GTC responds to Children's Plan
Wed, 12 Dec 2007 00:00:00

Commenting on the ten year Children's Plan announced on December 11, 2007, GTC Chief Executive Keith Bartley says:

'The GTC welcomes the prospect of a unifying Children's Plan that will provide a basis both to meet the challenges we face in raising achievement and in ensuring the well being of all children and young people. High standards in achievement and the aspirations set out in Every Child Matters are not conflicting aims - in fact they are vital to one another. Children whose broader needs are met in terms of well being are more likely to reach their potential at school, which in turn is the bedrock for success in later life.

'The GTC is launching a debate within and beyond the profession to develop a vision for teaching and a teaching profession that will play its particular part in meeting these challenges. We believe that highly skilled teachers and expert teaching lie at the heart of raising achievement and it is vital that the profession has the opportunity and the resources to refine and share its collective skills, further raising the standards of teaching practice across the profession."

GTC powers

Responding to the section in the Children's Plan which refers to the GTC and its powers to prevent incompetent teachers from teaching, he says:

'A year, or even a term, of poor teaching can have a serious impact on a whole class of children and their needs must come first. Schools and local authorities need to provide early support where a teacher's professional competence is in doubt.

'If a teacher does not improve and is dismissed, it is vital that all employers refer such cases to the GTC. We will now be working closely with the DCSF to further raise the already high standing of the teaching profession by ensuring that every link in the referral process is strengthened.'

Teachers' qualifications

And responding to the ambition for all teachers to achieve a Masters level qualification, he comments:

'Teachers' professional development needs to be rooted in their classroom practice, as this is where it will have the most beneficial impact on standards of teaching and learning. The GTC is working with 40 national partners to develop a national system- the Teacher Learning Academy - which enables teachers at all stages of their career to gain recognition for their professional development, up to and including Masters level.'

About the GTC's regulatory role

The GTC holds three types of disciplinary hearings. It hears the cases of registered teachers who are alleged to be guilty of:

• unacceptable professional conduct
• serious professional incompetence
• having been convicted of a relevant criminal offence.

Most disciplinary referrals to the GTC arise from the requirement upon employers to refer cases where registered teachers are dismissed for reasons of misconduct or incompetence, or where they resign in circumstances where dismissal was a possibility.

For competence cases only, the employer is required to make a referral directly to the GTC.

The GTC currently has the power to strike teachers off the Register in either conduct or competence cases.

For further information contact:

• Natalie Davies on 0207 023 3979 or 07785385636
• Susan Limb on 0207 023 3907 or 07929149427, or
• Fiona Johnson on 0207 023 3943 or 07788101600.