Teacher and leader development: ECTE and NPQs
Academic year 2025/26

Description

This document describes the data included in the 'Teacher and Leader development: ECTE and NPQs' release’s underlying data files.

The methodology document should be referenced alongside this data. It provides information on the data sources, their coverage and quality as well as explaining methodology used in producing the data.

Coverage

This release contains information on early career teachers (ECTs) and mentors participating in the Early Career Teacher Entitlement (ECTE) and other teachers and leaders who were taking a national professional qualification (NPQ) from the reformed suite of NPQs from the academic year 2021/22 to 2025/26. This release covers:

- the types of schools and locations in which early career teachers started their inductions and other teachers were taking an NPQ;
- the individual-level characteristics of early career teachers who started their inductions and other teachers who were taking an NPQ.

This release is based on the Department for Education's (DfE) Teacher CPD Service dataset, which consists of management information submitted by lead providers, the School Workforce Census (SWC) and Get Information about Schools (GIAS). The SWC collects information from schools and local authorities on the school workforce in state-funded schools in England, and GIAS is the department's register of educational establishments in England and Wales.

The underlying data files include national, regional, local authority, individual level and school level information for early career teachers and mentors participating in the ECTE-based induction and other teachers and leaders who were taking an NPQ in England.

Data files

ECTE mentors trained 2025-26

Filename: teacher_leader_development_ect_mentor_2025_26.csv
Geographic levels: Local authority; National; Regional
Time period: 2021/22 to 2025/26
Content summary: The number of mentors trained to support ECTE participants during their provider-led ECTE based induction programme, broken down by age, ethnicity, experiences, sex role and working pattern.

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name                             |  Variable description
----------------------------------------  |  ------------------------
breakdown_percent_mentor                  |  Share of mentors trained
group_name                                |  Group name
total_mentors_trained_count_provider_led  |  Mentors trained

Footnotes:

1. The appearance of 'low' in the table denotes that the data has rounded to 0 but is not 0.


ECTE participants 2025-26

Filename: teacher_leader_development_ect_2025_26.csv
Geographic levels: Local authority; National; Regional
Time period: 2021/22 to 2025/26
Content summary: Counts of total and SWC-matched ECTs participating in ECTE-based induction, by programme type (provider-led and school-led), geography (national, regional, and local authority), school and pupil characteristics.

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name                   |  Variable description
------------------------------  |  --------------------------------
breakdown_percent_ect           |  Characteristic share
breakdown_percent_swfc_ect      |  Characteristic share SWC matched
count_swfc_ects                 |  ECTE participants matched to SWC
cumulative_ects                 |  ECTE participants - Cumulative
group_name                      |  Group name
percent_swfc_ects_of_workforce  |  Workforce share
programme                       |  Program Type
programme_percent_ect           |  Programme type share
programme_percent_swfc_ect      |  Programme type share SWC matched
teacher_workforce               |  Teaching workforce headcount
total_ects_count                |  ECTE participants

Footnotes:

1. Early career teachers (ECTs) refers to those who started an ECTE-based induction.
2. The 2025/26 characteristic volumes and percentages are provisional. These will be updated next year to include additional characteristics for ECTs who are missing from the current 2024 SWC but appear in next year’s SWC. This will reduce the number of unknowns.
3. The breakdown for academies also includes free schools.
4. The 'Other' category includes all-through schools covering nursery, primary, and secondary levels.
5. Some independent special schools are eligible for NPQ funding under Section 41 of the Children and Families Act 2014. These schools are included in the 'special schools' category
6. The ‘Other types’ category includes city technology colleges, further education establishments, sixth form centres, special post-16 institutions and universities. It also includes non-maintained special schools and some independent special schools eligible for funding under Section 41 of the Children and Families Act 2014.
7. The appearance of 'low' in the table denotes that the data has rounded to 0 but is not 0.
8. Pupil premium decile is a measure of disadvantage. A school is allocated funding for pupils that meet the pupil premium criteria (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pupil-premium/pupil-premium). Data is collected on the percentage of pupils within each school that qualify. In this publication we look at the decile split of schools in terms of this pupil premium percentage.
9. The appearance of 'c' in the table indicates that the data has been suppressed due to low counts.
10. 2025/26 workforce share figures will be updated once next year's school workforce census becomes available as some ECTs are recruited after the collection.


ECTE retention 2025-26

Filename: teacher_leader_development_ect_retention_2025_26.csv
Geographic levels: National; Regional
Time period: 2021/22 to 2025/26
Content summary: ECTs participating in ECTE-based induction who were retained in the SWC after one year, two years, three years and four years, broken down by program type (provider-led and school-led), geography, school and pupil characteristics.

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name                 |  Variable description
----------------------------  |  ----------------------------------------
count_four_year_retention     |  ECTs retained after four years
count_one_year_retention      |  ECTs retained after one year
count_swfc_ects               |  ECTs starting induction
count_three_year_retention    |  ECTs retained after three years
count_two_year_retention      |  ECTs retained after two years
group_name                    |  Group name
percent_four_year_retention   |  Share of ECTs retained after four years
percent_one_year_retention    |  Share of ECTs retained after one year
percent_three_year_retention  |  Share of ECTs retained after three years
percent_two_year_retention    |  Share of ECTs retained after two years
programme                     |  Program Type

Footnotes:

1. Early career teachers (ECTs) refers to those who started an ECTE-based induction.
2. The appearance of 'u' in the table indicates observation of low reliability due to certain subgroups of population having fewer than 30 individuals
3. The breakdown for academies also includes free schools.
4. The appearance of 'z' in the table indicates that the metric is not applicable to this category. This could be as no teachers in this group appear in the School Workforce Census for this category, or for retention, not enough time has passed to be able to look at the two-year figure.
5. The 'Other' category includes all-through schools covering nursery, primary, and secondary levels.
6. The ‘Other types’ category includes city technology colleges, further education establishments, sixth form centres, special post-16 institutions and universities. It also includes non-maintained special schools and some independent special schools eligible for funding under Section 41 of the Children and Families Act 2014.
7. Pupil premium decile is a measure of disadvantage. A school is allocated funding for pupils that meet the pupil premium criteria (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pupil-premium/pupil-premium). Data is collected on the percentage of pupils within each school that qualify. In this publication we look at the decile split of schools in terms of this pupil premium percentage.


NPQ completion 2025-26

Filename: teacher_leader_development_npq_completion_2025_26.csv
Geographic levels: National; Regional
Time period: 2021/22 to 2024/25
Content summary: The number of NPQ starts, completions, passes, the completion rate and the pass rate broken down by funding, course type, geography, school and pupil characteristics.

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name               |  Variable description
--------------------------  |  ---------------
funding                     |  Funding
group_name                  |  Group name
npq_completed               |  NPQ completions
npq_passed                  |  NPQ passes
npq_starts                  |  NPQ starts
percentage_completion_rate  |  Completion rate
percentage_pass_rate        |  Pass rate

Footnotes:

1. The completion rate is the percentage of starts that have completed; NPQs can take up to 22 months to complete so the reporting is lagged by two years.
2. The pass rate is the percentage of completions where the participant has passed.
3. The appearance of 'u' in the table indicates observation of low reliability due to certain subgroups of population having fewer than 30 individuals
4. The breakdown for academies also includes free schools.
5. The appearance of 'z' in the table indicates that the metric is not applicable to this category. This could be as no teachers in this group appear in the School Workforce Census for this category, or for retention, not enough time has passed to be able to look at the two-year figure.
6. The 'Other' category includes all-through schools covering nursery, primary, and secondary levels.
7. Some independent special schools are eligible for NPQ funding under Section 41 of the Children and Families Act 2014. These schools are included in the 'special schools' category
8. The ‘Other types’ category includes city technology colleges, further education establishments, sixth form centres, special post-16 institutions and universities. It also includes non-maintained special schools and some independent special schools eligible for funding under Section 41 of the Children and Families Act 2014.
9. Pupil premium decile is a measure of disadvantage. A school is allocated funding for pupils that meet the pupil premium criteria (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pupil-premium/pupil-premium). Data is collected on the percentage of pupils within each school that qualify. In this publication we look at the decile split of schools in terms of this pupil premium percentage.
10. The appearance of 'c' in the table indicates that the data has been suppressed due to low counts.
11. NPQ starts in international schools are not included. See the methodology note for more detail.


NPQ school coverage 2025-26

Filename: teacher_leader_development_npq_school_participation_2025_26.csv
Geographic levels: National
Time period: 2021/22 to 2025/26
Content summary: The number NPQ starts and participants, the total teaching workforce and the share of the teaching workforce starting an NPQ, broken down by funding, course type and individual and school characteristics.

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name                |  Variable description
---------------------------  |  ---------------------------------------
cum_disc                     |  Cumulative/ discrete
funded_npq_schools           |  Schools with funded starts
group_name                   |  Group name
non_funded_npq_schools       |  Schools with non-funded starts
npq_schools                  |  Schools with any NPQ starts
perc_funded_npq_schools      |  Share of schools with funded starts
perc_non_funded_npq_schools  |  Share of schools with non-funded starts
perc_npq_schools             |  Share of schools with any starts
total_schools                |  Total schools

Footnotes:

1. Schools are based on the number of publicly funded schools and 16 to 19 educational organisations in England and are ‘open’ or ‘open, but proposed to close’ in each academic year.
2. The breakdown for academies also includes free schools.
3. The 'Other' category includes all-through schools covering nursery, primary, and secondary levels.
4. Some independent special schools are eligible for NPQ funding under Section 41 of the Children and Families Act 2014. These schools are included in the 'special schools' category
5. The ‘Other types’ category includes city technology colleges, further education establishments, sixth form centres, special post-16 institutions and universities. It also includes non-maintained special schools and some independent special schools eligible for funding under Section 41 of the Children and Families Act 2014.
6. NPQ starts in international schools are not included. See the methodology note for more detail.


Golden thread 2025-26

Filename: teacher_leader_development_golden_thread_2025_26.csv
Geographic levels: Local authority; National; Regional
Time period: 2021/22 to 2025/26
Content summary: Cumulative counts and percentages of the SWC teaching workforce participating in the Golden Thread (ECTE induction, ECTE mentor training, NPQs), with breakdowns by region and local authority, as well as by school and pupil characteristics.

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name                     |  Variable description
--------------------------------  |  -------------------------------------------
ecte_ect                          |  ECTE participants
ecte_ect_perc                     |  ECTE workforce share
ecte_mentor                       |  ECTE mentors
ecte_mentor_perc                  |  ECTE mentor workforce share
ecte_provider_led_ect             |  Provider-led ECTE participants
ecte_provider_led_ect_perc        |  Provider-led ECTE workforce share
ecte_school_led_ect               |  School-led ECTE participants
ecte_school_led_ect_perc          |  School-led ECTE workforce share
ecte_sl_pl_ect                    |  School-led & provider-led ECTE participants
ecte_sl_pl_ect_perc               |  School-led and provider-led workforce share
ecte_total                        |  Any ECTE participants
ecte_total_perc                   |  ECTE participant and mentor workforce share
golden_thread_count               |  Golden thread participants
golden_thread_count_perc          |  Golden thread workforce share
group_name                        |  Group name
mentor_npq_overlap                |  ECTE mentors & NPQ participants
mentor_npq_overlap_swc_perc       |  ECTE mentor and NPQ overlap workforce share
npq_any_funded                    |  Funded NPQ participants
npq_any_funded_perc               |  Funded NPQ workforce share
npq_any_non_funded                |  Non-funded NPQ participants
npq_any_non_funded_perc           |  Non-funded NPQ workforce share
npq_any_total                     |  Any NPQ participants
npq_any_total_perc                |  NPQ workforce share
npq_mentor_overlap_perc           |  ECTE mentor share of NPQ participants
teaching_workforce_headcount_swc  |  Teaching workforce headcount

Footnotes:

1. The breakdown for academies also includes free schools.
2. The 'Other' category includes all-through schools covering nursery, primary, and secondary levels.
3. The ‘Other types’ category includes city technology colleges, further education establishments, sixth form centres, special post-16 institutions and universities. It also includes non-maintained special schools and some independent special schools eligible for funding under Section 41 of the Children and Families Act 2014.
4. The appearance of 'low' in the table denotes that the data has rounded to 0 but is not 0.
5. Pupil premium decile is a measure of disadvantage. A school is allocated funding for pupils that meet the pupil premium criteria (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pupil-premium/pupil-premium). Data is collected on the percentage of pupils within each school that qualify. In this publication we look at the decile split of schools in terms of this pupil premium percentage.
6. NPQ starts in international schools are not included. See the methodology note for more detail.
7. Teachers can participate in multiple components of golden thread CPD. They are only counted once in the cumulative workforce measure.
8. For each year, participation and workforce share is calculated cumulatively. This counts all teachers who have started each programme in the current or any previous year (from 2021/22 onwards) and are present in the workforce in the given year.


NPQ participants 2025-26

Filename: teacher_leader_development_npq_2025_26.csv
Geographic levels: Local authority; National; Regional
Time period: 2021/22 to 2025/26
Content summary: The number NPQ starts and unique participants, the total teaching workforce and the percentage of the teaching workforce undertaking a NPQ, broken down by funding, course type and individual and school characteristics.

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name                         |  Variable description
------------------------------------  |  ------------------------------------
funding                               |  Funding
group_name                            |  Group name
npq_leaders                           |  NPQ participants at leadership grade
npq_starts                            |  NPQ starts
npq_unique_participants               |  NPQ participants
npq_unique_participants_swc_eligible  |  NPQ participants SWC matched
percent_leaders_npq_participation     |  NPQ leadership workforce share
percent_workforce_npq_participation   |  NPQ workforce share
teaching_workforce_headcount_swc      |  Teaching workforce headcount

Footnotes:

1. The breakdown for academies also includes free schools.
2. The appearance of 'z' in the table indicates that the metric is not applicable to this category. This could be as no teachers in this group appear in the School Workforce Census for this category, or for retention, not enough time has passed to be able to look at the two-year figure.
3. The 'Other' category includes all-through schools covering nursery, primary, and secondary levels.
4. Some independent special schools are eligible for NPQ funding under Section 41 of the Children and Families Act 2014. These schools are included in the 'special schools' category
5. The ‘Other types’ category includes city technology colleges, further education establishments, sixth form centres, special post-16 institutions and universities. It also includes non-maintained special schools and some independent special schools eligible for funding under Section 41 of the Children and Families Act 2014.
6. The appearance of 'low' in the table denotes that the data has rounded to 0 but is not 0.
7. Pupil premium decile is a measure of disadvantage. A school is allocated funding for pupils that meet the pupil premium criteria (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pupil-premium/pupil-premium). Data is collected on the percentage of pupils within each school that qualify. In this publication we look at the decile split of schools in terms of this pupil premium percentage.
8. The appearance of 'c' in the table indicates that the data has been suppressed due to low counts.
9. NPQ starts are the total number of NPQ course starts, with each start counted separately, including multiple starts by the same teacher. NPQ participants are the total number of teachers who started at least one NPQ, with each teacher counted only once.
10. NPQ starts in international schools are not included. See the methodology note for more detail.
11. NPQ leaders are participants whose grade is deputy headteacher, assistant headteacher, or headteacher. Leadership workforce share refers to the number of leaders who have taken an NPQ as a proportion of all leaders in the workforce
