Nigerian teachers will be able to migrate to the UK as from February under a new special scheme

NIGERIAN teachers wanting to work in the UK may soon be able to migrate there under a fast track programme due to be introduced as from February 2023 that will see them take up jobs with a minimum starting salary of £28,000 per annum.

Under the terms of a programme introduced to combat a growing teacher shortage, a starting salary of non-UK citizens who want to teach in the UK would depend on qualifications and the region in which the teacher is applying to teach in. However, in early December, the UK listed Nigeria and some African countries as eligible candidates who can apply for qualified teacher status through the Teaching Regulation Agency as from February 2023.

Other countries listed include Ghana, Hong Kong, India, Jamaica, Singapore, South Africa, Ukraine and Zimbabwe. Applicants do not even necessarily require initial teaching qualifications as the UK offers a training programme for potential migrants.

A Teaching Regulation Agency spokesman said: “All qualified teachers will have a starting salary of at least £28,000. This will be higher for teachers working in London. Your school will have their own pay scales for qualified teachers. Pay increases will always be linked to performance, not length of service, and will be reviewed every year.

“If you can demonstrate excellence against all of the teacher standards, you can be put into the upper pay range for teachers. This is for teachers who make a sustained and substantial contribution to their school.”

Giving a further breakdown on the pay scale per location, the UK stated that teachers in England excluding London would earn a minimum of £28,000 and a maximum of £38,810 for inner London. Beneficiary teachers will attract a sum of £34,502 as minimum pay with £44,756 as maximum pay.