Diversifying the classroom: Lessons from Teach First’s recruitment approach

SAFRINA AHMED, FORMERLY PROGRAMME DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION MANAGER, TEACH FIRST, UK NIKI TOWNSON, HEAD OF CANDIDATE PIPELINE MANAGEMENT, TEACH FIRST, UK Abstract  The teaching profession suffers from a persistent lack of diversity that undermines educational equity. While the National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER) (Sharp and Aston, 2024) found that people of colour are overrepresented among applicants for initial teacher training (ITT), they remain considerably underrepresented in the teaching workforce itself. This disparity is starkly illustrated by Tereshchenko et al.’s (2020) finding that 46 per cent of state schools in England employ no Black, Asian or minority ethnic teachers whatsoever. This absence of representation is damaging not only pupils from underrepresented backgrounds but all students. We cannot build a truly fair education for all without taking action on this. Recognising this imperative, Teach First has developed a comprehensive suite of evide