News

Arts teachers and hours fall

16 July 2015

Decline in the hours of arts teaching and number of arts teachers in England’s secondary schools

Department for Education figures published in July 2015 show that between 2010 and 2014 the number of hours the arts were taught in secondary schools fell by 10% and the number of arts teachers fell by 11%.

The rate of decline in the number of teachers and hours taught is speeding up with over a third of the decline since 2010 taking place between 2013 and 2014. 

In comparison the EBacc subjects of History and Geography saw rises in the number of teachers and of hours taught of between 8% and 15%.

  • Design and Technology is experiencing the greatest falls with 15% fewer teachers and hours of teaching.
  • Drama teacher numbers have fallen by 14% and the hours taught by 8%. These hours include teaching time from non-specialists.
  • Art & Design teachers have declined by 6% with a reduction of 9% in teaching hours.

The decline of arts subjects in England’s schools is especially worrying given the wide ranging transferrable skills children gain from studying the arts. These skills have been identified as important for success in the 21st Century by reports from the CBI, OECD and Pearson.

Data from the Department for Education School Workforce in England statistics

Data for Dance is not available in the released DfE figures.

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Data from Department for Education School workforce in England statistic series.