The Prime Minister today reaffirmed his commitment to boost the numbers of teachers, police officers, nurses and other public sector workers as part of the Government’s drive to build back better from the Covid pandemic in 2021.

In a year which saw the number of nurses grow by more than 13,000, police officers by 6,000, and teachers by 41,000, the Prime Minister will make continuing to recruit the brightest and best into frontline public sector roles a priority in 2021.

Campaigns to hire more NHS staff, teachers, prison officers will be ramped up throughout the year, with ministers ready to redouble efforts to fill frontline roles to further support public services.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said:

We have the very best public servants and I feel an enormous sense of admiration when I think about the care, fortitude and determination with which our doctors, nurses, teachers, police officers and prison workers have faced up to the challenges of the pandemic.

There is light at the end of the Covid tunnel – the vaccine provides increasing hope of returning to normality by Easter and I am determined that we build back better from the pandemic and take advantage of the opportunities that are ahead. My commitment to recruit more teachers, nurses, police officers and other frontline workers is unwavering. We have made good progress this year, but 2021 will be a year of growth and renewal – and having the very best frontline workers will be a critical part of that.

NHS and Social Care

Figures from the Department of Health and Social Care reveal that the number of nurses in the NHS in England increased by 13,313 last year to a record 299,184. The Government is committed to delivering 50,000 more nurses by the end of this Parliament. The number of doctors also rose, with an additional 6,030 to a record 122,446, latest figures up until September show.

The number of nursing and midwifery students accepting places at university this year increased by a record 26% compared to last year, and professionally qualified clinical staff including paramedics are at record levels, as are scientific, therapeutic, and technical staff.

The starting pay for a newly qualified nurse has risen by over 12% since 2017/18. Most existing nurses have also seen a pay rise of at least 6.5% over the course of the latest pay deal.

The NHS Pension Scheme is also one of the most comprehensive and generous schemes in the UK, where the employer pays a contribution equal to 20.68% of salary towards the cost of the pension.

Teachers

Figures show that 41,000 new trainees were recruited during 2020. This year we announced the biggest pay rise the teaching profession has seen since 2005, with above-inflation rises to the pay ranges for every single teacher in the country.

Police Officers

The Government has already recruited almost 6,000 extra police officers, putting us on track to hit the target of bringing in an additional 20,000 police officers this Parliament. In July, the Government announced that police pay would rise by 2.5% in 2020 to 2021, providing officers with an increase above inflation for the second year running.

Border Force

As part of preparations for Brexit, around 900 additional operational staff were recruited in the 2019/20 financial year and a further 1,100 staff will be recruited by July 2021.

Prison Officers

During 2020, a further 1,760 prison officers were recruited across England and Wales, alongside an additional 443 probation officers. The Ministry of Justice plans to recruit a further 3,200 prison officers and 1,500 probation officers during the financial year 2021/22. In July, the Government announced a pay rise of at least 2.5% for all prison staff – with cumulative awards of up to 7.5% for some staff when progression pay is taken into account.

As part of efforts to recruit key frontline posts across the NHS, police, teaching and prisons, public-facing campaigns will ramp up during 2021.

A new TV advertising drive for police officers will launch on Tuesday (5th January) across England and Wales. The campaign aims to showcase the difference that police officers make to their communities – including those from underrepresented groups.

Meanwhile, targeted campaigns in areas with the highest prison officer vacancies will continue during 2021, as will specific campaigns for further recruitment of teachers, doctors and nurses.

The government has today (1 January) announced that the education contingency framework will be implemented across all London boroughs, following a further review of the transmission rates.

In light of Covid case rates rising rapidly across the capital and ongoing engagement with London leaders and the evidence submitted, the government has reviewed the London boroughs where the contingency framework will apply, with all further boroughs added.

The contingency framework is being implemented across London as a last resort to help supress the spread of the virus in the community, protect public health and save lives. The framework is not being implemented due to safety concerns in education. Schools have well established protective measures in place to maximise safety for pupils and staff and help reduce the risk of transmission.

Decisions on which areas are subject to the contingency framework are taken working closely with Public Health England, Department of Health and Social Care and the NHS. Due to the fast moving situation, and where local conditions are changing rapidly, the review of London boroughs was brought forward for a decision today as part of the contingency framework process.

From Monday 4 January, London primary schools will be required to provide remote learning to all children but vulnerable and critical worker children who will continue to attend school.

Early years will remain open in London, as will alternative provision and special schools.

Education Secretary Gavin Williamson said:

Children’s education and wellbeing remains a national priority. Moving further parts of London to remote education really is a last resort and a temporary solution.

As infection rates rise across the country, and particularly in London, we must make this move to protect our country and the NHS. We will continue keep the list of local authorities under review, and reopen classrooms as soon as we possibly can.

Health and Social Care Secretary Matt Hancock said:

Over the past week we have seen infections and hospitalisations rise sharply across London and hospitals are coming under increased pressure.

While our priority is to keep as many children as possible in school, we have to strike a balance between education and infection rates and pressures on the NHS.

The situation in London continues to worsen and so today we are taking action to protect the public and reduce the spread of this disease in the community.

Everyone across London must take this situation incredibly seriously and act responsibly to minimise the spread of this deadly disease.

Evidence shows the new strain of COVID-19 is increasing across the country. The majority of the cases identified in London, the South East and the East of England are of the new variant. Infection rates have increased faster than expected in these areas where the new strain has been circulating and stronger measures are required to get the virus under control.

To support high quality remote education during this period, the government expects to deliver over 50,000 laptops and tablets to schools across the country on Monday 4 January, and over 100,000 in total during the first week of term. Over 1 million devices will be provided in total.

The current plans for rapid testing in secondary schools and colleges remain in place, with two rapid tests available to all secondary and college students and staff at the start of term to identify asymptomatic cases.

The first starter packs of up to 1,000 test kits will arrive at all secondary schools and colleges on 04 January. The 1,500 military personnel committed to supporting secondary schools and colleges remain in place, providing virtual training advice and guidance on establishing the testing process with teams on standby to provide in-person support if required.

Daily testing of all staff and students that have been a close contact of a confirmed case, reducing the need for self-isolation, will continue to be available to all secondary schools and colleges from the first week of term, along with weekly rapid tests for all staff in secondary schools, colleges, special schools and alternative provision.

All pupils, students and staff are encouraged to consent to testing, as are parents of pupils under 16. Testing for primary school staff will follow in the second half of January.

The rollout of laptops and tablets to schools on this scale follows close collaboration between the government and its partner organisations, which has seen over 560,000 devices delivered to schools and councils since the start of the pandemic. With the further rollout this term, over one million will be provided in total – making the programme one of the largest of its kind in the world.

Notes to editors:

Areas with primary schools subject to the contingency framework from the start of term are: Additional London boroughs added: Camden, City of London, Greenwich, Hackney, Haringey, Harrow, Islington, Kingston upon Thames, Lambeth, Lewisham

Original London: Barking and Dagenham, Barnet, Bexley, Brent, Bromley, Croydon, Ealing, Enfield, Hammersmith and Fulham, Havering, Hillingdon, Hounslow, Kensington and Chelsea, Merton, Newham, Redbridge, Richmond-Upon-Thames Southwark, Sutton, Tower Hamlets, Waltham Forest, Wandsworth, Westminster

Secretary of State for Wales Simon Hart has thanked everyone in Wales for the sacrifices they have made during the past year.

In a New Year Message, the Welsh Secretary has looked back over a year which has been dominated by the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, but which ended with the approval of two vaccines for use across the UK – potentially hastening a return to normal life.

Mr Hart also looked ahead to 2021, which will be Wales’ and the rest of the UK’s first outside the European Union for decades and pointed to some of the opportunities it brings as the UK Government seeks to build back better from the pandemic.