What’s Inside – Good News Stories
Wednesday 18th June, 2025
We recently shared our toolkit to support teacher recruitment and retention with all schools in North Birmingham. In this series of blog posts we will be sharing this summer, we dive deeper into some of the sections of the toolkit. Our aim is to support schools to engage with and utilse the resources from the toolkit, and signpost some of the powerful content available to you.
Section in Focus:
This section includes testimonials, extended case studies and snappy splash quotations from recent ITT graduates, emerging middle leaders and senior leaders.
They share their journeys and success stories.
You can use the content here for your own recruitment efforts.
There are three strands to this section of the toolkit:
- Good News Stories – Longer Narratives – read detailed personal stories from colleagues throughout their career about their journey in teaching and learn what motivates them.
- Good News Stories – Short Testimonials – more brief, concise testimonials from a range of colleagues about getting into teaching.
- Good News Stories – Case Studies – read detailed case studies exploring how leaders and trusts have revamped their approaches to recruitment and retention.
Jump to a strand now:
All links open in a new tab.
Deep Dive: Longer Narratives
In today’s post, we’re going to explore the personal journey’s shared by the amazing contributors who volunteered to tell us their Good News Story. We appealed to teachers, leaders and schools across the West Midlands and the responses we received were amazing. We’ve picked out some higlights for you.
Yaqub’s story
Yaqub is an amazing character. Currently a participant on our ECF programme, Yaqub was Titan Teacher Training’s trainee of the year 23-24. He is rightfully very proud of his achievements.
Yaqub’s story is profoundly inspiring. He describes himself as born and bred in Birmingham with Bangladeshi heritage, and his training year as the ‘best year’ of his life. His story is an example of how careers in teaching can create opportunity, stability and social mobility.
We really value this story because it shows how teaching can be such a positive family friendly career. Yaqub’s confidence and enthusiasm run through the story he shared with us, we want others to hear about his journey and be inspired.
“Be a positive force wherever you go! – Be the reason someone smiles that day“
-Yaqub
Nicola’s Story
We know that great teachers can be recruited from all backgrounds and stages of life. Nicola’s story is an example of the social mobility and development that a career in teaching affords colleagues.
Nicola made the bold, brave decision to change her career at 45, having a long background in early childcare and having spent a number of years out of formal employment raising her family. The story she tells shows how great teachers and middle leaders can come from anyhwere, and how a career in teaching can rejuvenate and build confidence.
Nicola also stands as an example of a successful career changer who has rapidly progressed through their role to have impact outside of her own school setting, through her work with Little Sutton English Hub.
“Whatever your background, you will have something valuable to offer“
– Nicola
Why use Good News Stories?
Teachers aren’t always the best advertisers of their own profession and career. It’s understandable, workload is high and the challenges we experience in the classroom and society seem to keep growing.
However, teachers are essential. Many teachers have great experiences and happy, fulfilling careers. It’s easy for good news to be drowned out by more negative perceptions.
We, as the leaders and teachers who are trying to build for the future by recruiting great colleagues, need to fight against the tide and sell the great aspects of our profession. There is plenty of good news to share.
We were so impressed by the stories our contributors told, primarily because they go against the grain of the narratives we often hear about teaching and teacher training. We analysed the themes that emerged, and we want you to share these messages freely and widely:
ITT supports schools to ‘grow their own’ teachers effectively, moulding them from the outset of their career.
Brilliant teachers can be found in all areas of society, some talented people might need encouragement to take the leap.
Access to schools through initial teacher training increases the likelihood of candidates joining and remaining for the longer term.
There is new talent out there for middle and senior leadership.
Use the stories and experiences of the colleagues who shared their Good News Stories with us to promote and foster positive attitudes and messages about the teaching profession.
What next?
Thanks for reading! In our next blog in the series, we’ll be exploring the content, guidance and inspiration you can find in our Recruitment Content section. Look out for our post in the next couple of weeks.
What is the toolkit for?
We want to help you and your school attract and retain the best possible teachers, and to maximise the resources in your school.
We want to support schools with recruitment by supporting effective communication, supporting collaborative partnerships and by driving engagement with teacher training and ongoing professional development, across North Birmingham.
As part of our strategic role to support all teacher training across North Birmingham, we have collaborated with Teaching School Hubs, ITT Providers and schools across the West Midlands to develop a bank of resources to support schools with the recruitment of new staff and retention of existing colleagues.
We believe that teacher training is vital to sustainable recruitment.
