 𝗰𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗴𝗲 𝗼𝗿 𝗠𝘂𝗹𝘁𝗶-𝗔𝗰𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗺𝘆 𝗧𝗿𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝘁𝗮𝗰𝗸𝗹𝗲 𝗧𝗪𝗢 𝗼𝗳 𝗲𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻’𝘀 𝗯𝗶𝗴𝗴𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗰𝗲 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗴𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝗢𝗡𝗘 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗺𝗲? 𝗖𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗯𝗲 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗲𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘀𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿’𝘀 𝗯𝗲𝘀𝘁-𝗸𝗲𝗽𝘁 𝘀𝗲𝗰𝗿𝗲𝘁? Graduates completing our pre-teacher training programme are now 𝟰× 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲𝗹𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝗜𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗧𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴. There's a much bigger opportunity here than simply filling an immediate staffing gap. 🎥 In this short video, I get down to the nuts and bolts of what Step Into Teaching actually delivers, how we've evolved our programme and why I believe more schools, colleges and MATs could benefit from discovering what we have to offer. 𝗖𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝘀𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗼𝗹𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗰𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗴𝗲𝘀 𝗮𝗹𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘆 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘂𝘀 𝗯𝗲 𝗴𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗻 𝗮𝗱𝘃𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗴𝗲? ☕ 𝗜’𝗺 𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗳𝗲𝗱𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝗳 𝗦𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗼𝗹 𝗧𝗿𝘂𝘀𝘁𝘀 𝗔𝗻𝗻𝘂𝗮𝗹 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗕𝗶𝗿𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗵𝗮𝗺 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗧𝗵𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗱𝗮𝘆. If you'd like to find out more about Step Into Teaching, feel free to drop me a message. I'd be more than happy to catch up over a coffee! #StepIntoTeaching #cstconf26 #SchoolLeadership #WorkforceDevelopment

Great teachers start with passion, potential and a desire to make a difference. That’s the graduate talent we bring to schools. Think differently. Grow your own future workforce.

Ahead of the Confederation of School Trusts Annual Conference on 15 October, Joshua Cronin has taken a closer look at the 2026 National School Trust Report and some of the findings around workforce really stood out to us. 41% of school trusts struggled to fill teaching assistant roles last year. 37% struggled to recruit SEND specialists. At the same time, schools are under continued pressure to improve inclusion, raise outcomes and manage increasingly tight budgets. In this video, we share our take on what the report tells us about the education workforce, particularly around SEND, support staff, financial pressures and the way schools are thinking about their future workforce. A lot of it reflects what we are already hearing from the schools and trusts we work with. The challenge isn’t just finding more people. It's finding the right people, when schools need it most, and thinking further ahead about how those people can be developed into the teachers and education professionals schools will need in the future. That is a big part of what we do at Step Into Teaching, helping schools bring talented graduates into education, develop them through meaningful classroom experience and create a longer-term pipeline into the profession. If you’re attending the CST Annual Conference this week, come and speak to us. We’d love to hear what these challenges look like across your school or trust. And if you’re not attending, get in touch with the Step Into Teaching team to find out more. Watch our take on the report below 👇 #CSTAnnualConference #SchoolTrusts #EducationWorkforce #SEND #StepIntoTeaching

The CST National Schools Trust Report 2026 found that 41% of trusts struggled to fill teaching assistant vacancies and 37% struggled to fill SEND roles. Step Into Teaching helps schools add capacity by bringing talented graduates into support roles across the classroom.