Jobseekers moving into teaching will benefit the profession, say teachers

The Training and development Agency reports Goverment initiatives such as goldern handshakes for schience and maths teachers and fast track training - as well as the growing number of recession related redundancies - have led to a 45% increase in the number of teacher training enquiries since the start of the down turn.

According to research from Hays Education, the so-called "credit crunch teachers" will bring new skills and experience to the teaching profession. More than a third (34%) thought recruiting teachers from a wider cross section of backgrounds - including commerce - would benefit students.

The survey also showed 59% of teachers were happy with their work life balance.

Martyn Best, director of Hays Education, said: "Interest in teaching jobs has increased during the recession. Naturally, people are looking for the added job security but also taking stock and assessing they really want a career - particularly if they have been made redundant and feel let down by their previous employer."