Qualified to teach

Qualified to teach

The General Teaching Council for Northern Ireland (GTCNI) which is a self-regulatory professional body for teachers has a statutory duty to determine who should be a member of the teaching profession in Northern Ireland.

All teachers who wish to have their qualifications approved for the purposes of registration with the GTCNI and eligibility to teach should contact the GTCNI.

To teach pupils with visual and/or hearing impairment

Qualified teachers who wish to teach pupils with visual and/or hearing impairment must ensure they have the requisite qualifications. Departmental Circular 2007/22 gives a list of acceptable qualifications.

To teach technology and design in secondary schools

Qualified teachers who wish to teach technology and design in secondary schools must ensure they have the requisite qualifications. Departmental Circular 2007/22 gives a list of acceptable qualifications.

To teach in Catholic maintained nursery and primary schools

In order to teach in a Catholic maintained nursery or primary school in a permanent capacity, teachers must hold the recognised Certificate in Religious Education. This requirement was introduced by the Council for Catholic Maintained Schools (CCMS) to recognise that nursery and primary schools have a pivitol role in preparing children to receive each of the sacrements. The Department has undertaken a Review of Employment Opportunities for Teaching Staff.

Teachers who are facing redundancy in a school closure situation, regardless of the sector in which they are employed, are now able to seek redeployment to a Catholic maintained nursery or primary school subject to a demonstrable commitment to the faith based nature of the Catholic education system. If judged suitable for redeployment, those teachers will be required to obtain the Certificate in Religious Education within a reasonable period of time, which CCMS has judged to be three years - CCMS Circular 2013/06 refers.

Appointment of teachers

Teachers are appointed to posts by ‘management committees’ according to the type of school. Vacancies are usually advertised in the Belfast Telegraph, Irish News, News Letter and in Educational Journals. The Department does not appoint teachers.

For a list of the Management Committees please access the link below.

• Management committees

Salary and conditions under current regulations

Teachers:

• are placed on the salary scale according to the determination of employers
• are normally required to be available for work 195 days each academic year
• must satisfy the employing authority that they have the health and physical capacity to teach

The Department of Education is under duty to protect the public funds that it administers and to this end may use the information held in connection with your payroll records/pension benefits for the prevention and detection of fraud. It may also share this information with other bodies administering public funds solely for these purposes.

Regulations

You can buy regulations relating to teachers’ salaries and conditions from: