DfE Update further education: 21 January 2026
Published 21 January 2026
Applies to England
© Crown copyright 2026
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1. Information: Introducing a simple snapshot data collection of full-time equivalent (FTE) teacher numbers
The Department for Education is introducing a simple snapshot data collection of FTE teaching staff on permanent or fixed-term contracts employed by providers on the third Monday in January each year.
Providers will submit total teacher FTE for 2023/24, 2024/25, and 2025/26.
Providers in scope for this collection include Further Education and Sixth Form Colleges and School-based providers that return their staff data via the FE Workforce return.
This new collection is intended to be straightforward to complete for providers. It will provide a timely in-year view of teacher numbers, helping DfE to monitor workforce trends, It will also inform future policy and funding decisions.
The collection opens Monday 2 February 2026 and closes Monday 16 February 2026. Returns will be submitted through the Submit Learner Data service.
If you have queries about this collection, please contact the customer help portal.