How to become a primary school teacher

To teach in a state primary school in England you need a degree and qualified teacher status (QTS). Most people get QTS through a one-year postgraduate course after a first degree, and then spend two school years as an early career teacher. A newly qualified teacher in England outside London starts on £34,069 at M1 on the levels recommended for 1 September 2026.

Routes to qualified teacher status

There is more than one way to reach QTS, and the route mostly decides how you are paid while you train.

A PGCE with QTS is university-based, with placements in schools. School Direct is school-led and comes in a fee-paying version and a salaried version. A SCITT is a school-centred course run by a group of schools. The postgraduate teaching apprenticeship is salaried and employer-led. If you are still choosing a degree, some undergraduate courses include QTS, and there is a teacher degree apprenticeship pilot in maths.

Salaried trainees cannot also claim a bursary. The full comparison is in teacher training routes in England, and the meaning of the status itself is covered in what is QTS.

Entry requirements

The details change by provider, so treat the following as the usual pattern and check the course page. You need a degree, and training providers generally ask for GCSEs in English and maths. Primary routes usually also expect a science GCSE. Most providers want some time spent in a school before you apply, which can be paid or voluntary.

Every applicant gets an enhanced DBS check with a children’s barred list check. Schools also follow safer recruitment rules, covered in safer recruitment in schools. The enhanced DBS fee fell to £41.00 from 5 October 2026, and your training provider or employer normally arranges it.

What primary teachers do

A primary teacher usually has one class for the whole year and teaches almost every subject, including English, maths, science and the foundation subjects. In larger schools some subjects are taught by specialists, and PE, music and languages are often covered by a different member of staff.

Full-time classroom teachers in England work 195 days a year, made up of 190 teaching days and 5 other days. The STPCD sets 1,265 hours of directed time. That figure leaves out the marking, planning and assessment that most teachers do on top, which is why workload comes up so often in surveys of the profession. Our teacher workload guide goes into it.

In a normal week you plan lessons, teach, mark, run playground or door duty, speak to parents, and attend staff meetings. You also work with teaching assistants, who may support the whole class or particular pupils. Reception classes are built around the Early Years Foundation Stage rather than subjects.

What the job pays

The government accepted the STRB’s recommended 3.5% rise on pay ranges from 1 September 2026. The legal pay document (the STPCD 2026) is still in draft, so maintained schools cannot formally apply the new rates until it is published. The LGA expects that in early November 2026, backdated to 1 September.

These are the recommended main-scale levels for 1 September 2026:

Point	England excl. London	Inner London
M1	£34,069	£41,729
M2	£36,042	£43,713
M3	£38,400	£45,787
M4	£40,941	£47,961
M5	£43,529	£50,666
M6	£46,940	£54,131

Outer London and fringe rates sit in between. After M6 a teacher can apply for the upper pay range, which starts at £49,134 outside London. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have their own scales: see teacher pay in Scotland or the main teacher pay scales for England.

Teachers in the Teachers’ Pension Scheme pay a rate that depends on salary. For 2026/27 it is 7.4% up to £36,198.99 and 8.9% from £36,199 to £48,727.99. Work out your own take-home figure with the take-home pay calculator.

Early career teacher induction

Once you hold QTS, you start statutory induction as an early career teacher. It lasts the full-time equivalent of two school years, usually six terms, and is pro rata if you work part-time. Induction is a legal requirement in maintained schools, though academies, free schools, independent schools and further education do not have to run it, although they can offer it. You get a mentor and a reduced timetable. The detail is in early career teacher induction.

Finding the first job

Schools in England advertise on Teaching Vacancies, which is free for schools to use. Applications are on forms rather than CVs, and most ask for a supporting statement. Interview days often include teaching a short lesson and a conversation with pupils. See teaching interview day for what to expect, and browse current roles under teaching jobs.