School teacher workforce

Published

Last updated 6 July 2023 - see all updates

1. Main facts and figures

  • in 2021, 85.1% of all teachers in state-funded schools in England were white British (out of those whose ethnicity was known) – by comparison, 70.8% of the working age population in England was white British at the time of the 2021 Census
  • 3.8% of teachers were from the ‘white other’ ethnic group, the second highest percentage
  • 92.5% of headteachers were white British
  • 75.7% of teachers were women, and there were more female than male teachers in every ethnic group

2. Things you need to know

What the data measures

The data shows the number of school teachers in state-funded schools in England, by ethnicity.

It also shows the number and percentage of school teachers by role, including:

  • headteachers
  • deputy headteachers (deputises in place of the headteacher)
  • assistant headteachers (assists the headteacher in running the school)
  • classroom teachers

The data includes both full and part-time teachers employed by their school or local authority. It covers all state-funded schools, including academies and free schools.

Not included in the data

The data does not include

  • teaching assistants
  • teachers on contracts of less than 1 month

It also does not include teachers in:

  • independent schools
  • sixth form colleges
  • further education schools and colleges

The ethnic groups used in the data

The data uses ethnic groups from the 2001 Census. Working age population estimates are from the 2021 Census.

The 2001 Census categories do not include the Arab and white Gypsy and Irish Traveller ethnic groups. Data for these groups is included in the ‘Any other’ ethnic group.

Ethnicity was known for around 91% of teachers. Percentages are based on teachers whose ethnicity was known.

Methodology

Read the detailed methodology document for this data.

In the data file

See Download the data for figures dating back to 2016.

3. By ethnicity

Percentage and headcount of school teachers, and percentage of the working age population (2021), by ethnicity
Ethnicity % of teacher workforce Headcount % of working age population (2021)
All 100.0 466,145 100.0
Bangladeshi 0.7 3,384 1.2
Indian 2.0 9,508 3.6
Pakistani 1.3 6,258 2.8
Asian Other 0.8 3,596 1.9
Black African 1.0 4,477 2.9
Black Caribbean 1.1 5,173 1.3
Black Other 0.4 1,719 0.4
Chinese 0.2 884 0.9
Mixed White And Asian 0.4 1,855 0.7
Mixed White And Black African 0.1 695 0.3
Mixed White And Black Caribbean 0.4 1,973 0.8
Mixed Other 0.6 2,768 0.7
White British 85.1 396,478 70.8
White Irish 1.4 6,659 0.9
White Other 3.8 17,820 8.0
Any Other Ethnic Group 0.6 2,897 1.8
Unknown N/A* 40,743 N/A*
Refused N/A* 5,120 N/A*

Download table data for ‘By ethnicity’ (CSV) Source data for ‘By ethnicity’ (CSV)

Summary of School teacher workforce By ethnicity Summary

The data shows that:

  • in 2021, 85.1% of all teachers in state-funded schools in England were white British (out of those whose ethnicity was known) – by comparison, 70.8% of the working age population in England was white British at the time of the 2021 Census
  • people from the ‘white other’ ethnic group made up 3.8% of teachers, and 8.0% of the working age population
  • people from the Indian ethnic group made up 2.0% of teachers, and 3.6% of the working age population
  • white Irish people made up 1.4% of teachers, and 0.9% of the working age population

4. By ethnicity and gender

Percentage and headcount of school teachers by ethnicity and gender
All Female Male Gender Unclassified
Ethnicity All % All Headcount Female % Female Headcount Male % Male Headcount Gender Unclassified % Gender Unclassified Headcount
All 100.0 466,145 100.0 352,972 100.0 112,384 100.0 789
Bangladeshi 0.7 3,384 0.7 2,554 0.7 830 0.0 0
Indian 2.0 9,508 2.2 7,657 1.6 1,850 0.1 1
Pakistani 1.3 6,258 1.4 4,857 1.2 1,401 0.1 1
Asian Other 0.8 3,596 0.8 2,694 0.8 899 0.4 3
Black African 1.0 4,477 0.8 2,895 1.4 1,583 0.0 0
Black Caribbean 1.1 5,173 1.1 3,966 1.1 1,203 0.5 4
Black Other 0.4 1,719 0.3 1,212 0.4 500 0.9 7
Chinese 0.2 884 0.2 669 0.2 215 0.0 0
Mixed White And Asian 0.4 1,855 0.4 1,347 0.5 506 0.3 2
Mixed White And Black African 0.1 695 0.1 519 0.2 175 0.1 1
Mixed White And Black Caribbean 0.4 1,973 0.4 1,524 0.4 447 0.3 2
Mixed Other 0.6 2,768 0.6 2,127 0.6 640 0.1 1
White British 85.1 396,478 85.0 299,943 85.2 95,807 92.3 728
White Irish 1.4 6,659 1.3 4,666 1.8 1,988 0.6 5
White Other 3.8 17,820 4.0 14,125 3.3 3,661 4.3 34
Any Other Ethnic Group 0.6 2,897 0.6 2,218 0.6 680 0.0 0
Refused N/A* 5,120 N/A* 3,774 N/A* 1,317 N/A* 29
Unknown N/A* 40,743 N/A* 29,975 N/A* 10,314 N/A* 453

Download table data for ‘By ethnicity and gender’ (CSV) Source data for ‘By ethnicity and gender’ (CSV)

Summary of School teacher workforce By ethnicity and gender Summary

The data shows that:

  • in 2021/22, 75.5% of school teachers were women
  • in every ethnic group, there were more female than male teachers
  • white British people made up 85.2% of male teachers and 85.0% of female teachers
  • 4.0% of female teachers were from the ‘white other’ ethnic group and 2.2% were from the Indian ethnic group – the next highest percentages for women
  • 3.3% of male teachers were from the ‘white other’ ethnic group and 1.8% were white Irish – the next highest percentages for men

5. By ethnicity and role

Percentage and headcount of school teachers by ethnicity and role
All Classroom Teacher Assistant Head Teacher Deputy Head Teacher Head Teacher
Ethnicity All % All Headcount Classroom Teacher % Classroom Teacher Headcount Assistant Head Teacher % Assistant Head Teacher Headcount Deputy Head Teacher % Deputy Head Teacher Headcount Head Teacher % Head Teacher Headcount
All 100.0 466,145 100.0 398,569 100.0 29,372 100.0 17,418 100.0 20,786
Bangladeshi 0.7 3,384 0.8 3,212 0.4 111 0.2 41 0.1 20
Indian 2.0 9,508 2.1 8,544 1.8 534 1.4 238 0.9 192
Pakistani 1.3 6,258 1.5 5,807 0.9 264 0.5 92 0.5 95
Asian Other 0.8 3,596 0.8 3,303 0.6 170 0.4 67 0.3 55
Black African 1.0 4,477 1.1 4,196 0.6 180 0.3 54 0.2 47
Black Caribbean 1.1 5,173 1.1 4,531 1.2 343 0.8 143 0.7 155
Black Other 0.4 1,719 0.4 1,583 0.3 77 0.2 29 0.1 29
Chinese 0.2 884 0.2 842 0.1 24 0.0 7 0.0 10
Mixed White And Asian 0.4 1,855 0.4 1,632 0.4 113 0.3 52 0.3 58
Mixed White And Black African 0.1 695 0.2 631 0.1 38 0.1 11 0.1 15
Mixed White And Black Caribbean 0.4 1,973 0.4 1,730 0.4 124 0.3 57 0.3 62
Mixed Other 0.6 2,768 0.6 2,511 0.5 134 0.4 65 0.3 58
White British 85.1 396,478 84.2 335,641 87.8 25,798 90.8 15,817 92.5 19,221
White Irish 1.4 6,659 1.4 5,510 1.6 476 1.8 316 1.7 358
White Other 3.8 17,820 4.1 16,234 2.9 855 2.1 365 1.8 367
Any Other Ethnic Group 0.6 2,897 0.7 2,663 0.4 129 0.4 62 0.2 43
Refused N/A* 5,120 N/A* 4,544 N/A* 268 N/A* 126 N/A* 182
Unknown N/A* 40,743 N/A* 36,057 N/A* 2,147 N/A* 1,121 N/A* 1,417

Download table data for ‘By ethnicity and role’ (CSV) Source data for ‘By ethnicity and role’ (CSV)

Summary of School teacher workforce By ethnicity and role Summary

The data shows that, out of teachers whose ethnicity was known:

  • white British people made up 92.5% of headteachers, 90.8% of deputy headteachers, 87.8% of assistant headteachers and 84.2% of classroom teachers
  • people from the Chinese and mixed white and black African ethnic groups made up 0.2% of classroom teachers and around 0.1% of deputy and assistant headteachers – the lowest percentages out of all ethnic groups in these roles
  • the white British ethnic group was the only group with a higher percentage of headteachers than deputy or assistant head teachers or classroom teachers

6. By ethnicity and type of school

Percentage and headcount of school teachers by ethnicity and type of school
State-Funded Nursery And Primary State-Funded Secondary State-Funded Special or PRU Centrally Employed Total State-Funded Schools
Ethnicity State-Funded Nursery And Primary % State-Funded Nursery And Primary Headcount State-Funded Secondary % State-Funded Secondary Headcount State-Funded Special or PRU % State-Funded Special or PRU Headcount Centrally Employed % Centrally Employed Headcount Total State-Funded Schools % Total State-Funded Schools Headcount
All 100.0 230,793 100.0 206,382 100.0 25,279 100.0 3,692 100.0 466,145
Bangladeshi 0.6 1,439 0.9 1,865 0.3 73 0.2 8 0.7 3,384
Indian 1.7 4,024 2.5 5,155 1.1 283 1.2 46 2.0 9,508
Pakistani 1.2 2,704 1.6 3,366 0.7 168 0.6 21 1.3 6,258
Asian Other 0.6 1,275 1.1 2,180 0.5 127 0.4 14 0.8 3,596
Black African 0.5 1,194 1.5 3,013 1.0 263 0.2 8 1.0 4,477
Black Caribbean 0.9 2,025 1.3 2,762 1.4 349 1.0 36 1.1 5,173
Black Other 0.3 584 0.5 1,009 0.5 117 0.2 9 0.4 1,719
Chinese 0.1 265 0.3 592 0.1 24 0.1 3 0.2 884
Mixed White And Asian 0.4 808 0.5 943 0.3 88 0.4 15 0.4 1,855
Mixed White And Black African 0.1 260 0.2 378 0.2 50 0.2 7 0.1 695
Mixed White And Black Caribbean 0.4 904 0.4 927 0.5 127 0.4 15 0.4 1,973
Mixed Other 0.5 1,200 0.7 1,417 0.5 139 0.3 12 0.6 2,768
White British 88.4 204,023 81.2 167,615 85.3 21,564 88.7 3,275 85.1 396,478
White Irish 1.2 2,768 1.7 3,506 1.4 342 1.2 43 1.4 6,659
White Other 2.7 6,325 4.8 9,931 5.6 1,404 4.4 161 3.8 17,820
Any Other Ethnic Group 0.4 996 0.8 1,723 0.6 160 0.5 19 0.6 2,897
Refused N/A* 2,074 N/A* 2,663 N/A* 249 N/A* 134 N/A* 5,120
Unknown N/A* 17,343 N/A* 20,126 N/A* 2,410 N/A* 863 N/A* 40,743

Download table data for ‘By ethnicity and type of school’ (CSV) Source data for ‘By ethnicity and type of school’ (CSV)

Summary of School teacher workforce By ethnicity and type of school Summary

The data shows that, out of teachers whose ethnicity was known:

  • white British people made up the highest percentage of teachers in every type of school – 88.4% in nursery and primary schools, 81.2% in secondary schools, 85.3% in special schools, and 88.7% of centrally-employed teachers
  • teachers from the ‘white other’ ethnic group made up the next highest percentage of teachers in every type of school – 2.7% in nursery and primary schools, 4.8% in secondary schools, 5.6% in special schools, and 4.4% of centrally-employed teachers
  • in every type of school, the lowest percentages of teachers were from the Chinese and mixed white and black African ethnic groups

7. By ethnicity and gender (headteachers only)

Percentage and headcount of headteachers by ethnicity and gender
All Female Male Gender Unclassified
Ethnicity All % All Headcount Female % Female Headcount Male % Male Headcount Gender Unclassified % Gender Unclassified Headcount
All 100.0 20,786 100.0 14,026 100.0 6,694 100.0 66
Bangladeshi 0.1 20 0.1 10 0.1 10 0.0 0
Indian 0.9 192 1.1 147 0.7 44 0.0 0
Pakistani 0.5 95 0.5 67 0.4 28 0.0 0
Asian Other 0.3 55 0.3 38 0.3 17 0.0 0
Black African 0.2 47 0.2 31 0.2 16 0.0 0
Black Caribbean 0.7 155 0.9 120 0.5 35 0.0 0
Black Other 0.1 29 0.1 17 0.2 12 0.0 0
Chinese 0.0 10 0.0 6 0.1 4 0.0 0
Mixed White And Asian 0.3 58 0.3 35 0.3 23 0.0 0
Mixed White And Black African 0.1 15 0.1 10 0.1 5 0.0 0
Mixed White And Black Caribbean 0.3 62 0.4 50 0.2 12 0.0 0
Mixed Other 0.3 58 0.3 42 0.2 16 0.0 0
White British 92.5 19,221 92.4 12,955 92.7 6,203 97.0 64
White Irish 1.7 358 1.6 227 1.9 129 1.5 1
White Other 1.8 367 1.7 236 1.9 130 1.5 1
Any Other Ethnic Group 0.2 43 0.2 33 0.2 10 0.0 0
Refused N/A* 182 N/A* 119 N/A* 63 N/A* 0
Unknown N/A* 1,417 N/A* 908 N/A* 483 N/A* 26

Download table data for ‘By ethnicity and gender (headteachers only)’ (CSV) Source data for ‘By ethnicity and gender (headteachers only)’ (CSV)

Summary of School teacher workforce By ethnicity and gender (headteachers only) Summary

The data shows that, out of headteachers whose ethnicity was known:

  • in 2021, there were around 20,800 headteachers, and over two-thirds (14,026) were women
  • 95.7% of female headteachers were white (92.4% white British, 1.6% white Irish, and 1.7% ‘white other’)
  • 96.5% of male headteachers were white (92.7% white British, 1.9% white Irish, and 1.9% ‘white other’)

8. Data sources

Source

Type of data

Administrative data

Type of statistic

National Statistics

Publisher

Department for Education

Publication frequency

Yearly

Purpose of data source

School workforce data is used to monitor the effectiveness and diversity of staff in schools, and informs policies on pay.

It is also used by other government departments, local authorities, external agencies and educational researchers.

9. Download the data

school-teacher workforce 2022 - Spreadsheet (csv) 2 MB

This file contains the following: measure, year, time_type, ethnicity, ethnicity_type, geography, geography_code, geography_type, gender, gender_type, teacher, teacher_type, school, school_type, value, value_type, and headcount