A government-funded flagship teacher training programme is to be renamed after 24 years amid a “shift in strategic direction”. The scheme will still be run by the charity named Teach First, but will be delivered under the new title “Teach Lead Change”. Schools minister Georgia Gould described it as an “exciting new chapter” for the government’s high potential initial teacher training (HPITT) scheme, and a return “to its original purpose of putting the very best trainee teachers into schools in the poorest communities”. Teach First has run the Department for Education’s HPITT scheme since its launch in 2003. The scheme itself has also been named Teach First for the last 23 years. But as its most recent contract came to an end, the DfE signalled it was shifting to rebrand, as it sought a provider to deliver the next iteration of the programme. Tender documents showed the DfE wanted the scheme to have a 鈥渟upplier neutral鈥� identity. ‘Shift in scale and strategic direction’ It was confirmed earlier this month that Teach First was set to be awarded the contract 鈥� worth 拢89 million for up to five years 鈥� in a new partnership with the National Institute of Teaching (NIoT). A press release issued today said the new programme, beginning September 2027, “is specifically focused on training and developing new teachers who would not have otherwise considered teaching”. It said the “priority focus will be on regions across the country where educational inequality is highest”. The new scheme “represents a shift from the 2025 and 2026 delivery years, both in scale and strategic direction, reflecting the Department for Education鈥檚 new vision for the programme”. “This will be marked by the introduction of a new programme identity 鈥� Teach Lead Change.” 1,000 trainees a year Teach First will be responsible for training five cohorts of trainees across five years, up to 2031. The contract could be extended until 2033. Contract award documents show it will be expected to recruit 1,000 trainees per cohort. This will form a key performance indicator (KPI) for the scheme, while others will measure how many trainees achieve qualified teacher status, programme completion, subject specific outcomes, and “delivery of social value commitments”. Teach First’s latest annual report, published in February, showed it welcomed 1,415 trainees onto its 2024 cohort, and 1,434 to start in 2025. NIoT will act as Teach First’s “higher education institution partner delivering the postgraduate certificate in education (PGCE) and trainee services to support academic success”. NIoT will also carry out research to “refine delivery, monitor impact and strengthen the trainee experience”. ‘Greater focus on priority subjects’ The contract award notice showed the new scheme will still be aimed at candidates holding a 2:1 degree or above. It is aimed at those who “would otherwise be unlikely to enter teaching or work in disadvantaged schools, and who demonstrate the potential to become excellent teachers and emerging leaders”. Teach First said the programme “will have a greater focus on placing teachers within priority subjects, such as in STEM”. It was also “allow trainees to explore new pathways in their second year, including in AI, SEND and inclusion, and in community leadership.” Return to roots Teach First CEO James Toop said the charity is “delighted” to continue its work, under the DfE’s “new vision” for the programme. He said the new contract will see Teach First “return to a focus on bringing in skilled new teachers who might not have considered the profession previously”. James Toop 鈥淭his new contract will allow us to double down on our mission: bringing skilled individuals into the profession who might not have previously considered teaching, and nurturing leadership skills that ensure that no child鈥檚 future is determined by their socio-economic background.鈥� Gould described it as an “exciting new chapter” for the HPITT scheme, “as we return the programme to its original purpose of putting the very best trainee teachers into schools in the poorest communities”. A redacted version of the full contract is expected to be published in July. Gould added that the Teach Lead Change programme is “central” to the government’s mission to recruit and retain an additional 6,500 teachers across secondary and special schools and colleges.