A SCHEME to get more people applying to teach in Bradford’s primary schools has been launched.

Ten teaching “ambassadors” have been chosen to promote teaching in the district as part of the new Bradford Teaching campaign. The Bradford Council-backed scheme kicked off in November with the appointment of 10 secondary school ambassadors, and has now expanded to primaries.

It will see numerous online adverts and social media posts featuring the ambassadors explaining how much of a difference they can make by choosing to teach in Bradford.

Bradford West MP Naz Shah attended the event, at St John Church of England Primary School yesterday, describing the ambassadors as great ‘Bradvocates’.

Those in attendance heard that Bradford’s primary schools needed 300 new teachers every year, and there were huge staffing pressures on some schools.

Callum Power, who teaches at Peel Park Primary, is one ambassador. He said: “In Bradford there is a massive range of different children, there is a lot of diversity, children with different needs, children who come in with problems speaking English, or who speak English as an additional language. Some people might say ‘why do you want to teach children like that?’

“I say that they make you the best teacher you can be. There is a good feeling that in Bradford everyone is passionate about what is best for Bradford.”

Sara Rawnsley, recruitment and retention officer for the council, spoke about the “talent bank” she set up to find the best teachers for Bradford’s schools. New teachers are interviewed by a panel of leaders, and then kept on file to be considered for any teaching roles in the district. She compared it to dating site Match.com, adding that schools could pick the teachers they felt were most suitable for the jobs on offer.

After the presentation, Ms Shah said: “There is an amazing energy around these teachers. They are an amazing set of Bradvocates. This scheme and these teachers’ enthusiasm will help Bradford’s education for the next 20 or 30 years.”

The day also saw the launch of the Bradford Dividend, which will allow newly-qualified teachers to have their student loans reimbursed if they choose to teach certain subjects in a Bradford secondary school. It will also provide funding for teachers to take leadership courses.