The government has named eight teacher trainers that will pilot the new teacher degree apprenticeship from next year, with schools also getting 鈥渇inancial incentives鈥� to cover trainees鈥� salaries while they train off the job. Six universities, plus two partnerships between universities and other providers, for would-be maths teachers who do not hold an existing degree. The government announced last month that a long-awaited degree apprenticeship will launch next year. Gillian Keegan The four-year course, which would see apprentices achieve both a degree and qualified teacher status, will be piloted with 鈥渦p to鈥� 150 trainee maths teachers from September 2025, before a wider rollout. Apprentices will spend around 40 per cent of their time studying and the rest of the time in the classroom. Ministers particularly want to see teaching assistants trained up via the route. Education secretary Gillian Keegan said the pilot was a “vital step and will help to recruit and develop great teachers, and I鈥檓 delighted that these providers have been selected to help us to deliver this”. Pilot schools will get ‘financial incentives’ Under the pilot, the government will provide grants to cover the training. In the wider rollout, training costs will be covered by the apprenticeship levy. Schools that employ trainees as part of the funding pilot will also receive “financial incentives to support with trainee salary costs to cover the proportion of time trainees will spend off-the-job, studying towards their qualifications”, the DfE said. Schools and teacher trainers are also free to 鈥渄esign and deliver鈥� teacher degree apprenticeships across all primary and secondary subjects 鈥渨ithin the same timeframes as the funding pilot and in future years鈥�. However, those doing so would not receive grant funding or financial incentives to cover part of the apprentices’ salary. The DfE said evidence from the funding pilot 鈥渨ill be used to inform considerations on any future expansions of funding grants for the teacher degree apprenticeship鈥�. The government has not said how much funding is available overall to cover training and salary contributions during the pilot. It has also not confirmed on what pay scale apprentices will be paid. It comes after Schools Week reported last week how proponents of the route believe it presents a 鈥済lorious鈥� opportunity for those without a degree to train to teach, will help bring under-represented groups into the profession and give schools a much-needed option to spend levy funding. But they face an uphill battle to convince sceptics about the quality of the route, as unions warn it must not erode teachers鈥� pay and conditions. The providers Nottingham Trent University Staffordshire University, in partnership with the Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire Teacher Education Collective (SSTEC) University College London (UCL) University of Brighton University of Huddersfield University of Nottingham University of Wolverhampton Xavier Teach Southeast, in partnership with the University of Sussex