A brand-new, part-time teacher training course, aimed at luring into teaching those who already have a job or career, but who need more flexibility in changing career, has been launched by the University of Hertfordshire.

The new course comes 80 years to the very month after the UK’s first post-war emergency women’s teacher training college was established in Aldenham, Hertfordshire and opened by R.A. (‘Rab’) Butler, the then education minister and architect of the 1944 Education Act. That initiative was also aimed at boosting the recruitment of teachers.

The new course, which is post-graduate, offers a PGCE professional teaching qualification and is intended to appeal to those who may be juggling childcare or other domestic responsibilities preventing them committing to a full-time course.

The University, which has trained over two and half thousand teachers in the past five years and whose teacher training is independently ranked first in the UK out of 52 providers, said teacher training remains a vital part of public service provision at universities.

Vicky Pateman, Associate Dean (Education and Student Experience) at the University of Hertfordshire, said:

“This new course is now open for applications. It follows the charity Now Teach highlighting how those with successful careers and with relevant experience had limited support to help them change career into teaching. We want to help change that.

“We are offering both part-time PGCE Primary and PGCE Secondary routes. Our secondary route is available in 13 subject specialisms: English, maths, biology, physics, chemistry, PE, music, art and design, design and technology, religious education, business education, geography, and modern languages.

“It sits alongside our top-ranked undergraduate and master’s courses that underpin the provision of newly qualified teachers across the east of England.

“Many teachers trained at Herts have gone on to become great teachers and head teachers in schools across the region.

“It is no secret that we need more teachers. Initial teacher training is costly to provide but it’s a critical role that universities play in supporting public service for their regions and communities.

“Through our network of partnerships with schools in Hertfordshire, we play a major role in supporting our education system, just as we do with our health system by providing nurses and medical professionals.”

Professor Penny Carey, Dean of Hertfordshire Law School and School of Education, who has been a school governor for 25 years in Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire across primary, secondary and FE settings, added:

“From my own experience, I have seen the transformational impact of excellent teaching in terms of the life chances for young people in our region. Herts is always looking for ways to make an impact on real-lives and this is another example of our innovative thinking.”

Herts teaching graduates include Kit Brown, whose Tik Tok posts have lit up the Internet and attracted some two million followers. Herts has Partner schools across the east of England including Hitchin Boys’ School.

Tim Bennett, Headteacher at Hitchin Boys’ School, supports the new initiative and said:

“We are acutely aware of the challenges facing all schools in recruiting new teachers but the benefits of teaching far outweigh the challenges.

“We have worked in a highly successful partnership with UH for a number of years as Lead Partners for our local area and have a deep and ongoing commitment to Initial Teacher Training.

“It is through such partnerships that we can look to stem the numbers from decreasing as the profession looks to a variety of routes for potential teachers. There are, for example, an increasing number of career-changers considering teaching as an option and we want to take every opportunity to support them in doing so.

“Those who have followed different career paths before becoming teachers bring a wealth of experience and life skills into schools and we want to provide the flexibility that this part time route will offer.

“This initiative will add to the range of other opportunities that we are looking to provide, from ‘growing our own’ teachers from our local community to providing outstanding levels of support and school experience to all the trainees in our partnership.”

The University’s new course is available for first entry in September 2025 and concludes in December 2026. The study pattern broadly involves three days per week comprising one day at the University and two days in one of its partnership schools. Trainees are well supported through a team of subject and phase experts and a dedicated school-based mentor.

The launch of the new course coincides with a snapshot of education history, when the then education minister R.A. (Rab) Butler opened the emergency teacher training college at Wall Hall in Aldenham, in 1945, which soon after became part of the University’s own history back when it was Hatfield Technical College.

The college was women-only and set up under the 1944 Education Act which re-organised secondary education. The Ministry devised a two-fold plan. A shortened course would be provided free for those with war service and it converted a series of buildings to house them.

Until it was purchased by Hertfordshire County Council, Wall Hall was owned by a wealthy American and used as a residence for U.S. Ambassador Joseph Kennedy, whose son John famously became President. It was then converted for use to train secret agents and after that, as an emergency maternity hospital, before it was assigned to be used for teacher training.