Nursery and primary school teachers work with children between the ages of three and eleven, in state or independent schools.

Nursery teachers work in nursery schools and classes, with children aged three to five. They use mainly play activities to help children's social, personal, physical and emotional development. They are also responsible for developing children's language, literacy and numeracy skills.

Primary teachers teach children aged five to eleven. They are responsible for a class and teach all, or most, areas covered by the National Curriculum. They also have a specialist subject, which they may co-ordinate throughout the school.

Some areas of England and Wales have middle schools that take children from ages eight or nine to twelve or thirteen. Teachers in middle schools teach the primary or secondary curriculum, depending on the age of children in the class. 

Nursery and primary teachers have other responsibilities as well as teaching. These include:

• preparing lessons and teaching materials
• marking and assessing children's' work 
• putting up displays in the classroom
• liaising with other professionals, such as educational psychologists and social workers 
• speaking to parents and carers (both informally and at parents' evenings)
• attending meetings and in-service training
• organising outings, social activities and sporting events.

They may be assisted by teaching assistants or nursery nurses, especially in nursery and reception (first year primary) classes.

Hours and Environment

As a teacher in a state school in England and Wales, you will work 39 weeks a year in school. Teaching hours vary between schools, but are usually 9am to 3.30pm or 4pm. You will also spend a lot of time outside these hours preparing lessons, marking and assessing work, and taking part in other activities such as outings, parents' evenings and in-service training.

Skills and Interests

To be a nursery or primary teacher you need:

• enthusiasm for the subjects you teach
• the ability to build up good relationships with pupils, parents and carers, and colleagues
• commitment to working with pupils and parents/carers of different backgrounds and abilities
• the ability to work in a team but also to use your own initiative
• organisation and time-management skills 
• the ability to manage classes well and deal with challenging behaviour
• excellent communication skills in English (and Welsh where appropriate)
• patience and a good sense of humour.

Entry

To be a nursery, primary or middle school teacher in a state school, you must have Qualified Teacher Status (QTS). For all types of ITT you need:

• GCSEs (A-C) English, maths and science or equivalent qualifications  - you should check with ITT course providers for their requirements
• to pass tests in numeracy, literacy and ITC (information and communications technology)
• a CRB (Criminal Records Bureau) check.

It will be an advantage if you have experience of working with children (either paid or voluntary) in the relevant age group. For example, you could volunteer at a local school or holiday play scheme.

You can choose from undergraduate, postgraduate, School-Centred Initial Teacher Training and employment-based ITT routes, depending on the qualifications you already have.

Undergraduate route
If you do not already have a degree you can train to be a teacher at the same time as completing a degree, by doing one of the following types of course:

• Bachelor of Education (BEd) degree course
• BA (Hons) or Bsc (Hons) with QTS.

The courses last for three or four years full-time. As well as the general ITT entry requirements listed above, you will usually need at least two A levels (one of which should be in a National Curriculum subject) and at least five GCSEs (A-C). If you do not have these, universities may accept other qualifications, such as an Access to Higher Education course. You should check with course providers for their exact requirements.

Postgraduate routes
If you meet the general ITT entry requirements listed above and have a degree or equivalent in a subject relevant to the primary National Curriculum, you can do a Postgraduate Certificate of Education (PGCE) course. You can do these courses one year full-time, two years part-time or flexibly by distance learning. See the Training and Development Agency for Schools website (in Further Information below) for details.

You can search for PGCE courses and apply on-line on the Graduate Teacher Training Registry (GTTR) website (in Further Information below).

School-Centred Initial Teacher Training (SCITT) 
SCITT is classroom-based training which takes one year and usually leads to a PGCE. As this is considered a training course, you will not receive a salary. Visit the Training and Development Agency for Schools website for details of providers. 

Employment-based routes
You can gain QTS whilst working on a trainee salary in a school on one of the following programmes:

• Graduate Teacher Programme (GTP) - you must already have a degree
• Registered Teacher Programme (RTP) - you must have completed two years of higher education (for example, a HND, foundation degree or two years of a degree)
• Overseas Trained Teacher Programme (OTTP) – you must have an overseas (outside the EU) teaching qualification that is equivalent to a UK Bachelor’s degree. 

The number of places on employment-based programmes is limited and there is a lot of competition. You need to meet the basic ITT requirements listed above. See the Training and Development Agency for Schools website (in Further Information below) for full details.

Visit the Training and Development Agency for Schools or the Department of Education Northern Ireland websites (in Further Information below) for full details of all aspects of entering teaching, including funding your training.

Training

When you have completed your ITT course, you will need to successfully complete a probationary period of three terms in employment before you are considered fully qualified. During this time you will have a reduced teaching timetable and will be supported by a mentor.

Throughout your teaching career you will need to keep up to date with new methods and ideas in education by doing in-service training. This could be on training days in school or at local authority training centres.

As a qualified teacher, you may be able to enter the Fast Track Teaching programme, which provides coaching, mentoring and development activities to help especially talented teachers to progress more quickly to senior roles, such as advanced skills teacher or deputy head. There is a challenging selection process, and you must have the support of your headteacher. See the Fast Track Teaching website (in Further Information). The Fast Track programme is not available in Wales.

If you want to teach another age group, there is no legal requirement to do further training. However, schools recommend that you get some experience of the age group you are intending to teach. This could be done on a voluntary basis. Some LEAs and teacher training institutions may offer short conversion or refresher courses. You can get details of some of these from the Training and Development Agency for Schools website. 

If you are a qualified teacher wanting to return to teaching after a career break, visit the Training and Development Agency for Schools website for information, including details of returners' courses and other available support.

Opportunities

Most teaching jobs are in state schools. Teachers could also work in:

• independent schools
• pupil referral units
• hospitals
• schools run by the armed forces.

Part-time or supply teaching is possible.

Vacancies are advertised in the local and national press, in The Times Educational Supplement (TES), and on local authority websites and vacancy lists. There are also specialist agencies that recruit staff for supply teaching, and sometimes for permanent positions. These are advertised in the TES and in newspapers.

As an experienced teacher you may be able to apply for Advanced Skills Teacher (AST) posts. ASTs spend 80% of their time in teaching their own classes and 20% working with other teachers, supporting their professional development and raising standards of teaching and learning. See the Teachernet website (in Further Information) for details. 

In most primary schools, you may be able to progress to curriculum leader, deputy headteacher and headteacher. You may be able to develop your leadership skills through the Fast Track programme - see the Fast Track Teaching website in Further Information below. 

You could choose to specialise in teaching pupils with special educational needs or move into private tuition.

Annual Income

Figures are intended as a guideline only. Salary scales are reviewed each year.

The unqualified teachers' pay scale ranges from £14,391 to £22,761a year (£18,099 to £26,466 in Inner London).
The main salary scale ranges from £19,641 to £28,707 a year (£23,577 to £32,820 in inner London).

Teachers who reach the top of the main scale may apply to be assessed to progress to the upper pay scale. This ranges from £31,098 to £33,444 (£36,885 to £40,002 in inner London).

Teachers of special needs students may receive extra allowances.

Further information

Rosehill
New Barn Lane
Cheltenham
Gloucestershire
GL52 3LZ
Tel: 0870 112 2205 National College of School Leadership
Tel: 0845 058 1066 151 Buckingham Palace Road
London
SW1W 9SZ
Teaching Information Line: 0845 6000 991 Rathael House
Balloo Road
Bangor
BT19 7PR
Tel: 028 9127 9279