GTC welcomes trainee registration

The General Teaching Council for England (GTC) agrees with proposals that will see the provisional registration for trainee teachers.

In comments that may interest those considering a teaching job, the organisation said that a registration policy would ensure that individuals in training are suitable to teach and will be properly regulated.

Also noted was that registration with the council is important for pupils' welfare and would result in peace of mind for parents

Keith Bartley, chief executive of the GTC, added: "It allows [trainees] to begin their careers on a professional footing and acknowledges that their commitment to the profession begins on their first day of training."

Trainee teachers will be expected to provisionally register from September this year, with overseas trained teachers and instructors starting to register in 2009.

Set up in 2000, the GTC is the independent professional body for teaching in England and maintains a register of all teachers qualified to work in the UK.

It also advises the government on issues facing the sector.