NUT steps up campaign. On 11 January Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, Ed Balls received a special delivery of 17,500 postcards from NUT members and supporters.

The NUT has been consistent and concerted in its opposition to plans for teachers to undergo relicensing every five years since this was first proposed by the Government in June of last year.

Christine Blower, NUT general secretary, called the planned licence a “pointless and unnecessary hurdle”, and pointed out that teachers already undergo rigorous training and induction, as well as being subjected to a range of monitoring and evaluation procedures, including performance management and school inspections. “Such a large number of postcards shows how angry the teaching profession as a whole is about the Licence to Practise,” she said. “The government should trust teachers’ professionalism.”

Government Minister Vernon Coaker, clearly under pressure from the NUT's campaign, claimed in a recent speech that the Licence to Practise would be ‘automatic’ - why have it in the first place then? This in no way provides necessary reassurance, particularly to teachers starting their careers.

The Union is lobbying opposition parties to persuade them that the licence is not the answer to teachers' professional development needs and we hope that the proposal will be thrown out by Parliament before the general election. If you haven't yet, please sign up to support the campaign here .

You can also show your support for our campaign by e-mailing your MP here.

Over 18,800 members have already sent in postcards against the licence to practise or signed our online petition.