Download the Annual Report and Accounts for the year ending 31 March 2026.

This document has been laid before the Welsh Parliament jointly by the Auditor General for Wales and the Cabinet Minister for Education and the Welsh Language in accordance with Schedule 1 of the Education (Wales) Act 2014.

Performance report

Foreword from the Chairperson

As Chairperson of the Education Workforce Council (EWC), I am pleased to reflect on another successful year as the independent, professional regulator for the education workforce in Wales. Throughout 2025-26, the EWC has continued to fulfil its statutory responsibilities, acting in the public interest to maintain high standards, support the profession, and improve outcomes for learners and young people.

Our ongoing commitment to safeguarding continues to be at the heart of our work. Through fair, transparent, and robust regulation, we work to uphold public confidence in the professionalism and integrity of those who are entrusted with the education and wellbeing of the next generation.

Like many across the education sector, I was deeply concerned by the report of the North Wales Safeguarding Board, Our Bravery Brought Justice, published in November 2025. Its findings underscore the need for a strengthened multi-agency approach to the safeguarding and protection of children and young people. Safeguarding is a shared responsibility. Strong partnership working is essential to achieving better outcomes by ensuring that risks are identified earlier, and appropriate action is taken. The EWC continues to collaborate with organisations across Wales that share this commitment and remains ready to work together to further strengthen existing systems, clarify responsibilities, and address remaining gaps in policy, regulation, and practice.

Aligned to our focus on safeguarding, we have also continued to work with Welsh Government and other stakeholders in support of key national priorities. These include developing plans for reforming initial teacher education for further education teachers, working towards creating the new national body for youth work, and contributing our data and unique insights to inform Welsh Government’s Strategic Education Workforce Plan, published in March 2026. In doing so, we have contributed intelligence, data, insights, and expertise to guide evidence-based decision making, helping to ensure that the voices of our registrants are clearly heard, and play an integral role in shaping the future of education in Wales.

My predecessor Eithne Hughes, who served as Chairperson of the Council from May 2023 to November 2025, played a pivotal role in leading the organisation during this period. Her leadership helped to reinforce the culture of professional self-regulation that underpins the work of the EWC and supported the organisation to adapt and respond to the evolving needs of the education workforce and the learners and young people of Wales. On behalf of the Council, I’d like to thank Eithne for her service and unwavering dedication.

Finally, I would like to thank you, our registrants and stakeholders for your expertise and commitment. This is vital to raising standards across the education system, and we are proud to support your important work.

Geraint Williams
Chairperson, EWC

Foreword from the Chief Executive

During 2025-26, the EWC has maintained its focus on rigorous, fair, and independent regulation, ensuring the highest standards in the delivery of our statutory responsibilities. In doing so, we continued to prioritise the protection of learners and young people, and to maintain public confidence in the profession.

The seriousness of these responsibilities was brought into sharp focus by the high-profile case at Ysgol Friars and the subsequent Extended Child Practice Review. We share the deep concerns expressed by stakeholders and members of the public regarding the governance and accountability failures identified. In response, we reflected carefully on the findings to consider what further action could strengthen our regulatory approach, enhance collaboration with partner organisations, and reinforce public trust. We have since taken steps to enhance engagement with employers, statutory partners, the police, regulators, and safeguarding bodies to improve information sharing, raise awareness of legal duties, and support earlier identification of risk.

That commitment to robust and transparent regulation underpins all our work. Throughout the year, our work remained grounded in the reliable, high-quality delivery of our core functions. We processed over 18,000 new registration applications and maintained a public Register of more than 91,000 education practitioners. We concluded 358 disciplinary and suitability for registration cases, taking decisive action to protect learners and young people. We also introduced a revised Code of Professional Conduct and Practice, and supported registrants and employers to understand and embed the updated expectations through training, guidance, and new resources.

We also continued to quality assure initial teacher education programmes preparing new teachers to enter the profession in Wales, ensuring they meet rigorous standards through our accreditation processes. This included oversight of existing programmes to confirm their ongoing alignment with the required criteria. Similarly, through our delivery of the Quality Mark for Youth Work in Wales, we supported organisations to demonstrate and strengthen the quality of their provision across the youth work sector.

Alongside our regulatory work, we also maintained our focus on supporting professionalism and learning across the education workforce, including through delivering a wide-ranging programme of events, webinars, and resources designed to help registrants uphold the Code. Our promotion of careers work through Educators Wales also continued to expand, supporting efforts to address the high-profile challenge of workforce recruitment and retention.

Our policy work extended across a broad range of key issues, working closely with registrants and stakeholders, sharing workforce insights, responding to consultations, and participating in (and providing guidance to) numerous steering groups. A particular focus of our policy work this year was on workforce planning, recruitment, and retention across the education professions, and ensuring that regulation both protects the public and strengthens the profession.

We have also continued to work closely with Welsh Government colleagues on future funding arrangements for registration fees, and on the wider legislative framework that underpins our role.

I would like to thank our staff, Council members, panel members, and registrants. Their professionalism, dedication, and collective commitment to raising standards across Wales remains fundamental to everything we achieve.

And finally, following his retirement in August 2025, after 25 years of dedicated service, I would like to extend my sincere thanks to our former Chief Executive, Hayden Llewellyn. His leadership, grounded in a clear focus on safeguarding learners and young people, and a strong commitment to supporting the education workforce, helped shape the EWC into the respected organisation it is today.

Lisa Winstone
Chief Executive, EWC

Overview

This section highlights some our key achievements and activities in 2025-26.

Delivering effective regulation

• Received and processed over 18,000 new applications for registration.
• Maintained a Register of 91,357 education practitioners suitable to practise in Wales.
• Concluded 358 fitness to practise, and suitability for registration cases.
• Imposed 23 Interim Suspension Orders (ISO) and reviewed 29 ISOs.
• Reaccredited three programmes of Initial Teacher Education (ITE) and monitored seven programmes.
• Completed 11 Quality Mark for Youth Work (QMYW) in Wales assessments.

Supporting professionalism and learning

• Issued 1,066 qualified teacher status (QTS) awards and processed 162 applications for QTS recognition from outside Wales.
• Issued 1,256 induction awards.
• Delivered 243 registrant and stakeholder support sessions and presentations.
• Supported 3,544 newly qualified teachers (NQTs) and mentors as part of statutory induction, delivering 49 induction support sessions.
• Supported registrants to develop their Professional Learning Passport (PLP), with almost 27,500 active users.

Promoting careers within the education workforce

• Attracted 656,432 visits to the Educators Wales website.
• Advertised 6,455 vacancies on Educators Wales.
• Attended 219 events as Educators Wales and engaged with 15,199 individuals.

Informing, shaping, and influencing educational policy

• Used our unique data when engaging with Welsh Government, politicians, and other stakeholders.
• Responded to 24 consultations/calls for evidence.
• Contributed to over 40 national steering groups.
• Provided an independent secretariat service to the Independent Welsh Pay Review Body (IWPRB).

Building an efficient, resilient, and sustainable organisation

• Achieved an unqualified audit opinion for the 2024-25 Annual Report and Accounts.
• Achieved a substantial assurance rating across all five key areas audited internally.
• Updated our cybersecurity infrastructure and renewed Cyber Essentials certification as assurance.
• Appointed two new members of the senior management team: Chief Executive in October 2025, and Director of Finance and Corporate Services in February 2026.
• Undertook a comprehensive review of our recruitment processes and workplace accreditations.

About us

The Education Workforce Council (EWC) is the independent, professional regulator for the education workforce in Wales.

Established by the Education (Wales) Act 2014 (the Act), we regulate education practitioners in 13 different registration categories spanning schools, further education, youth work, adult learning, and work-based learning. Our Register of Education Practitioners (the Register) is the biggest public register of any profession in Wales, and the most wide-ranging register of education professionals in the world, with over 91,000 practitioners registered.

Vision

To be a trusted, independent, professional regulator, that works in the public interest to maintain professionalism and enhance standards within the education workforce in Wales.

Role and remit

As well as formally setting out our role, the Act also details the obligations that we have to our registrants, learners and young people, parents/guardians, and the public, and defines our aims and functions.

Our aims

• Contribute to improving the standards of teaching and the quality of learning in Wales.
• Maintain and improve standards of professional conduct amongst teachers, and others who support teaching and learning in Wales.
• Safeguard the interests of learners, parents/guardians, and the public, and maintain public trust and confidence in the education workforce.

Our functions

• Establish and maintain a Register of Education Practitioners.
• Maintain a Code of Professional Conduct and Practice.
• Investigate and hear allegations that may call into question a registered practitioner's fitness to practise.
• Accredit and monitor programmes of schoolteacher initial teacher education (ITE).
• Provide advice to Welsh Government and others.
• Monitor induction and hear induction appeals.
• Promote careers in the education workforce.
• Undertake specific grant funded work, at the invitation of Welsh Government, in areas that are relevant to our remit and aligned with our commitment to enhancing educational standards and outcomes.

Our values

Fairness

We act fairly and with integrity to maintain standards and promote professionalism.

Support

We empower the education workforce to maintain high standards of conduct and practice, acting as self-regulating individuals who uphold the integrity of their profession.

Excellence

We pursue excellence and endeavour to provide a high-quality service for registrants, stakeholders, learners and young people, parents/guardians, and the public.

Collaboration

We work in partnership with the education workforce and other stakeholders to develop and promote excellence in teaching and learning.

Independence

We are independent and regulate in a way that is impartial and based on evidence.

Our people

Our Council is made up of 14 members who set the organisation’s strategic direction and are responsible for its governance. Each member is appointed for a four-year period. Seven members are appointed directly through the Welsh Government public appointments system, and seven are appointed following nomination from a range of stakeholders. As at 31 March 2026, there were three vacancies on the Council following the resignation of one member during the year and two vacancies still unoccupied from resignations received in 2024-25. We supported Welsh Government to progress the public appointment’s process with a view to filling these vacancies during 2025-26.

We currently employ 60 members of staff, whose professionalism and expertise underpin our ability to deliver our statutory functions. Our teams ensure that we operate efficiently and can provide high-quality services to registrants and stakeholders.

We also maintain and support:

• a pool of 57 fitness to practise panel members
• an ITE Accreditation Board of 14 members
• a pool of 54 Quality Mark for Youth Work (QMYW) in Wales assessors

Financial sustainability

As an independent, professional regulator funded by registration fees, we are strongly committed to operating within our means and using our resources efficiently. We aim to keep our registration fees as low as possible, while delivering a high level of service in carrying out our statutory duties. Like other regulators, we maintain appropriate financial reserves to ensure stability and safeguard our services against potential risks from unexpected events.

We receive grant-in-aid from Welsh Government to support us to undertake our statutory responsibilities. We also regularly lead activities on behalf of Welsh Government, where it is considered that we are the most appropriate body to carry out such work in Wales. In such instances, Welsh Government will cover our costs through project grant funding. We are also able to undertake commercial activities and do so where we consider this to be in the interests of registrants and the education sector in Wales.

Our Annual Report and Accounts is audited by Audit Wales each year and, thereafter, laid before the Senedd.

Our Council and committee structures

The Council

• Sets our vision and strategic direction.
• Scrutinises performance.
• Holds the Chief Executive to account.

Executive Committee

Oversees:

• the development of strategic and operational plans
• progress against operational and strategic objectives, through reviewing quarterly reports, and the Annual Report and Accounts
• statutory schemes

Registration and Regulation Committee

Oversees:

• registration and maintenance of the Register
• the Code of Professional Conduct and Practice and fitness to practise
• accreditation of ITE programmes
• initiatives to assure quality and improve standards in teaching and learning

Audit and Scrutiny Committee

Oversees:

• finance and administration procedures
• risk management processes
• cyber security, data protection, and freedom of information
• activity performed by internal and external audit
• reports by the Auditor General for Wales

Senior management team (SMT)

The SMT is responsible for our operations and management. The Chief Executive is responsible for our leadership, in accordance with the strategic direction set by the Council, and oversees the SMT.

Chief Executive

Lisa Winstone (permanently from 20 October 2025, and Interim Chief Executive from 14 July 2025 to 19 October 2025), Hayden Llewellyn (until 11 August 2025).

Director of Regulation and Deputy Chief Executive

David Browne (Interim Deputy Chief Executive from 14 July 2025 to 19 October 2025).

Director of Professional Development, Accreditation and Policy

Bethan Holliday-Stacey.

Director of Finance and Corporate Services

Christine Hellings (from 2 February 2026), Kerry Price (secondment from 1 August 2025 to 4 February 2026), Lisa Winstone (until 14 July 2025).

Strategic objectives 2025-26

Objective 1

Be an effective independent, professional regulator, working in the public interest and building confidence in the education workforce.

1.1. Maintain a register of education practitioners that is accurate and accessible.

1.2. Operate robust, fair, and transparent regulatory procedures which ensure that only those deemed suitable to practise may do so.

1.3 Shape the practice of registrants by by promoting and upholding high standards of conduct, professionalism, and integrity.

1.4. Accredit and quality assure education programmes and provision in Wales.

1.5. Ensure the EWC’s work and the value of professional regulation are visible to registrants, stakeholders, and the public through impactful communications.

Objective 2

Support professionalism and learning, and promote careers within the education workforce.

2.1. Provide a suite of guidance, resources, and professional services, focused on supporting our registrants to uphold the key principles of the Code of Professional Conduct and Practice.

2.2. Promote careers within the education workforce in Wales.

2.3. Lead and support initiatives to promote and encourage effective professional learning for registrants.

2.4. Lead and support initiatives to promote education research and the dissemination of best practice to help inform policy and raise standards.

Objective 3

Inform, shape, and influence educational policy and seek to enhance the regulation of the education workforce in Wales.

3.1. Ensure that the legislation underpinning our regulatory functions is sufficiently robust to enable us to maintain professionalism and enhance standards within the education workforce, in the public interest.

3.2. Provide independent advice, research, and analysis which serves to enhance standards, and inform and influence the development and delivery of education policy in Wales.

3.3. Collaborate with registrants, parents/guardians, the public, and our stakeholders to inform and influence education policy in Wales, helping to enhance standards.

3.4. Offer evidence-based insights into recruitment and retention trends within the education workforce, supporting strategic decision-making and workforce planning in Wales.

Objective 4

Be an efficient, resilient, and sustainable organisation that offers value for money to registrants.

4.1. Manage resources effectively and sustainably to meet current and future needs, making appropriate use of technology to drive efficiency and improve our services.

4.2. Have effective planning, performance management, and monitoring processes, ensuring they incorporate best practice.

4.3. Maintain compliance with legislative requirements (including in relation to the Welsh language, equality, diversity and inclusion, data protection, and environmental sustainability) incorporating best practice.

4.4. Be an excellent employer that promotes a supportive and inclusive culture, where all staff, Council, and committee/panel members feel valued and fully able to contribute.

Performance analysis

Our Operational Plan for 2025-26 set out detailed actions and measures for each of our strategic objectives. Responsibility for delivering these objectives was shared amongst senior officers and delegated to teams as appropriate. Progress was reviewed monthly by SMT and scrutinised by the Council and its Executive Committee through quarterly reviews and annual monitoring reports. Details of our achievements against each objective are set out below.

Objective 1: Be an effective independent, professional regulator, working in the public interest and building confidence in the education workforce

Registration

The Register is central to our work in maintaining professionalism across the education workforce. It protects the public by ensuring that only individuals who meet and uphold high standards can work in regulated roles in Wales.

During 2025-26, we processed 18,767 new registration applications. The largest proportion of these new registrants were school learning support workers, who accounted for 13,063 applications.

Maintaining a comprehensive register is essential to our role as a regulator, but it is equally important that employers, the public, and others can access the Register to verify a practitioner’s registration status. Between 1 April 2025 and 31 March 2026, more than 145,000 online checks of the Register were made. This transparency plays a central role in safeguarding learners and young people and is most effective when employers also understand and fulfil their legal duties around registration.

That is why, throughout the year, we have worked extensively with employers and agencies across the sector to ensure they understand their legal obligations, including the requirement to carry out necessary pre-employment checks for roles requiring EWC registration, and to advise them on how to use their access to the Register.

Alongside our general messaging, our targeted engagement work has included direct correspondence and meetings with over 300 organisations. These strengthen the understanding of the legal obligations that apply to practitioners working in different settings, as well as to highlight the professional benefits of EWC registration.

We also delivered 35 virtual sessions with ITE partnerships and further education colleges to ensure that students intending to join the education workforce are aware of their legal requirement to register.

We undertook several exercises this year to improve the completeness of records on the Register. This included contacting 13,915 registrants to update missing information. As at 31 March 2026, these engagements had resulted in 15.1% of unknown fields being populated, providing a more accurate and comprehensive dataset about the education workforce. More complete information on demographics, qualifications, and employment patterns enables us to better understand the make-up of the workforce. It also provides a stronger evidence base to inform policy development on key issues such as recruitment and retention.

Suitability for registration

Anyone applying to register with us is required to declare any criminal, disciplinary, or regulatory history as part of their application. This allows us to assess their suitability and fitness to practise, making sure only those with the necessary skills, knowledge, and behaviours can work in the education professions in Wales.

During 2025-26, we concluded 268 assessments where applicants made a declaration about previous or pending regulatory, employment, or criminal records issues. This resulted in six individuals being deemed unsuitable to be registered with the EWC in their specific category, or categories, of registration in Wales.

Fitness to practise (FtP)

We have a statutory responsibility to investigate and, if necessary, hear cases of alleged unacceptable professional conduct, serious professional incompetence, and/or a conviction for a relevant offence. Our approach ensures that safeguarding concerns are assessed carefully and proportionately, with appropriate action taken where required.

FtP casework

This year, we concluded 90 FtP cases. This included 51 FtP hearings, of which 48 took place online, and three in person. There are a range of sanctions that can be imposed because of this work. In the most serious of cases, 17 individuals were removed from the public Register, meaning they are unable to practise in the registered professions in Wales. The 39 cases concluded without a hearing were either closed as ‘no case to answer’ by an investigating committee, or did not meet the threshold for investigation and were closed as ‘no further action’.

Our FtP Annual Report, published on our website, provides clear information on trends in our casework, setting out how we handle matters referred to us, the types of cases we consider, year-on-year patterns, and the demographic profile of those involved. By publishing this information, we promote transparency in our regulatory work and support wider understanding of the issues affecting the education workforce.

Interim suspension orders

An increasingly important area of our FtP work is the use of our legislative powers to impose ISOs. These orders allow us to temporarily suspend a registrant’s right to practise in one or more categories of registration, in circumstances where serious concerns have arisen, as an emergency safeguarding measure to protect learners, young people, and the wider public while matters are investigated. This year, we have imposed 23 ISOs, an increase of 64% compared to last year, and held 29 ISO reviews, a rise of 32%.

Induction appeals

We are responsible for hearing appeals from NQTs who fail to complete statutory induction and wish to challenge the decision. We did not receive any induction appeals during 2025-26.

Spotlight on: Collaborative regulation

We recognise that working collaboratively with other organisations responsible for safeguarding creates a more coherent and responsive system. This helps to identify and mitigate against risks earlier and prevents important information from being missed. This collective approach strengthens accountability, supports high standards of professionalism, and enhances the protection of learners and young people, and the profession.

Over the past year, we have engaged with a wide range of organisations and professional regulatory bodies to discuss safeguarding issues and explore opportunities for greater collaboration. We hold annual discussions with police forces in Wales to ensure appropriate data sharing arrangements are in place, and maintain regular engagement with safeguarding leads across all local authorities. In addition, we continue to convene twice yearly with the National Independent Safeguarding Board, and meet annually with the Children’s Commissioner for Wales, where safeguarding is a key agenda item. We have also continued to work closely with Welsh Government colleagues on safeguarding‑related policy and system issues, ensuring that our regulatory insights inform national approaches, and that roles and responsibilities across the system are clearly understood.

Through this partnership approach, we aim to strengthen safeguarding arrangements across Wales for the benefit of learners, young people and the wider profession.

Code of Professional Conduct and Practice

The Code sets out the standards expected of our registrants and is intended to guide their judgements and decisions. It also informs learners and young people, parents/guardians, employers, and the public of the standards they can expect from registered practitioners. Failure to comply with the Code may call an individual’s registration into question.

The Act requires us to review the Code every three years (and whenever a new category of registration is added), and make revisions as appropriate. During this reporting year, we undertook a scheduled review which included seeking stakeholder views through a public consultation. We published a report in August 2025 detailing the consultation responses we received. The revised Code was published on the EWC website on 1 September 2025, and a copy was sent to all our registrants. To support its launch, we released a registrant focused webinar which provided a comprehensive overview of the Code, also available in British Sign Language (BSL).

During 2025-26, we have continued to support our registrants and stakeholders in understanding the requirements of the Code. This included:

• delivering 47 training sessions
• publishing four case studies providing clear, practical insights into the expectations and standards expected of registrants
• adding to our suite of good practice guides, which complement the Code, and provide additional advice to registrants in relation to key areas of practice
• updating two of our short webinars in the Your EWC series: ‘Your EWC: Introduction to the EWC’ and ‘Your EWC: The Code of Professional Conduct and Practice’
• delivering an inaugural EWC employer event to share our knowledge and insights

Spotlight on: Unlocking 25+ years of EWC fitness to practise casework expertise

In May 2025, we held an online event sharing insights gained from more than 25 years of regulatory casework. This was the first time we had hosted such an event, which was designed to give attendees a deeper understanding of our FtP processes and to support more informed future interactions with, and referrals to, the EWC.

Drawing on our experience of over 5,000 cases, the event highlighted examples of good practice and cases illustrating where standards were not met, and provided an overview of how FtP decisions are reached. This gave attendees a practical insight into how outcomes are determined, and the factors that inform these judgements.

The event concluded with a thought-provoking Q&A session, offering attendees the opportunity to share their views, ask questions, and seek clarification on key aspects of our work.

QTS and statutory induction

To practise as a schoolteacher in a maintained school in Wales, registrants must hold QTS and successfully complete a period of statutory induction. This year, we:

• issued certificates to 1,066 people who gained QTS in Wales
• assessed 27 applications for QTS recognition from applicants who gained qualifications outside of Wales
• issued 1,256 certificates to schoolteachers who successfully completed their induction

ITE accreditation

All ITE programmes offered in Wales must be accredited by the EWC and monitored throughout the period of accreditation. We delegate this function to our ITE Accreditation Board (the board). In deciding whether to grant accreditation, the board considers whether the programme meets Welsh Government’s Criteria for the accreditation of ITE programmes in Wales.

No new programmes were accredited during 2025-26. However, one programme that had been accredited with conditions in February of the previous reporting year, continued to be monitored, with all conditions confirmed as met in May 2025. Three programmes were reaccredited and a further seven programmes were subject to routine monitoring activity, ensuring continued compliance with ITE criteria. From September 2025, there were 16 programmes operational across six partnerships.

The EWC has worked closely with ITE partnerships, Welsh Government, and Estyn throughout the year to provide ongoing advice and support and ensure robust and proportionate accreditation processes and procedures. In March 2026 we worked with colleagues from Estyn to deliver an online stakeholder event for ITE partnerships which offered a range of sessions including student teacher planning, developing Welsh language skills, building consistent dialogue between mentors and student teachers, and developing student teachers’ ability to develop pupils’ skills. We welcomed 41 attendees from across all partnerships, with representation from both higher education institutions, and schools.

Following completion of the initial cycle of accreditation, monitoring, and reaccreditation, we have been drafting a report detailing the ITE provision in Wales. Once completed, we will share this report with key stakeholders in 2026-27.

In addition, we are part of the Expert Advisory Group examining the reform of ITE for post-compulsory education and training (PCET). We have emphasised the importance of accreditation and quality assurance arrangements equivalent to those for schoolteacher ITE, in supporting such a reform.

Allocation of ITE intake numbers

In November 2025, in collaboration with Welsh Government, we allocated intake numbers to ITE partnerships for programmes commencing in September 2026. These allocations reflected specific teacher shortage areas in Wales, alongside Welsh Government requirements to support the recruitment of Welsh-medium teachers, and teachers from Black, Asian, and minority ethnic communities. Following the previous years’ approach, recruitment to ITE programmes continued to be monitored throughout 2025-26 in relation to the 2025-26 and 2026-27 intake, with monthly progress reported to Welsh Government. This approach will continue into 2026-27.

Quality Mark for Youth Work in Wales

In January 2020, we acquired the contract for delivering the QMYW, in partnership with Education Training Standards (ETS) Wales, and were successful in retendering for the contract in 2023. In December 2024, we were informed that our original contract to deliver this work had been extended until March 2026.

In 2025-26, we assessed 11 organisations (10 bronze, and one gold). In total, 41 organisations now hold a QMYW award.

We engaged extensively with the sector and provided advice and guidance to organisations and individuals thinking about applying for the QMYW. We have developed and provided training on the QMYW to support new peer assessors. In May 2025, we held an event at the Urdd Eisteddfod in Margam Park to celebrate the achievements of organisations across Wales who have earned the QMYW in Wales.

Communication and engagement

Communication and engagement activity continued to develop over the last year, with new online training, support sessions, and presentations enhancing our existing suite of on-demand recordings.

In 2025-26, we made further progress in improving the accessibility of our communications, adding BSL interpretation to two of our key organisational videos.

We also published a new suite of case study videos, showcasing the PLP and how it is helping organisations in Wales support staff’s professional learning and development. This was accompanied by a dedicated e-flyer and animation.

Digital engagement remained strong during the year, with 10 registrant newsletters, eight blogs, and 27 news articles published on the EWC website, helping us to generate 757,007 page views. Our social media presence also continued to grow, reaching 2,091 followers across LinkedIn and Facebook by the end of 2025-26, an increase of 35% compared with the previous year.

This broader programme of activity was complemented by regular media coverage, with significant coverage given to our FtP work. However, there was also press interest in other topics including our contribution to the Senedd’s Children, Young People and Education (CYPE) Committee inquiry into teacher recruitment and retention in Wales, the appointment of Lisa Winstone as our new Chief Executive, and the QMYW.

Objective 2: Support professionalism and learning, and promote careers within the education workforce

Supporting registrants’ professional practice

Our programme of events in 2025-26 aimed to support registrants in key areas of professional practice. This included a webinar series aimed at raising awareness of our role and the services we offer, with a particular focus on the Code and how to comply with it.

Alongside this ongoing programme, our two flagship events once again provided opportunities to showcase innovative ideas and world-class speakers across a range of topics.

In May 2025, neuroscientist Dr Dean Burnett delivered our annual masterclass on the topic of the developing brain in a modern educational context. Following the success of the event, a special podcast episode was recorded with Dr Burnett where he answered additional questions that emerged from the engaging Q&A session.

In January 2026, leading academic Professor Kelly Mackintosh from Swansea University delivered the keynote at our annual Professionally Speaking event. Professor Mackintosh explored the highly publicised issue of learner behaviour and the potential role that physical activity can play in supporting positive behaviour and wellbeing.

Developing relationships and collaborations to promote professionalism and equity

An education profession where people from all backgrounds are supported, included, and able to thrive is essential to building an inclusive environment for both practitioners, and learners and young people. This year, we have continued to work with partner organisations to develop additional guidance, resources, and professional services for our registrants. This has included establishing a partnership with KidsCare4U and renewing our formal partnership with Ethnic Minorities and Youth Support Team Wales (EYST) to promote careers to individuals from Black, Asian, and minority ethnic backgrounds.

Promoting careers in education

We have a statutory function to promote careers within the education professions in Wales and have continued to build the Educators Wales brand and platform to support recruitment and career progression.

Using feedback from service users, we have enhanced the Educators Wales website (which is funded by Welsh Government) to improve functionality and user experience. The platform’s jobs portal supports employers advertising job vacancies and makes it easier for educators to find their next role. In 2025-26, the website attracted 656,432 visitors and, for the third year running, the Educators Wales jobs portal consistently advertised more job vacancies than any comparable provider in Wales.

We engaged with key stakeholders from across the education sector to review and update content within the careers portal. This ensured that information available to users is accurate, current, and comprehensive. The updated content provides clear guidance on the range of roles within the sector, including associated skills, experience requirements, and salary expectations.

We also met with HR teams from local authorities and further education colleges across Wales to gather feedback on the Educators Wales jobs portal. These discussions gave valuable insights into regional recruitment trends and challenges. The findings from these meetings will inform a more strategic approach to future planning and the delivery of targeted engagement activities.

Through our promotion and advocacy service, we offered support to individuals, employers, and education establishments. Educators Wales was represented at over 219 events, engaging with thousands of individuals interested in a career in education.

We also continued to work with partners to implement specific action plans for priority recruitment areas. This included supporting ITE partnerships with their efforts to recruit to priority subjects, and to attract more Black, Asian, and minority ethnic, and Welsh speaking educators into the profession.

Educators Wales in numbers

• 656,432 visitors to the Educators Wales website.
• 6,455 vacancies posted on the jobs portal.
• 583 queries or requests for advice.
• 71 presentations to organisations, employers, and prospective and current educators.
• 13,794 educator profiles, 65 provider profiles, 715 employer profiles, and 842 employer user profiles.

Spotlight on: Evidencing impact

In 2025-26, we developed an analytics dashboard to deepen our understanding of the data we hold and how it can be used to evidence the impact of our promotion of careers work. We analysed information including:

• the types and number of events and engagements we attend
• the geographical spread of our activity
• the nature of the queries we respond to
• the number of educator profiles we hold
• the volume of job advertisements

We were then able to take proactive steps to monitor and evaluate our impact.

These insights also help us to identify areas where additional resources or support may be needed, whether through increasing team engagement, or strengthening collaboration with partner institutions to improve outcomes. By drawing on this intelligence, alongside broader analytics, we ensure that the information, guidance, and resources we provide continue to meet the needs of our service users, while offering valuable insights to inform future planning and strategic decision making.

Induction

We administer funding, recording, and tracking arrangements for schoolteachers’ statutory induction on behalf of Welsh Government. This year, we continued to work closely with local authorities, the regional consortia, mentors, NQTs, and Welsh Government. In 2025-26, this work included:

• supporting more than:
  • 2,500 new teachers
  • 950 induction mentors
  • 250 short term supply induction mentors, and induction validators
  • 700 schools (as part of the induction programme)
• distributing funding for induction of £3.2 million to schools
• releasing over £1.16 million to the regional consortia to support external verifiers
• providing tailored administrative support to each of the regional consortia
• providing online services, helpdesk facilities, and demonstrations to schools, the regional consortia, local authorities, induction validators, and all registered practitioners accessing their induction profile

National e-portfolio - Professional Learning Passport (PLP)

We continued to develop and maintain the PLP as the national e-portfolio for our registrants, supporting them to plan, record, and reflect on their professional experiences and learning, and to engage meaningfully with their professional standards. The PLP also supports key national professional learning programmes including the National Professional Enquiry Programme (NPEP), the National MA Education (Wales), and the National Professional Qualification for Headship (NPQH), with tailored templates providing a structured platform for participants to evidence their learning and demonstrate progress against professional standards. As at 31 March 2026, there were almost 27,500 active users of the PLP, with over 6,000 new accounts since 1 April 2025.

Spotlight on: Developing bespoke resources

Supporting registrants to make effective use of the PLP is central to strengthening reflective practice and encouraging ongoing professional learning. Alongside our regular training and support sessions, we produced a new promotional portfolio which was distributed to all schools across Wales, highlighting how the PLP can support the professional learning of their staff and the wider education workforce.

Throughout 2025-26, we built on this further, collaborating with 14 individual schools to develop bespoke resources tailored to their staff and aligned with their professional development review processes. These resources enable practitioners to record their professional learning objectives and reflect on their progress in relation to the professional standards, while enabling appraisers to review this progress and provide meaningful feedback.

In addition to this, we partnered with a local authority to create resources for use across its settings. This included new PLP templates designed to support staff undertaking independent and collaborative enquiry projects.

Together, these tailored resources help practitioners and organisations use the PLP to support reflective practice, professional learning, and shared improvement, aligning individual development with the wider ambitions of schools and settings as learning organisations.

Supporting practitioner research

In line with our research strategy, we continued to promote registrants’ engagement with research, recognising its value in informing and strengthening practice. This aligns with the expectations of the Code, which emphasises maintaining up‑to‑date professional knowledge and a commitment to continued professional learning.

We offer a range of online resources to support registrants in doing this, including free access to the EBSCO package of academic journals and e-books. Our book and journal club, Meddwl Mawr, shares monthly recommendations to EBSCO content. During 2025-26, we recommended 16 books covering topics such as learner behaviour, progressing into senior leadership, dyslexia in children, mindfulness, and the relationship between play and education. In June 2025, following our Masterclass event, we published a special edition of Meddwl Mawr which featured four of Dr Dean Burnett’s bestselling books on understanding neuroscience.

Objective 3: Seek to inform, shape, and influence educational policy in Wales for the benefit of the education workforce

Supporting educational policy

We are committed to contributing to, and influencing the development of, policy in the interests of our registrants. Throughout the last year, the Chairperson, Chief Executive, and senior officers met regularly with key figures in education in Wales, including the Cabinet Secretary for Education, senior Welsh Government officials, and education leads from each of the political parties represented in the Senedd. We also worked closely with organisations such as trade unions and a wide range of professional and employer bodies across the education sector.

We participated in, and contributed to, over 40 high-profile national groups with remits spanning schools, FE, work-based learning, and youth work. These groups focussed on key workforce matters such as safeguarding in education and workforce development.

Another key topic affecting the working environments of many registrants is learner behaviour which has become increasingly challenging in recent years. In May 2025, we participated in Welsh Government’s Violence and Safety in Schools Roundtable. We also took part in the Welsh Government National Behaviour Summit, exploring how improved collaboration across the sector could help address these challenges for the benefit of registrants, and the learners and young people they support.

We worked closely with Welsh Government throughout the year to help inform the development of its Strategic Education Workforce Plan, providing written and oral evidence on several occasions. Drawing on our statutory responsibilities, unique data, and system-wide perspective, our insights sought to support the development of a coherent, joined-up, and deliverable strategy.

Alongside this work, we engaged closely with key stakeholders involved in safeguarding across Wales. This included contributing to Welsh Government’s review of school governing bodies, as well as the review of the Wales Safeguarding Procedures, governing allegations or concerns raised against practitioners and persons in positions of trust.

During the year we responded to Welsh Government’s consultation on revised professional standards for assisting teaching, teaching and leadership. This consultation was of particular importance to us as professional standards play a critical part in safeguarding learners, supporting public confidence, and reinforcing professional accountability across the education workforce.

In our response, we welcomed the decision to review the standards and noted their alignment with key national priorities. We highlighted how a clearer structure and more explicit expectations could support consistent understanding and fair application across the system, and emphasised the importance of embedding safeguarding within the standards – including through explicitly referencing the Code of Professional Conduct and Practice.

Evidence-based policy advice

Data and analysis

Our Register continues to provide a rich source of data that helps inform and influence policy development and workforce planning in Wales. It is regularly quoted and referenced in the Senedd, by trade unions, and in the media. We have also undertaken two commissions from Welsh Government to supply data analyses from the Register (as outlined in the 2025-26 grant offer letter), as well as completing three additional commissions - two for one of the consortia and the other for Medr.

In July 2025, we published our Annual Education Workforce Statistics (AEWS) for Wales, detailing the make-up of the registered workforce across schools, further education, work-based learning, adult learning, and youth work settings. For the first time, this included information on those employed as principals or senior leaders (directly managing teaching and learning) in FE institutions, and practitioners of community-based adult learning (employed by local authorities) following their addition to the Register in May 2024. After the publication of the AEWS, we hosted a stakeholder briefing event in October 2025, presenting an overview of the data and highlighting key workforce trends.

In August 2025, we published ITE student results for 2024-25, confirming the numbers being awarded QTS. In December 2025, we released a series of data insights focussing on schoolteachers, including supply teachers and school learning support workers. These insights highlighted key trends across the registered workforce including looking at ITE results, NQTs, supply teachers, and examining recruitment and retention trends and Welsh language ability across all our registrant groups.

Spotlight on: Providing insights on workforce recruitment and retention

Our Register offers unique, long-term workforce intelligence that helps highlight the recruitment and retention challenges facing education settings in Wales. This data places us in a strong position to contribute meaningfully to national discussions and to help shape educational policy decisions affecting our registrants.

During the reporting year, we provided both written and oral evidence to the Senedd’s CYPE Committee’s inquiry into schoolteacher recruitment and retention. Drawing on 25 years of workforce data, we provided analyses and insights on workforce composition, trends, and pressure points, helping to build a more complete picture of the recruitment and retention challenges facing the sector.

We also used this intelligence to inform our policy briefing event in November 2025, which explored the key trends, challenges, and policy options associated with recruitment and retention in Wales. The event featured a panel of experts, including headteachers from Welsh and English medium schools, who offered insights from their own settings, providing distinct perspectives on these complex challenges.

In Autumn 2025, we had the opportunity to discuss matters of workforce recruitment and retention with Welsh Government colleagues as part of our dialogue with them in relation to the emerging Strategic Education Workforce Plan.

We remain committed to drawing on our evidence base to support Welsh Government and other stakeholders as they develop policies affecting the education workforce, ensuring the needs and experiences of our registrants continue to inform decision making.

Legislative matters

The legislation underpinning our regulatory functions is fundamental to the effective delivery of our core remit. However, we believe several legislative anomalies remain which, if addressed, would enhance professional standards and reduce potential safeguarding risks. These include:

• considering safeguarding and accountability arrangements for sections of the education workforce who are not registered or regulated by the EWC, including school administrative staff and caretakers
• placing custodianship of professional standards with the EWC
• extending minimum qualification requirements to all registrant categories
• enabling the EWC to accredit and quality assure qualification programmes leading to registration
• granting the EWC full autonomy to set registration fees and appoint its own Council members

Throughout the year, we have continued to highlight these anomalies to Welsh Government and other stakeholders, with a view to working together to progress the legislative changes required.

Independent Welsh Pay Review Body (IWPRB)

As the independent secretariat to the IWPRB, we played a key role in facilitating the work of the board. This has included supporting the IWPRB to produce reports on a variety of issues affecting the teaching workforce, including a strategic review into the structure of schoolteachers' and leaders' pay and conditions, and a report relating to supply teachers.

In May 2025, we supported the IWPRB in submitting its sixth pay review report to the Cabinet Secretary for Education. The report, including recommendations for amendments to teachers’ pay and conditions in Wales, was published by Welsh Government in June 2025. In December 2025, we supported the IWPRB in submitting its report to the Cabinet Secretary of Education on school leaders’ conditions of service. The report and its recommendations were published by Welsh Government in March 2026.

Objective 4: Be a resilient, capable, and financially sustainable organisation that offers value for money to registrants.

Finance

Our 2024-25 Annual Report and Accounts were laid before the Senedd in August 2025, accompanied by another unqualified audit opinion.

For the financial year ending 31 March 2026, we reported a deficit of £2,133,000 (£1,481,000 deficit at 31 March 2025) and total net assets of £3,140,000 (£4,329,000 at 31 March 2025).

Reserves play an important role within our overall financial management and are integral to the delivery of our Strategic Plan. They also enable the organisation to manage risk effectively, ensure business continuity, and continuation of our ability to deliver against our statutory duties when faced with unforeseen and unforeseeable issues, either of a financial or service nature.

Cost effective services

As our core functions of registration and regulation are funded by registration fees, it is essential that we operate within our means and use resources efficiently. We undertake extensive benchmarking exercises, researching regulators across the world to monitor our fee levels and ensure that any proposals for future models are fair and consistent with other organisations carrying similar regulatory remits.

Throughout 2025-26, work has been ongoing to upgrade our registration database which will further improve performance efficiency, enable us to record more in-depth data, and enhance our registrants’ user journey. Testing of the new system began in February 2026 and will continue throughout 2026–27. The upgrade is due to be completed during 2026-27, subject to final testing and implementation.

Spotlight on: Assurance through internal audit

We are committed to being an efficient, resilient, and sustainable organisation that offers value for money to our registrants. To support this, we undergo regular internal audit reviews carried out by an independent audit service, providing assurance that our organisational controls, processes, and governance arrangements are robust and operating effectively.

The EWC Audit and Scrutiny Committee plays a key role in overseeing this work, carefully examining each audit report and holding the organisation to account in order to maintain strong and consistent standards of governance and compliance.

 In 2025-26, five key areas were subject to an internal audit review:

• business continuity planning
• governance – regulatory compliance
• key financial controls
• induction
• HR management

All five areas received the highest possible audit opinion of substantial assurance, with no recommendations made. This marks the ninth consecutive year in which every internal audit has achieved substantial assurance, a level of consistency that is exceptional and reflects the continued effectiveness of our internal controls.

Supporting and nurturing our people

We are committed to equal opportunities and have well-established approaches to the recruitment, development, and promotion of our staff. Our recruitment processes are continually monitored and tested to ensure compliance with the Welsh language standards and our equality responsibilities. Between January and March 2026, we undertook a comprehensive review of our recruitment processes to further improve our services, with the aim of attracting a wider, more diverse range of candidates in future recruitment activity.

During 2025-26, seven individuals commenced in new posts, three of which were internal appointments.

Staff development

Our staff are our most valuable asset. We support their continuous growth through comprehensive training and development opportunities that align with our organisational objectives. During 2025-26, our all-staff training covered anti-racist practice, General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR), and cyber security awareness.

In addition to organisation-wide training, staff can request specific training as part of the performance and development review (PDR) process. These requests are carefully considered and supported where appropriate, to meet both individual and organisational needs. Over the course of the year, 33 additional training events were delivered in response to requests made through the PDR process and training needs identified later in the year.

Staff wellbeing

Creating a workplace culture that promotes positive physical and mental health and wellbeing remains a central focus. Staff have 24/7 access to a confidential employee assistance service which offers a support helpline and a suite of webinars covering a range of health and wellbeing topics. This is in addition to a dedicated wellness hub which provides a range of resources promoting health, fitness, and wellbeing, including an NHS approved app for the prevention, early detection, and self-management of common mental health conditions.

Our ongoing staff wellbeing programme encourages colleagues to participate in a range of activities designed to support their physical and mental health. Within our office accommodation, we have a dedicated staff room, as well as a multipurpose quiet room, offering a calm and private space for prayer, reflection, and other activities. There are also four mental health first aiders within the organisation trained to support their colleagues.

Supporting members

Council members have extensive knowledge and experience from across the education sector, as well as a lay presence.

We also maintain and support a pool of independent FtP panel members, ITE board members, and QMYW assessors. Throughout the year, we have undertaken several recruitment exercises to ensure we have sufficient numbers of members with the appropriate knowledge and expertise.

All members and assessors undertake induction training before beginning their roles and regular formal training sessions are held throughout the year. These sessions feature input from a range of speakers from other regulatory bodies, legal advisors, and experts within specialised educational fields. Members are also encouraged to identify any further training that we can provide to support them in fulfilling their roles.

IT security

We have rigorous mechanisms in place to ensure the security of our IT network and the data held within it. We renewed our Cyber Essentials certification in May 2025 and undertook payment card industry data security standards compliance checks on a quarterly basis. We also provided mandatory online cyber security training to all staff and carried out regular phishing testing to maintain staff awareness of cyber issues. In March 2026, the IT manager and senior management team attended a Welsh Government senior leadership engagement event, aimed at supporting organisations to develop the maturity of their Cyber Incident Management Plans (CIMP). We are continuing work, commenced during 2024-25, towards obtaining Cyber Essentials Plus, and began working towards gaining IASME Level One accreditation during 2025-26.

Data protection and Freedom of Information

As an organisation, we maintain robust information governance arrangements, supported by policies and procedures that ensure compliance with data protection legislation and FOI requirements.

We provide data protection training to all staff and members. The training is tailored to reflect the different requirements of each role and is reviewed annually.

In 2025-26, we responded to three subject access requests and 15 FOI requests.

Welsh language

We are proud to operate as a bilingual organisation, actively promoting and supporting the use of the Welsh language. We offer all services to registrants in both Welsh and English and work closely with the Welsh Language Commissioner to ensure full compliance with the Welsh Language standards.

The EWC is required to comply with 148 Welsh language standards covering service delivery, operational matters, policymaking, and record keeping. All staff members have a responsibility to ensure that we meet these standards.

In 2025-26, we continued to support and engage with the Welsh Language Commissioner, responding to calls for evidence, regularly attending webinars and information sessions, and updating several internal processes, including our policy on using and promoting the Welsh language internally.

In August 2025, we published our annual Welsh Language Standards Monitoring Report, which sets out our compliance with the standards and provides detailed information on the work that we have undertaken to promote the use of Welsh among our staff, registrants, and other stakeholders.

Equality

Promoting inclusivity, equality, and fairness remains a key priority for the EWC. We champion these principles both within our organisation and across the wider education workforce in Wales. As an employer, we are committed to fostering a workplace culture that values diversity and contributes to the creation of a fairer Wales.

Our Strategic Equality Plan 2024-28 sets out our equality objectives and how we will work to advance equality of opportunity, in alignment with national priorities. The accompanying action plan details how these objectives will be achieved and how progress will be measured.

In August 2025, we published our latest Annual Equality Report which details the progress we’ve made against our five equality objectives. The report demonstrates our continued commitment to embedding equality, diversity, and inclusion across all areas of our work, and to supporting the wider education workforce to do the same.

Environmental and community matters

As an organisation, we continue to focus on minimising our impact on the environment in line with our duties under the Environment (Wales) Act 2016. In January 2026, we published our Biodiversity and Resilience of Ecosystems Duty Report, covering the period 1 January 2023 to 31 December 2025. The report outlines how we have met our statutory responsibilities, highlighting progress in areas such as promoting environmental awareness among our registrants, reducing travel-related emissions, improving recycling, and supporting practical conservation activities. We have also begun developing our first biodiversity action plan which, once completed, will guide our work to further strengthen our environmental approach over the coming years.

Consultation with employees and stakeholders

Employees

We recognise the importance of communicating effectively with all staff, ensuring they are kept informed about internal and external developments. Their views and feedback are valued and actively used to inform our future planning. To support this, we hold two staff workshop meetings each year where staff discuss and help inform the development of our suite of organisational plans and discuss relevant workplace matters.

Our employee forum meets quarterly to discuss a range of matters including any new or reviewed policies, the wellbeing programme, Welsh language in the workplace, equality, diversity and inclusion, health and safety, and the office environment.

This year, we have made significant progress in strengthening our internal communications through the development of a formalised internal communications plan, due for implementation in 2026-27. Employees were heavily involved in its creation, helping to shape its direction and priorities to ensure it reflects the needs of the organisation. The plan provides a structured and consistent approach to how we share information across the organisation, ensuring colleagues are informed, engaged, and supported to understand key priorities and developments. It also supports a more connected organisational culture, helping ensure that staff at all levels feel involved and able to contribute.

Seeking stakeholders’ views

We maintain regular engagement with our stakeholders and partners in the education sector, using a variety of channels to engage and consult on key activities. During 2025-26, we led one formal consultation seeking views on our draft Strategic Plan 2026-29.

We have also engaged widely with registrants and stakeholders, across all sectors, attending and contributing to a wide range of events and initiatives organised by others throughout the year.

Looking to the future

As we look forward to the year ahead, we will continue to build on our progress and deliver the priorities set out in our new Strategic Plan 2026–29. Safeguarding will remain at the centre of our work, alongside our commitment to strengthening our services, deepening our engagement with the education workforce, and ensuring that our systems and processes remain robust, inclusive, and forward-looking.

Key areas of focus include:

• continuing to undertake our statutory responsibilities effectively, efficiently, and sustainably by:
  • delivering robust registration and regulation, ensuring that only those who are suitable and qualified to practise are able to do so
  • working with Welsh Government to ensure an appropriate registration fee model for the future, which allows us to remain independent and financially sustainable
• supporting registrants to uphold the Code, and deliver the highest professional standards by providing and promoting useful information, resources, and services designed to offer guidance and direction
• strengthening engagement with Welsh Government following the 2026 Senedd elections
• highlighting to government and others the need to strengthen the legislation that underpins our work in order to enhance safeguarding, including through:
  • establishing minimum qualifications for each category of registration
  • the professional accreditation of such qualifications
  • custodianship of the professional standards for each registrant group
• shaping and influencing education policy in Wales, including providing and publishing advice on teaching and learning, and relevant matters relating to our registered workforce
• promoting careers in education by undertaking work over and above that outlined in the Education (Wales) Act 2014, through Educators Wales, including targeted activity with individuals, partner organisations, and community groups in priority areas
• enhancing our digital services, including the launch of an upgraded registration database
• continuing to raise awareness of our role by strengthening our communications with registrants, stakeholders, and the public
• delivering Welsh Government funded work in line with agreed targets and timescales

Key risks and challenges

We have robust procedures in place to manage organisational risk. Our risk register ensures that areas identified are closely scrutinised and regularly reviewed by management. We provide further information about risk management in our Annual Governance Statement.

While most risks in the risk register are ongoing in nature, the following are particularly relevant for the coming year.

Future funding model

Our registration fees have remained unchanged since we were established in 2015, and since 2008 for schoolteachers, when we operated as the General Teaching Council for Wales (GTCW). As a fee-funded organisation, it is important that our fee levels continue to support the delivery of high-quality services and enable us to fulfil our statutory responsibilities effectively. To help ensure our approach remains fair and proportionate, we regularly review the fees charged by other regulators in Wales, across the UK, and internationally, and benchmark against wider regulatory practice.

In March 2024, Welsh Government announced that it would not provide registrants with a subsidy towards their annual registration fees for 2024-25. To avoid financial impacts on our registrants, the Council agreed to meet the cost of the subsidy from our reserves. Following confirmation that only a partial subsidy would be available for registrants in both 2025-26 and 2026-27, the Council again agreed to use reserves to cover the resulting shortfall.

During 2025-26, we began initial discussions with Welsh Government on consulting about potential future fee models. These discussions will continue in 2026-27 with the aim of agreeing an appropriate fee model for 2027-28 and beyond.

Registration database

We are in the process of upgrading our registration database to provide a comprehensive self-service system for registrants, employers, and the public. We will closely monitor the progress of this project and ensure there is no interruption to service.

Senedd elections

Following the Senedd elections in 2026, there may be a period of adjustment as the newly formed government establishes its priorities and organises its teams. We will take a proactive approach to engaging with ministers, advisers, and officials to ensure our role is clearly understood and that we are well placed to work with them on emerging national priorities.

Governance framework

We continue to work with Welsh Government to develop a governance framework that is proportionate and appropriate to our remit. As our core activities are funded through registration fees rather than government grant, we operate within tight financial constraints which require strong financial governance. It’s therefore essential that our governance framework reflects the distinct nature of our unique organisation.

Lisa Winstone
Chief Executive
9 July 2026 

Accountability report

Corporate governance report

Directors’ Report

Council

The Council has 14 members. They include seven members appointed by Welsh Ministers from nominees of organisations set out in Schedule 2 of the Education Workforce Council (Membership and Appointment) (Wales) Regulations 2014, and seven members appointed directly by Welsh Ministers. The Council governance and committee structures are covered in more detail in the performance report.

Members for the period 1 April 2025 to 31 March 2026 were:

• Geraint Williams – Chairperson from 1 December 2025
• Eithne Hughes – Chairperson until resignation from Council on 30 November 2025
• David Edwards
• David Williams
• Gwawr Taylor
• Jane Jenkins
• Karl Jones
• Kathryn Robson
• Kelly Edwards
• Nicola Stubbins
• Sue Walker
• Theresa Evans-Rickards
• three vacancies as at 31 March 2026

In addition, the Audit and Scrutiny Committee includes one lay member (Alison Jarvis).

Senior officers

Senior officers for the period 1 April 2025 to 31 March 2026 were:

• Chief Executive - Hayden Llewellyn (until 11 August 2025)
• Interim Chief Executive – Lisa Winstone (14 July 2025 to 19 October 2025)
• Director of Finance and Corporate Services - Lisa Winstone (appointed Chief Executive from 20 October 2025)
• Interim Director of Finance and Corporate Services – Kerry Price (1 August 2025 to 4 February 2026)
• Director of Finance and Corporate Services – Christine Hellings (from 2 February 2026)
• Director of Professional Development, Accreditation and Policy - Bethan Holliday-Stacey
• Director of Regulation - David Browne

The Council maintains a Register of Members’ interests, available on the website, which reports any interests which are, or may be, relevant to their work as a member of Council. Senior officers are required not to hold any remunerated post which would conflict with their duties for the EWC, and any other unpaid positions are reported. Details of transactions with related parties including Council members and senior officers are disclosed at note 20 to the accounts.

Statement of Council’s and Chief Executive’s responsibilities

Under Paragraph 21 of Schedule 1 to the Education (Wales) Act 2014, the EWC is required to prepare, for each financial year, a statement of accounts in the form, and on the basis set out in the Accounts Direction. The accounts are prepared on an accruals basis and must give a true and fair view of the EWC’s situation at the year-end, and of its income and expenditure, and cash flows, for the financial year.

In preparing the accounts, the EWC is required to comply with the requirements of the Government Financial Reporting Manual and in particular to:

• observe the Accounts Direction issued by Welsh Government, including the relevant accounting and disclosure requirements, and apply suitable accounting policies on a consistent basis
• make judgements and estimates on a reasonable basis
• state whether applicable accounting standards, as set out in the Government Financial Reporting Manual, have been followed, and disclose and explain any material departures in the financial statements
• prepare the financial statements on a going concern basis

The responsibilities of the Chief Executive are set out in Managing Welsh Public Money (published by Welsh Government), including responsibility for:

• the propriety and regularity of the public finances (for which the Chief Executive is answerable)
• keeping proper records
• safeguarding the EWC’s assets

As Chief Executive, I confirm that:

• as far as I am aware, there is no relevant audit information of which the EWC’s auditors are unaware
• I have taken all the steps that I ought to have taken to make myself aware of any relevant audit information and to establish that the EWC’s auditors are aware of that information
• this Annual Report and Accounts as a whole, is fair, balanced, and understandable, and that I take personal responsibility for it and the judgments required for determining that it is fair, balanced, and understandable

Annual Governance Statement

The EWC is committed to attaining high standards of governance in achieving its corporate objectives, including the proper management and control of its resources. This statement describes the governance arrangements for the EWC in 2025-26 and the EWC’s risk and control framework, concluding with an assessment of their effectiveness in the year.

As an independent, professional regulator and a public body, the EWC is not legislatively bound by the central government Corporate Governance Code, although it chooses to follow many of its principles to support its practices. As part of their terms of appointment and subsequent suite of governing procedures, Council members are required to adopt the Nolan principles of public life through the EWC’s Code of Conduct and Best Practice for Members. This Code is influenced by the Code of Conduct for Board Members of a Public Body (issued by the Cabinet office in 2011 and reviewed in 2019), Committee on Standards in Public Life (The Nolan Committee), and the additional principles outlined in The Conduct of Members (Principles) (Wales) Order 2001.

Role of the Education Workforce Council

The principal aims and functions of the EWC are to:

• contribute to improving the standards of teaching and the quality of learning in Wales
• maintain and improve standards of professional conduct amongst teachers, and others who support teaching and learning in Wales
• safeguard the interests of learners, parents/guardians, and the public, and maintain public trust and confidence in the education workforce

Governance framework

The governance framework consists of the systems and processes employed in the achievement of EWC activities, and is underpinned by the mission, vision, and values of the EWC. It enables the EWC to monitor and control its operations.

The Education Workforce Council is a body corporate, established by the Education (Wales) Act 2014 and various Welsh Government Regulations, including the EWC (Main Functions) (Wales) Regulations 2015. The Council members (refer to the directors’ report for further information) are required to comply with the Code of Conduct and Best Practice for Members.

Members sit on one of three Council standing committees: Executive Committee, Registration and Regulation Committee, and Audit and Scrutiny Committee. The Council meets three times annually (although four meetings were held in 2025-26 to consider additional items), and typically each committee also meets three times annually, with business reported to the next Council meeting. In addition, the Council has established a Performance Review Committee, consisting of the Chairperson and two other members which agrees the performance assessment of the Chief Executive, confirms the award of any increment, and sets the objectives for the future year.

The governance framework is formalised through the EWC’s Standing Orders, which set out how the Council and committees’ function. In support of that are a series of policies and procedures detailing how the EWC operates and the process for achievement of corporate objectives. These make up the EWC’s system of internal control.

The Chairperson is responsible for providing effective strategic leadership on matters such as formulating the EWC’s strategy for discharging its statutory duties, encouraging high standards of propriety, promoting efficient and effective use of staff and other resources throughout the EWC, and ensuring that the EWC, in reaching decisions, takes proper account of its statutory responsibilities.

Members’ roles are strategic and include focussing on corporate strategy, key strategic objectives and targets, approval of major policy documents, and major decisions involving the use of financial and other resources. Under Standing Orders, the Council may delegate responsibility for specified matters to committees of the Council, the Chairperson, or the Chief Executive. Council members and EWC officers have complementary responsibilities with regard to the formulation and implementation of EWC policy.

Responsibility for day‑to‑day management is delegated to the Chief Executive and senior staff, within a clear framework of strategic control by Council members. The Chief Executive has responsibility, under the Council, for the overall organisation, management, and staffing of the EWC, including:

• ensuring that the EWC complies with all relevant legislation
• monitoring compliance with EWC’s internal policies and regulations
• staff conduct and discipline

They are responsible for the EWC’s proper corporate governance, the effective management of the executive, its financial management, and communications with stakeholders. In their absence, the Chief Executive has established deputising arrangements with the Director of Regulation covering the role.

The Chief Executive is supported by their SMT which comprises of three directors as senior officers, listed in the directors’ report. The SMT meets monthly. Its remit is to advise the Chief Executive on progress against its primary activities, to confirm resource allocation, monitor and control management accounts based on agreed budgets, review and amend the risk register, and to review and approve new and revised policies affecting all aspects of the EWC’s operations.

In 2025-26, the EWC committed to four corporate objectives, namely to:

• be an effective independent, professional regulator, working in the public interest and building confidence in the education workforce
• support professionalism and learning and promote careers within the education workforce
• inform, shape, and influence educational policy and seek to enhance the regulation of the education workforce in Wales
• be an efficient, resilient, and sustainable organisation that offers value for money to registrants

Objectives are interpreted into activities via the three-year Strategic Plan and annual operational plans. Operational and financial performance is overseen by the Executive Committee via quarterly reviews which report on achievements against objectives for the reported period. Financial accountability is achieved via the annual budget-setting, based on approved plans, with production of monthly management accounts, which are scrutinised by the SMT. The format of the annual accounts is based on the Treasury’s Financial Reporting Manual. This ensures clarity about disclosure of financial performance. These accounts, and the supporting financial systems, are then subject to external audit, confirming their accuracy and disclosure compliance and the regularity of financial transactions.

Risk and control framework

The risk and control framework is underpinned by the risk management policy, which forms a key strand of the EWC’s internal control and corporate governance arrangements. The policy is aligned to the main principles outlined in HM Treasury’s Orange Book, although this has not been formally adopted as an approach for the EWC. The policy acknowledges that it is not possible to eliminate all risk but, through the risk register, documents the processes by which risk is reduced to an acceptable level. It also notes that whilst the SMT is responsible for managing the risks, all staff have a role in identifying new potential risks. The policy is reviewed bi-annually, and next due for review in July 2027.

The risk register details all key threats to achieving the corporate objectives, agreed in the strategic and operational plans. Each key risk is given a score based on its potential impact on the business of the EWC and its likelihood of occurring. The management strategy involves accepting, avoiding, reducing, or transferring risks in response. Specific actions required are identified, allocated to a senior manager, and actioned by set deadlines. The risk register includes an evaluation of the level of ‘residual risk’ after the application of the control. Both opening and residual risks are represented using the traffic light warning system and are coloured accordingly (red/amber/green). All risks were considered at the SMT quarterly review.

At the year-end, the risk register included the following main risks:

The risk register is reviewed quarterly by senior officers, and at meetings of the Audit and Scrutiny Committee, which has a remit to oversee the EWC’s risk management policy. Any new risks and controls identified from the SMT review, are reported to the Committee.  

The risk register is taken to Council for consideration once annually, when members confirm that the overall assessment is consistent with Council’s overall risk appetite. This is currently defined as being risk averse and was last reviewed in July 2026.

Financial risks are controlled by a detailed suite of financial control procedures setting out controls, specifying responsibilities, and levels of delegation. Compliance with these procedures promotes high standards of good governance. These were last reviewed in March 2026 to ensure they were up to date and fit for purpose.

The EWC and Council are determined to ensure that fraud is not accepted or tolerated. There are several steps in place to ensure that fraud is prevented including separation of functions set out in the financial control procedures, regular financial monitoring and reconciliation, a staff Code of Conduct describing the standards expected of EWC officers, clear line management systems, and a whistleblowing policy. There were no whistleblowing incidents in the year.

The system of internal control is designed to manage risk to a reasonable level (rather than to eliminate all risk of failure) to achieve policies, aims, and objectives. It can therefore only provide reasonable, and not absolute, assurance of effectiveness. The system of internal control is based on an ongoing process designed to:

• identify and prioritise the risks to the achievement of the EWC’s policies, aims, and objectives
• evaluate the likelihood of those risks being realised and the impact should they be realised
• manage them efficiently, effectively, and economically

The system of internal control has been in place in the EWC for the year ended 31 March 2026, and up to the date of approval of the Annual Report and Accounts and accords with Treasury guidance.

The EWC’s business continuity and disaster recovery plan addresses key risks to the organisation in the event of a threat to business continuity relating to buildings or information systems. This includes an annual testing of the plan. The scenario this year was based on the response to a leak of personal data from the Register and what short, medium, and long-term actions should be taken to address the issue.

The EWC is a data-rich organisation in respect of the education workforce in Wales. Data is contained within the EWC’s databases with the appropriate safeguards in place and, where relevant, shared with individual registrants, and specified information with employers/other organisations. Other internal data is stored securely and managed in accordance with the data protection principles. There have been no reportable data breaches to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) during the year, as confirmed at monthly meetings of the SMT.

We have continued to invest in our IT infrastructure to ensure our internal and external systems remain robust. Information security is supported by the nightly backup of EWC data to an off-site cloud-based backup service.

The EWC has a published standards of service document with a system and timescale for dealing with complaints. Two complaints have been received this financial year which were both responded to in accordance with the timescales set out in our standards of service document.

The EWC is committed to deploying its human resources to promote strong corporate governance. It is committed to developing competent and well-trained people to perform the various functions. During the year, it continued with an all-staff training programme, covering specific and general topics. This is in addition to individual identified training provision, including support for studying toward relevant professional qualifications.

An annual training day was held with Council members in April 2025 which covered a variety of topics including insights from the Institute of Regulation, driving quality forward, and professional perspectives from fellow Council members.

The EWC has its own annual PDR programme, which assesses officers’ performance over the previous year and identifies specific objectives and training needs for the following year.

All officers are obliged to comply with the Code of Conduct for employees of the EWC. The EWC has a range of HR policies to ensure consistent expectations and levels of support. Staff have access to a whistleblowing policy including named Council members should the need arise. No matters were raised in 2025-26.

Review of Council’s effectiveness

Members’ attendance at meetings held during 2025-26 is detailed in the following table (total possible meetings in brackets):

*Chairperson of Audit and Scrutiny Committee

Members participate in an annual members’ review process, including an annual self-assessment of performance by members themselves, and an assessment of performance of all members by the Chairperson. This has recently been completed for the 2025-26 year and continues to be very successful.

Achievements against operational objectives are reported and reviewed regularly throughout the year via quarterly reviews. These reviews note achievement on the short-term outcomes and highlight any action remaining. This document is considered by the Chief Executive and the SMT and is overseen by the Executive Committee. A summary of the EWC’s achievements of objectives in 2025-26 is given in the performance report.

In addition, in respect of activities which are publicly funded, regular meetings are held with Welsh Government officials to monitor the achievement of those specific operational objectives. All operational targets were achieved.

Audit and Scrutiny Committee

The Audit and Scrutiny Committee plays a significant role in the corporate governance structure, and through its review advises the Chief Executive on the efficacy of policies, systems, and procedures. Its terms of reference are included within EWC’s standing orders.

During the year, it has received and reviewed various reports from both internal and external auditors, completed an assessment of internal and external auditors’ performance, and reviewed the risk register at each meeting. The committee also received an annual report on compliance with the Freedom of Information Act and Data Protection Act and an annual report on IT services.

All committee activity has supported a positive assessment of the EWC’s governance arrangements.

Internal audit

TIAA acted as internal auditors for the year ending 31 March 2026. Within an over-arching three-year plan which ensures cyclical coverage of all areas, an annual programme of work is agreed prior to the financial year. As reviews are completed during the year, reports are presented to the Audit and Scrutiny Committee. The results of the year are summarised in an annual report.

A total of five reports were completed in 2025-26:

• governance – regulatory compliance Welsh Language standards
• business continuity planning
• key financial controls - payroll, overtime, travel, and subsistence
• induction - NQTs
• HR management

The following table summarises the level of assurance, and recommendations from each review:

The annual report concluded that “…for the areas reviewed during the year, the Education Workforce Council has reasonable and effective risk management, control and governance processes in place.”

External audit

The audit of the 2025-26 Annual Accounts was completed on his behalf by Audit Wales.

Comments on the audit of the 2024-25 Annual Accounts were positive, with the AGW issuing an unqualified audit opinion, confirming that no significant matters had arisen as a result of audit testing, and noting that auditors had not found any material instances where resources have not been properly used and accounted for.

Significant governance issues

The Council has not identified any significant governance issues in the year, nor have any areas of concern been identified which require strengthening or improvement.

My operational focus has been on:

• registering and regulating each of the 13 registrant groups set out in legislation
• publishing a revised Code of Professional Conduct and Practice for the education professions
• implementing ITE accreditation processes as set out in legislation
• delivering all Welsh Government grant funded activities to standards agreed
• reviewing and implementing the impact on EWC reserves as a result of the reduction of the registrant fee subsidy from Welsh Government and reviewing options for a future fee consultation

There were no losses or special payments incurred in the year.

In addition, there were no referrals to the Information Commissioner’s Office in respect of activity in-year, and no complaints have been raised.

Statement by Chief Executive

In summary, I am satisfied that the governance framework of the EWC during the year has been effective, giving assurance of the proper stewardship of resources in performance of its objectives.

Lisa Winstone
Chief Executive
9 July 2026

 

Remuneration and staff report

Remuneration policy

The remuneration and staff report details remuneration practices in respect of Council members and EWC staff.

Service contracts

Staff appointments are made in accordance with the EWC’s recruitment and selection policy. The policy requires appointments to be made on merit through fair and open competition, while also outlining the circumstances when appointments may otherwise be made.

The senior staff covered by this report hold appointments which are open-ended, with the exception of the secondment of the interim Director of Finance and Corporate Resources. Early termination, other than for misconduct, would result in the individual receiving compensation as set out in the Civil Service Compensation Scheme.

With the exception of the Chief Executive, all staff salaries are based on Welsh Government salary scales. The Chief Executive’s remuneration is based on an incremental scale, and any progression is approved by the Chairperson and confirmed by the Performance Review Committee. No bonuses are payable.

Members’ remuneration*

The Chairperson is the only member of Council who may be remunerated. The office is not entitled to membership of the EWC's pension scheme.

Geraint Williams was elected as Chairperson from 1 December 2025, replacing Eithne Hughes who stood down as Chairperson on the 30 November 2025. Geraint Williams’ appointment was treated as a secondment and a proportion of his salary reimbursed to his employer. Eithne Hughes received remuneration from the EWC for her commitment of two days per week until the end of her appointment.

All other Council members are paid for their expenses, including the reimbursement of costs incurred in travelling to meetings, and payment of supply cover to their employers or equivalent costs, as appropriate. This expenditure is reported as Members’ costs at note 4.

*This information is subject to audit

Senior staff remuneration*

The salary, pension entitlements, and the value of any taxable benefits in kind of the most senior officers of the EWC were, as follows:

^xHayden Llewellyn resigned on the 11 August 2025 and Lisa Winstone became the Chief Executive from 20 October 2025 (following a period as the interim Chief Executive 14 July 2025 to 19 October 2025). 

^xxInformation contained within the Annex 13a for the 2024-25 comparatives have been restated for Lisa Winstone and David Browne and reduced by £23,000 and £2,000 respectively.

^xxxChristine Hellings joined the EWC as the Director of Finance and Corporate Services from 2 February 2026, replacing Lisa Winstone.

^xxxx During the financial year, Kerry Price was seconded to the EWC from their home department for the period 1 August 2025 to 4 February 2026, as the interim Director of Finance and Corporate Services. This provided continuity while a recruitment exercise was undertaken for a permanent replacement following Lisa Winstone’s appointment as Chief Executive from 20 October 2025. Salary and contractual benefits relating to the secondment period were recharged to the EWC from the home department. Pension contributions (both employee and employer) were administered by the home department, in line with the secondment agreement. The remuneration disclosed in this report reflects the cost borne by the EWC during the period of secondment.

Salary

Salary includes gross salary, overtime, and any other allowance to the extent that it is subject to UK taxation. This report is based on payments made by the EWC and thus recorded in these accounts.

No bonuses are payable by the EWC.

*This information is subject to audit

Fair pay disclosures*

Reporting bodies are required to disclose the relationship between the remuneration of the highest-paid director in their organisation and the remuneration of the organisation’s workforce.

The banded remuneration of the highest-paid director in the EWC in the financial year 2025-26 was £95,000-£100,000 (2024-25 £110,000-£115,000). The percentage change from the previous financial year is -13.3% % (2024-25 4.65%). The highest paid director’s total remuneration for the year is lower than the prior year due to a change in pay grade following staffing changes during the period. The average salary and allowances (excluding the highest paid director) has increased by 4.45% (2024-25 6.43%) due to the implementation of an all staff pay award with effect from 1 April 2025.

The remuneration of the highest paid director was 2.8 times (2024-25 3.3) the 25^th percentile remuneration of the workforce, which was £34,997 (2024-25 £33,748), 2.6 times (2024-25 3.2) the median remuneration of the workforce, which was £37,112 (2024-25 £34,768), and 2.0 times (2024-25 2.5) the 75^th percentile remuneration of the workforce, which was £47,648 (2024-25 £45,974). Both the 25^th and 75^th percentile pay ratios have reduced in year, mainly as a result of a reduction in the pay band of the Chief Executive. The movements between 2024-25 and 2025-26 are due to a 3.7% (2024-25 5%) all staff pay award implemented with effect from 1 April 2025 which impacted all staff, where incremental awards have been processed when staff are not at the maximum of their scale, and also where new employees have joined the organisation but are on a lower point of the scale than their predecessors.

In 2025-26, no employees (2024-25, nil) received remuneration in excess of the highest-paid director (the Chief Executive). Remuneration ranged from £29,292-£98,755 (2024-25, £28,246 to £111,359).

Total remuneration includes salary, non-consolidated performance-related pay, and benefits-in-kind. It does not include employer pension contributions and the cash equivalent transfer value of pensions.

Benefits in kind

The monetary value of benefits in kind covers any benefits provided by the EWC and treated by HM Revenue and Customs as a taxable emolument. No benefits in kind were paid during the year.

Pension benefits*

 

^x Pension contributions (both employee and employer) were administered by the home department in line with secondment agreement.

Any pension costs recharged to the EWC form part of the total cost of the secondment but do not give rise to additional pension liabilities for this organisation.

Civil Service Pensions

Pension benefits are provided through the Civil Service pension arrangements. Before 1 April 2015, the only scheme was the Principal Civil Service Pension Scheme (PCSPS), which is divided into a few different sections – classic, premium, and classic plus provide benefits on a final salary basis, whilst nuvos provides benefits on a career average basis. From 1 April 2015 a new pension scheme for civil servants was introduced – the Civil Servants and Others Pension Scheme or alpha, which provides benefits on a career average basis. All newly appointed civil servants, and the majority of those already in service, are in alpha.

The PCSPS and alpha are unfunded statutory schemes. Employees and employers make contributions (employee contributions range between 4.6% and 8.05%, depending on salary). The balance of the cost of benefits in payment is met by monies voted by Parliament each year. Pensions in payment are increased annually in line with the Pensions Increase legislation. Instead of the defined benefit arrangements, employees may opt for a defined contribution pension with an employer contribution, the partnership pension account.

In alpha, pension builds up at a rate of 2.32% of pensionable earnings each year, and the total amount accrued is adjusted annually in line with a rate set by HM Treasury. Members may opt to give up (commute) pension for a lump sum up to the limits set by the Finance Act 2004. All members who switched to alpha from the PCSPS had their PCSPS benefits ‘banked’, with those with earlier benefits in one of the final salary sections of the PCSPS having those benefits based on their final salary when they leave alpha.

The accrued pensions shown in this report are the pension the member is entitled to receive when they reach normal pension age, or immediately on ceasing to be an active member of the scheme if they are already at or over normal pension age. Normal pension age is 60 for members of classic, premium, and classic plus, 65 for members of nuvos, and the higher of 65 or State Pension Age for members of alpha. The pension figures in this report show pension earned in PCSPS or alpha, as appropriate. Where a member has benefits in both the PCSPS and alpha, the figures show the combined value of their benefits in the two schemes, but note that the constituent parts of that pension may be payable from different ages.

When the Government introduced new public service pension schemes in 2015, there were transitional arrangements which treated existing scheme members differently based on their age. Older members of the PCSPS remained in that scheme, rather than moving to alpha. In 2018, the Court of Appeal found that the transitional arrangements in the public service pension schemes unlawfully discriminated against younger members.

As a result, steps are being taken to remedy those 2015 reforms, making the pension scheme provisions fair to all members. The public service pensions remedy is made up of two parts. The first part closed the PCSPS on 31 March 2022, with all active members becoming members of alpha from 1 April 2022. The second part removes the age discrimination for the remedy period, between 1 April 2015 and 31 March 2022, by moving the membership of eligible members during this period back into the PCSPS on 1 October 2023. This is known as rollback.

For members who are in scope of the public service pension remedy, the calculation of their benefits for the purpose of calculating their Cash Equivalent Transfer Value and their single total figure of remuneration, as of 31 March 2025 and 31 March 2026, reflects the fact that membership between 1 April 2015 and 31 March 2022 has been rolled back into the PCSPS. Although members will in due course get an option to decide whether that period should count towards PCSPS or alpha benefits, the figures show the rolled back position i.e., PCSPS benefits for that period.

The partnership pension account is an occupational defined contribution pension arrangement which is part of the Legal & General Mastertrust. The employer makes a basic contribution of between 8% and 14.75% (depending on the age of the member). The employee does not have to contribute, but where they do make contributions, the employer will match these up to a limit of 3% of pensionable salary (in addition to the employer’s basic contribution). Employers also contribute a further 0.5% of pensionable salary to cover the cost of centrally provided risk benefit cover (death in service and ill health retirement).

Further details about the Civil Service pension arrangements can be found on their website. 

Cash Equivalent Transfer Values

A Cash Equivalent Transfer Value (CETV) is the actuarially assessed capitalised value of the pension scheme benefits accrued by a member at a particular point in time. The benefits valued are the member’s accrued benefits, and any contingent spouse’s pension payable from the scheme. A CETV is a payment made by a pension scheme or arrangement to secure pension benefits in another pension scheme or arrangement when the member leaves a scheme and chooses to transfer the benefits accrued in their former scheme. The pension figures shown relate to the benefits that the individual has accrued as a consequence of their total membership of the pension scheme, not just their service in a senior capacity to which disclosure applies.

The figures include the value of any pension benefit in another scheme or arrangement which the member has transferred to the Civil Service pension arrangements. They also include any additional pension benefit accrued to the member as a result of their buying additional pension benefits at their own cost. CETVs are worked out in accordance with The Occupational Pension Schemes (Transfer Values) (Amendment) Regulations 2008, and do not take account of any actual or potential reduction to benefits resulting from Lifetime Allowance Tax which may be due when pension benefits are taken.

Real increase in CETV

This reflects the increase in CETV that is funded by the employer. It does not include the increase in accrued pension due to inflation, contributions paid by the employee (including the value of any benefits transferred from another pension scheme or arrangement), and uses common market valuation factors for the start and end of the period.

Compensation for loss of office

No compensation payments for loss of office were made in the year to those staff included in this remuneration and staff report, or any other employees.

 

 Staff report

Number of persons employed by employment type*

During 2025-26, the EWC employed an average of 59.5 staff ~ (56.3, 2024-25) (including officers on maternity leave), as follows:

~Full time equivalents

The staff composition by gender as at the end of the financial year was, as follows:

The average age of the EWC’s staff at 31 March 2026 was 43 years (42 years, at 31 March 2025).

Sickness absence

The EWC monitors sickness absence on an ongoing basis, reviewing both cumulative and long-term absences. In 2025-26, employees reported a total of 355 days sickness absence (515 days, 2024-25) of which 67% was in respect of long-term sickness (74%, 2024-25).

Absence due to sickness is lower than the previous reporting year and higher than the national average, with an average of 6 days per employee (9.2 days, 2024-25), but lower than for civil service staff. The most recently reported national average was 4.4 days per worker in 2024 (ONS, June 2025) and the UK Government reports that the average number of working days lost due to sickness absence for civil service staff in the year ending 31 March 2025 was 8.2 days per worker (UK Gov, December 2025). There were no retirements on the grounds of ill health.

Staff costs*

No agency staff have been utilised during 2025-26 (2024-25, nil).

The Principal Civil Service Pension Scheme (PCSPS) and the Civil Servants and Others Pension Scheme (CSOPS) (known as alpha) are unfunded multi-employer defined benefit schemes, but the EWC is unable to identify its share of the underlying assets and liabilities. The scheme actuary valued the scheme as at 31 March 2020. You can find details in the resource accounts of the Cabinet Office: Civil Superannuation.

For 2025-26, employers’ contributions of £728,536 were payable to the PCSPS (2024-25, £667,783) at 28.97% of pensionable earnings, based on salary bands. In addition, £9,439 was paid as part of the secondment costs relating to the Interim Director of Finance and Corporate Services to their employer and not directly to the PCSPS. The scheme actuary reviews employer contributions usually every four years following a full scheme valuation. The contribution rates are set to meet the cost of the benefits accruing during 2025-26 to be paid when the member retires and not the benefits paid during this period to existing pensioners. Employees can opt to open a partnership pension account, a stakeholder pension with an employer contribution. No EWC employees took up this option, and therefore no employer’s contributions were made.

Off-payroll arrangements

No payments were made under off-payroll arrangements during the year (2024-25, nil).

Exit packages

There were no redundancy or other departure costs in the year (2024-25, £nil).

*The above information is subject to audit.

Lisa Winstone
Chief Executive
9 July 2026

Audit report

The Certificate and report of the Auditor General for Wales to the Senedd

Opinion on financial statements

I certify that I have audited the financial statements of Education Workforce Council for the year ended 31st March 2026 under the Education (Wales) Act 2014.

The financial statements comprise the Statements of Comprehensive Income, Financial Position, Cash Flows, Changes in Taxpayers’ Equity, and related notes, including the material accounting policies. The financial reporting framework that has been applied in their preparation is applicable law and UK adopted international accounting standards as interpreted and adapted by HM Treasury’s Financial Reporting Manual.

In my opinion, in all material respects, the financial statements:

• give a true and fair view of the state of the Education Workforce Council’s affairs as at 31st March 2026 and of its net expenditure, for the year then ended;
• have been properly prepared in accordance with UK adopted international accounting standards as interpreted and adapted by HM Treasury’s Financial Reporting Manual.
• have been properly prepared in accordance with Welsh Ministers’ directions issued under the Education (Wales) Act 2014.

Opinion on regularity

In my opinion, in all material respects, the income and expenditure recorded in the financial statements have been applied to the purposes intended by the Senedd and the financial transactions recorded in the financial statements conform to the authorities which govern them.

Basis for opinions

I conducted my audit in accordance with applicable law and International Standards on Auditing in the UK (ISAs (UK)) and Practice Note 10 ‘Audit of financial statements and regularity of public sector bodies in the United Kingdom’. My responsibilities under those standards are further described in the auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements section of my certificate.

My staff and I are independent of the body in accordance with the ethical requirements that are relevant to my audit of the financial statements in the UK including the Financial Reporting Council’s Ethical Standard, and I have fulfilled my other ethical responsibilities in accordance with these requirements. I believe that the audit evidence I have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for my opinions

Conclusions relating to going concern

In auditing the financial statements, I have concluded that the use of the going concern basis of accounting in the preparation of the financial statements is appropriate.

Based on the work I have performed, I have not identified any material uncertainties relating to events or conditions that, individually or collectively, may cast significant doubt on the body’s ability to continue to adopt the going concern basis of accounting for a period of at least twelve months from when the financial statements are authorised for issue.

My responsibilities and the responsibilities of the Chief Executive with respect to going concern are described in the relevant sections of this certificate.

The going concern basis of accounting for the Education Workforce Council is adopted in consideration of the requirements set out in HM Treasury’s Government Financial Reporting Manual, which require entities to adopt the going concern basis of accounting in the preparation of the financial statements where it anticipated that the services which they provide will continue into the future.

Other information

The other information comprises the information included in the annual report other than the financial statements, the Remuneration Report and my auditor’s report thereon. The Chief Executive is responsible for the other information in the annual report. My opinion on the financial statements does not cover the other information and, except to the extent otherwise explicitly stated in my report, I do not express any form of assurance conclusion thereon. My responsibility is to read the other information and, in doing so, consider whether the other information is materially inconsistent with the financial statements or knowledge obtained in the course of the audit, or otherwise appears to be materially misstated. If I identify such material inconsistencies or apparent material misstatements, I am required to determine whether this gives rise to a material misstatement in the financial statements themselves. If, based on the work I have performed, I conclude that there is a material misstatement of this other information, I am required to report that fact.

I have nothing to report in this regard.

Opinion on other matters

In my opinion, the part of the Remuneration and Staff Report to be audited has been properly prepared in accordance with Welsh Ministers’ directions made under the Education (Wales) Act 2014.

In my opinion, based on the work undertaken in the course of my audit:

• the parts of the Accountability Report subject to audit have been properly prepared in accordance with Welsh Minsters’ directions made under the Education (Wales) Act 2014; and
• the information given in the Foreword, Performance Report and Accountability Report for the financial year for which the financial statements are prepared is consistent with the financial statements and is in accordance with the applicable legal requirements.

Matters on which I report by exception

In the light of the knowledge and understanding of the body and its environment obtained in the course of the audit, I have not identified material misstatements in the Foreword, Performance Report and Accountability Report.

I have nothing to report in respect of the following matters which I report to you if, in my opinion:

• I have not received all of the information and explanations I require for my audit.
• proper accounting records have not been kept or returns adequate for my audit have not been received from branches not visited by my team;
• the financial statements and the audited part of the Accountability Report are not in agreement with the accounting records and returns;
• information specified by Welsh Ministers regarding remuneration and other transactions is not disclosed;
• certain disclosures of remuneration specified by HM Treasury’s Government Financial Reporting Manual are not made or parts of the Remuneration and Staff Report to be audited are not in agreement with the accounting records and returns; or
• the Governance Statement does not reflect compliance with HM Treasury’s guidance.

Responsibilities of the Chief Executive for the financial statements

As explained more fully in the Statement of Accounting Officer’s Responsibilities, the Chief Executive is responsible for:

• maintaining proper accounting records;
• the preparation of the financial statements and Annual Report in accordance with the applicable financial reporting framework and for being satisfied that they give a true and fair view;
• ensuring that the Annual Report and financial statements as a whole are fair, balanced and understandable;
• ensuring the regularity of financial transactions;
• internal controls as the Chief Executive determines is necessary to enable the preparation of financial statements to be free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error;
• assessing the Education Workforce Council’s ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting unless the Chief Executive anticipates that the services provided by the Education Workforce Council will not continue to be provided in the future.

Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements

My responsibility is to audit, certify and report on the financial statements in accordance with the Education (Wales) Act 2014.

My objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements as a whole are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue an auditor’s report that includes my opinion. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance but is not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with ISAs (UK) will always detect a material misstatement when it exists. Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and are considered material if, individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of these financial statements.

Irregularities, including fraud, are instances of non-compliance with laws and regulations. I design procedures in line with my responsibilities, outlined above, to detect material misstatements in respect of irregularities, including fraud.

My procedures included the following:

• Enquiring of management, the entity’s internal audit provider and those charged with governance, including obtaining and reviewing supporting documentation relating to Education Workforce Council’s policies and procedures concerned with:
  • identifying, evaluating and complying with laws and regulations and whether they were aware of any instances of non-compliance;
  • detecting and responding to the risks of fraud and whether they have knowledge of any actual, suspected or alleged fraud; and
  • the internal controls established to mitigate risks related to fraud or non-compliance with laws and regulations.
• Considering as an audit team how and where fraud might occur in the financial statements and any potential indicators of fraud. As part of this discussion, I identified potential for fraud in the following areas: posting of unusual journals.
• Obtaining an understanding of Education Workforce Council’s framework of authority as well as other legal and regulatory frameworks that the Education Workforce Council operates in, focusing on those laws and regulations that had a direct effect on the financial statements or that had a fundamental effect on the operations of Education Workforce Council;
• Obtaining an understanding of related party relationships.

In addition to the above, my procedures to respond to identified risks included the following:

• reviewing the financial statement disclosures and testing to supporting documentation to assess compliance with relevant laws and regulations discussed above;
• enquiring of management and the Audit and Risk Assurance Committee
• reading minutes of meetings of those charged with governance and the Council;
• in addressing the risk of fraud through management override of controls, testing the appropriateness of journal entries and other adjustments; assessing whether the judgements made in making accounting estimates are indicative of a potential bias;

I also communicated relevant identified laws and regulations and potential fraud risks to all audit team members and remained alert to any indications of fraud or non-compliance with laws and regulations throughout the audit.

The extent to which my procedures are capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud, is affected by the inherent difficulty in detecting irregularities, the effectiveness of the Education Workforce Council’s controls, and the nature, timing and extent of the audit procedures performed.

A further description of the auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements is located on the Financial Reporting Council's website. This description forms part of my auditor’s report.

Other auditor’s responsibilities

I obtain evidence sufficient to give reasonable assurance that the expenditure and income recorded in the financial statements have been applied to the purposes intended by the Senedd and the financial transactions recorded in the financial statements conform to the authorities which govern them.

I communicate with those charged with governance regarding, among other matters, the planned scope and timing of the audit and significant audit findings, including any significant deficiencies in internal control that I identify during my audit.

Report

I have no observations to make on these financial statements.

Adrian Crompton
Auditor General for Wales

1 Capital Quarter
Tyndall Street
Cardiff
CF10 4BZ

13 July 2026                                                

The maintenance and integrity of the EWC’s website is the responsibility of the Chief Executive, the work carried out by auditors does not involve consideration of these matters and accordingly auditors accept no responsibility for any changes that may have occurred to the financial statements since they were initially presented on the website.

Financial statements

Statement of comprehensive income for the year ending 31 March 2026

All EWC-funded activities are continuing.

*A breakdown of staff costs is included in the staff report.

The notes form part of these accounts.

Statement of financial position as at 31 March 2026

Lisa Winstone
Chief Executive
9 July 2026

The notes form part of these accounts.

Statement of cash flows for the year ending 31 March 2026

Statement of changes in taxpayers’ equity for the year ending 31 March 2026

The notes form part of these accounts. 

 

Notes to the accounts

1.     Accounting policies

1.1 Accounting convention

These financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the 2025-26 Government Financial Reporting Manual (FReM) issued by HM Treasury. The accounting policies contained in the FReM apply International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) as adapted or interpreted for the public sector context. Where the FReM permits a choice of accounting policy, the accounting policy which is judged to be most appropriate to the particular circumstances of the Education Workforce Council (EWC) for the purpose of giving a true and fair view has been selected. The particular policies adopted by the EWC are described below. They have been applied consistently in dealing with items that are considered material to the accounts.

The EWC has considered IFRS 17 insurance contracts and has concluded that it is not applicable to the organisation, as we do not hold any insurance contracts.

1.2 Registration fee income

The registration year runs from 1 April to 31 March annually with the fee due on 1 April every year. The fee is required to be paid in full regardless of the date a practitioner actually registers with the EWC. There is no reduction for part-year registration.

Fee income was credited to the statement of comprehensive income on an accruals basis, with any fees received in advance for the following financial year being treated as pre-paid income and recorded in the statement of financial position as a liability.

1.3 Induction expenditure

Induction programme expenditure is recognised on the basis of the academic term in which the training activity was completed. Grant expenditure and income due in respect of the spring term is included within accruals (grant expenditure due to schools) and receivables (grant due from Welsh Government), depending on the timing of payment and receipt of relevant grants. Spring term could occasionally span two financial years, although this is not always the case as Easter determines the spring term end date. For this reason, and as approved by audit historically, the spring term, regardless of when it finishes, is accounted for in the year where all, or the majority of sessions occur.

1.4 Non-current assets

Non-current assets are defined as any single piece of equipment, costing more than £1,000 (inclusive of VAT) that has an estimated economic/operational life of more than one year. Where it is more usual to treat individual components as a group, these are treated as assets so long as their collective value exceeds the capitalisation threshold.

Non-current assets have been valued at historic cost at the year-end as, in the opinion of the EWC, any revaluation adjustments are not material.

1.5 Depreciation

Depreciation is provided on all non-current assets at rates calculated to write off the cost, less any estimated residual value of each asset, evenly over their expected useful lives as follows:

• all electrical equipment, including computers and office equipment, is depreciated on a straight-line basis over three years
• furniture and fixtures and fittings are depreciated on a straight-line basis over five years

In all cases, depreciation will commence from the month following purchase.

1.6 Intangible assets

Software development work and website content and licences costing more than £1,000 (inclusive of VAT) and with an estimated economic/operational life of more than one year are capitalised.

Amortisation is provided on intangible assets at rates calculated to write off the cost of each asset over its expected useful life:

• database and website development work is amortised on a straight-line basis over three years
• software licences are amortised on a straight-line basis over their life

In both cases, amortisation will commence from the month following purchase.

1.7 Government grants

The EWC receives project grant income from Welsh Government for the following areas:

• administering the award of QTS
• administering funding, tracking, and recording arrangements for induction
• developing and hosting the PLP
• issuing induction certificates
• developing the Educators Wales website
• acting as the secretariat to the IWPRB
• data analysis
• leading a range of national initiatives and research projects on specific teaching and learning matters

In addition to project grant funding, the EWC also receives grant in aid from Welsh Government for the following areas:

• promoting careers in the education professions
• registration fee subsidy

All project grants received are credited to the statement of comprehensive income in the year they are received (on an accruals basis), with any outstanding balances credited to accrued or deferred income at the year-end accordingly.

Where funding is received in respect of the purchase of non-current and intangible assets, grant income is treated as deferred (long term liability) and released in proportion to the value of the asset consumed annually.

Grant in aid funding is regarded as financing and is credited to the general reserve on receipt.

1.8 Pension costs

Past and present employees are covered by the provisions of the Civil Service Pension Schemes which are described within the remuneration and staff report. The defined benefit elements of the schemes are unfunded. The EWC recognises the expected costs of these elements on a systematic and rational basis over the period during which it benefits from employees’ services by payment to the Principal Civil Service Pension Schemes (PCSPS) of amounts calculated on an accruing basis. Liability for payment of future benefits is a charge on the PCSPS and the Civil Servant and Other Pension Scheme (CSOPS). In respect of the defined contribution elements of the schemes, the EWC recognises the contributions payable for the year.

1.9 Value Added Tax (VAT)

Most of the EWC’s activities are outside the scope of VAT and, in general, output tax does not apply and input tax on purchases is not recoverable. Irrecoverable VAT is charged to the relevant expenditure category or capitalised if related to a fixed asset. Where output tax is charged or input VAT is recoverable, the amounts are stated net of VAT.

1.10 Right of use assets

In accordance with IFRS 16, at inception of a contract, we assess whether or not a contract is, or contains, a lease. A contract, or parts of a contract, that convey the right to use an asset in exchange for consideration are classified as leases and are accounted for in accordance with IFRS 16.

A contract is, or contains a lease, if:

• the contract involves the use of an identified asset
• we have the right to obtain and substantially gain all of the economic benefit from the use of the asset throughout the period of use
• we have the right to direct the use of the asset

When a lease is recognised in a contract, we recognise a right of use asset and lease liability at the commencement date. The right of use asset is initially measured at cost, which comprises the initial amount of the lease liability adjusted for initial direct costs, prepayments, and incentives.      

The right of use asset is depreciated using the straight-line method from the commencement date to the earlier of the end of the useful life of the right of use asset, or the end of the lease term. The estimated useful lives of the right of use assets are determined on the same basis as those of property, plant, and equipment assets.

The lease liability is initially measured at the present value of the lease payments that are not paid at the commencement date, discounted using the interest rate implicit in the lease or, if that rate cannot be readily determined, using the HMT issued incremental borrowing rate.

We have excluded contracts for low value items costing less than £5,000, and contracts with a term shorter than 12 months.

1.11 Prepayments

The EWC has adopted a de minimis threshold of £1,200 (£100 monthly equivalent charge) for the recognition of prepayments. Other than for full month prepayments, the profiled charge will commence from the month following payment.

1.12 Provisions for liabilities and charges

The EWC provides for all legal or constructive obligations that are of uncertain timing or amount at the statement of financial position date on the basis of the best estimate of the expenditure required to settle the obligation. In accordance with IAS 37, provisions are only recognised where the transfer of economic benefit is probable, and the amount can be reasonably estimated.

1.13 Short term investments

In accordance with its cash management policy, the EWC holds short-term investments, for up to 12 months, on deposit with one of the main high street banks.

1.14 Employee benefits

As required, the EWC recognises the cost of employee benefits including:

• short-term employee benefits, being the ‘cost’ of untaken annual leave at the year-end
• post-employment benefits, in respect of termination benefits

1.15 Cash and cash equivalents

The EWC’s core functions are funded from fee income from the statutory annual registration of practitioners. Other activities completed on behalf of Welsh Government are funded by grant. Fee income is received annually in advance, and grant funding is drawn down on a quarterly, and then monthly basis, as required. Because of the non-trading nature of these activities and these sources of funding, the EWC is not exposed to any degree of financial risk.

Its cash balances are held in commercial bank accounts. The EWC is exposed to minimal interest rate risk. Although the EWC can borrow funds, it has not required to do so in this financial year.

1.16 Foreign exchange

Transactions which are denominated in a foreign current are translated into sterling at the exchange rate ruling on the date of the transaction.

2. Welsh Government funding

As outlined in note 1.7 above, grant in aid of £972,000 (£238,000, 2024-25) are now credited to the general reserve on receipt.

3. Other Income

The EWC is contracted by Welsh Government to administer and further develop the Quality Mark for Youth Work (QMYW) in Wales. The contract has been extended to March 2027.

4. Direct programme costs

Fitness to practise panel member costs and legal fees are higher this year due to a higher volume of casework being completed in 2025-26. Database maintenance and development fees have increased relating to configuration and hosting fees for the new database which is currently under development. Translation costs are also higher due to increased translation being completed externally.

5. Induction programme costs

On behalf of the Welsh Government, the EWC administers induction-related funding to schools, regional consortia, and local authorities. This includes funding for schools that support newly qualified teachers (NQTs) during induction, as well as funding for the delivery of the Induction Mentor (IM) and Induction Validator (IV) roles.

All NQTs undertaking induction receive the support of an IM. For those completing induction through day-to-day supply work, the IM fulfils the role previously associated with external mentors. The IM role is funded at £400 per term.

The IV is responsible for quality assuring the induction process and supporting IMs. IVs are required to validate a sample of 50% of NQTs, and this role is also funded at £400 per term. As a result of the reduced sample size, there has been a notable decrease in the total funding provided to consortia, local authorities, and schools for the IM/IV role.

Schools that support NQTs during induction receive £900 per term to contribute towards NQT release time and £400 per term for the IM role. There has been a continued ongoing decline in the number of NQTs undertaking induction, which has impacted the overall level of grant funding distributed.

6. Other operating costs

Training and recruitment costs have increased in year relating to the permanent appointment of the Chief Executive and the Director of Finance and Corporate Services, and the use of an executive search agency for these appointments. Rent and rates are higher this year due to an increase in rates charges. Other costs are lower due to decreased office maintenance and repairs in 2025-26 compared with 2024-25.

7. Interest receivable

Interest of £153,142 (£211,393, 2024-25) was received during the period in respect of the EWC’s bank accounts, including an accrual of £12,166 (£6,854, 2024-25).

8. Non-current assets

Of the net book value at 31 March 2026, £nil was in support of Welsh Government-funded activities (£nil as at 31 March 2025).

9. Intangible assets

Of the net book value at 31 March 2026, £133,000 was in support of Welsh Government-funded activities (£346,000, as at 31 March 2025) mainly relating to the continuing development of Educators Wales platform and the PLP.

Database expenditure relates to user acceptance testing (UAT) costs incurred within the year. 

There has been no impairment of either non-current or intangible assets, which are shown at depreciated/amortised cost and considered to be at ‘fair value’.

10. Right of use asset - lease

IFRS16: Leases became effective from 1 April 2022. The EWC has complied with this standard and introduced right of use assets in line with the requirements of the FReM. The only right of use asset is the office lease for floors 9 and 10 of Eastgate House. The lease is due to end on 30 June 2028.

11. Trade and other receivables

The increase in other receivables is mainly due to the timing and value of Welsh Government year-end debtor.

12. cash and equivalents

The EWC’s cash balances were held in a commercial bank at year end. No balances were held with the Office of HM Paymaster General.

13. Trade and other payables

Trade and other payables have increased this year due to an increase in the receipt of prepaid registration fees, additional balancing charges for accommodation services, and hosting and maintenance costs of the database.

The EWC received grant income from Welsh Government toward the cost of non-current assets. Since these assets will be depreciated over their useful economic life, a deferred liability is recognised at purchase which will be released over the life of the assets.

14.  Provisions for liabilities and charges

Provisions are recognised in the financial statements when the EWC considers that, as a result of a past event, it has a legal or constructive obligation which will probably result in the transfer of economic benefit, and which can be reliably estimated.

 

15.  Notes to the cash flow statement

Reconciliation of surplus on ordinary activities to net cash inflow from ordinary activities

Analyses of changes in net funds during the period 

All balances as at 31 March 2026 were held with a commercial bank (including an amount of £2,503,279 held in a 95-day notice account), and cash.

16. Designated reserves

In accordance with the EWC’s financial strategy, the following designated reserves have been established:

Fitness to Practise (FtP) reserve

To minimise the effect of fluctuation in the volume of referred cases on the EWC’s financial position, and to provide for the costs of any legal challenge above and beyond those costs covered by Professional Indemnity Insurance.

Database reserve

To fund the replacement of the Register of Education Practitioners database.

Accommodation reserve

To support the EWC's future costs in respect of its accommodation needs..

17.  Capital Commitments               

At 31 March 2026, the EWC had capital commitments valued at £523,515 (£528,315, 2024-25). This relates to the ongoing upgrade of the registration database.

18.  Right of use Lease Liabilities

19.  Derivatives and other financial instruments

The EWC has no borrowings and mitigates its exposure to liquidity risk by managing its resources.

All assets and liabilities are denominated in sterling, and so it is not exposed to currency risk.

20.  Related party transactions

Welsh Government is regarded as a related party. During the year, the EWC received grant totalling £6,835,000 split between project grant funding of £5,863,000 and grant in aid funding of £972,000 (£6,769,000, 2024-25 - split £6,531,000 project grant funding and £238,000 grant in aid). This includes a year-end debtor balance of £285,648 (£77,383, 2024-25) for the final grant draw down for 2025-26 which is submitted to Welsh Government in June. In addition, as per note 3, the EWC has a contract with Welsh Government to administer and further develop the QMYW. During the year the EWC received £62,000 (£74,380, 2024-25) from Welsh Government for this contracted work. There have been no expenditure transactions with Welsh Government during 2025-26 (£nil, 2024-25).

Council members may also hold positions with organisations that the EWC has transactions with. However, Council members have no influence over these transactions as they occur in the normal course of the EWC’s activities. Where transactions have occurred, these have related to the accreditation of Initial Teaching Education (ITE) and total £8,400.

During 2025-26, neither Council members, EWC senior officers, nor any of their family were involved directly or indirectly in any transactions with the EWC, apart from the normal payment of expenses and salary.

21.  Contingent liabilities

There are no contingent liabilities (£nil, 2024-25).

22.  Events after the reporting period

There are no events to report as at the date of signing of these accounts.

The Chief Executive authorised these accounts for issue on 9 July 2026.

^[1] The value of pension benefits accrued during the year is calculated as the real increase in pension multiplied by 20, plus the real increase in any lump sum, less the contributions made by the individual. The real increase excludes increases due to inflation or any increase or decrease due to a transfer of pension rights.

^[2] The new pension provider, Capita, has restated the 2024-25 figures. Capita has received more detailed information than MyCSP did in previous years, in arriving at the pension figures.

^[3] The new pension provider, Capita, has restated the 2024-25 figures. Capita has received more detailed information than MyCSP did in previous years, in arriving at the pension figures.

Download Annual Equality Report 2025-26.

Introduction

The Education Workforce Council (EWC) is the independent, professional regulator for the education workforce in Wales.

Established by the Education (Wales) Act 2014, we regulate education practitioners in 13 different registration categories spanning schools, further education (FE), youth work, and adult/work-based learning. Our Register of Education Practitioners (the Register) is the biggest public register of any profession in Wales, and the most wide-ranging register of education professionals in the world, with over 91,000 practitioners registered.

Promoting equality and diversity, and fostering inclusion are fundamental principles that underpin every aspect of our work. Our Strategic Equality Plan 2024-28 (SEP) outlines how we will ensure that we meet our responsibilities under the Equality Act 2010, and the Wales-specific public sector equality duty (the equality duty). The SEP is aligned with the vision and objectives outlined within our Strategic Plan, and is supported by a detailed action plan, alongside robust quarterly and annual monitoring.

During the period of the 2024-28 plan, we will continue to undertake annual reviews, and make any amendments as necessary, to ensure that the document remains relevant and up to date.

This annual equality report sets out the progress we have made in achieving our five equality objectives during 2025-26.

Our equality processes and procedures

Equality, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) is embedded within our governance and operation practices. It is a standing agenda item at monthly senior management team (SMT) meetings, providing a formal forum to discuss progress, review emerging issues, and agree on actions that support our organisational commitments.

EDI is also a permanent agenda item at the quarterly employee forum. These sessions enable the policy and planning team to communicate relevant updates and ensure that employees have a formal opportunity to provide feedback, raise concerns, and contribute ideas for improving our EDI practices. This two-way engagement helps promote inclusive decision-making and supports continuous improvement.

Integrated impact assessments

To ensure that EDI remains central to our work and to meet our legal obligations, all relevant policies and procedures undergo an integrated impact assessment (IIA). This process enables us to identify potential impacts, both positive or negative on groups with protected characteristics, and ensures that EDI considerations are embedded in decision-making from the outset.

All our IIAs are stored in a central library that is accessible to all employees. The assessments inform the development and approval process for any new or reviewed policy, helping to ensure that our decisions are evidence-based, and demonstrate a clear commitment to equality.

Following a comprehensive review of our IIA process in 2024, the assessments completed during the 2025-26 reporting year have been more collaborative, consultative, and holistic. This has supported more robust analysis and improved the quality of our evidence and decision making.

All IIAs are reviewed by the policy and planning team, and approved at director level. A summary of completed IIAs is then scrutinised by the SMT during its monthly meetings, ensuring effective oversight and accountability.

Procurement

As a public body, we have a responsibility to embed equality in our procurement processes. Our procurement policy includes a dedicated section on equality, ensuring contractors and subcontractors understand their role in helping us eliminate unlawful discrimination and promote equality of opportunity and good relations. These expectations, aligned with the Equality Act, are also outlined in our procurement statement.

Engagement

Throughout the year, we engaged with key stakeholders and networks to discuss EDI issues relevant to our remit. This included attending the Anti-Racist Wales education mini summit in March 2026, which brought together senior leaders from education and training providers across Wales to consider how collective action can support the delivery of the Anti-racist Wales Action Plan. We also shared EDI related information with registrants and other stakeholders to support awareness, engagement and good practice.

We have continued to engage with a variety of equalities networks, groups, and partnerships, providing valuable insights to inform and strengthen our work. These have included:

• BAMEed Network Wales
• BAME Mental Health Service
• Diversity and Anti-Racist Professional Learning (DARPL)
• EHRC Wales Equality and Human Rights Exchange Network
• Ethnic Minorities & Youth Support Team (EYST) Wales
• Human Foundational Economy: Education, Health, Social Care, Childcare and Emergency Services Cardiff Capital Region Skills Partnership (CCRSP) cluster group
• Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED) Network
• Race Council Cymru
• Welsh Government ITE Diversity in Recruitment working group

As outlined in detail within our SEP 2024-28, our commitment to equality, diversity, and inclusion includes a focus on promoting careers in the education sector, to help develop a workforce that more closely reflects the rich diversity of Wales. More broadly, we have continued to support the objectives set out within Welsh Government’s Anti-Racist Wales Action Plan, LGBTQ+ Action Plan for Wales, and the Disabled People’s Rights Plan 2025-2035.

Achieving our objectives

Objective 1: Build a diverse and inclusive EWC team

How will we achieve this objective?

We are committed to monitoring and improving our employment practices to ensure that the EWC is well placed to recruit, retain, and support a diverse workforce. This includes examining employee remuneration, recruitment processes, and career progression for employees, Council members, and committee/panel members¹. Our aim is to identify and remove any barriers to the development of a diverse workforce and governance structure.

Our actions in this area are focussed on:

• monitoring our employment practices to ensure that the EWC is well positioned to recruit and retain a diverse workforce
• gathering (and actively monitoring) comprehensive and meaningful EDI data regarding our employees, Council, and committee/panel members
• encouraging greater disclosure rates (regarding protected characteristics) from employees, Council, and committee/panel members to gain a fuller understanding of the diversity of our workforce
• improving recruitment processes for employees, Council, and committee/panel members¹ to ensure fairness to all under-represented groups

Progress in 2025-26

During this reporting year we continued to strengthen our approach to EDI across our workforce and governance structures. A core part of this work involved improving the quality of our EDI data, enhancing the fairness and consistency of our recruitment processes, and ensuring that we are actively identifying and addressing any barriers to representation.

Employee equalities data was collected through our annual voluntary survey, which plays an important role in informing our IIAs, policy development, and training plans. To encourage participation, reminders were issued in our quarterly EDI newsletter. The March 2026 survey received 48 responses from 57 employees (representing an 84% response rate). A detailed profile of our workforce can be found in Annex A.

Pay structures also continued to be monitored as part of our commitment to transparency and fairness. Employees progress through annual increments until they reach the top of their pay band, and we continue to analogue to Welsh Government’s pay scales, adopting any changes announced by them. Our gender pay information is reviewed annually and can also be found in Annex A.

Inclusive recruitment remained a clear priority throughout 2025-26. Aiming to reach a wide range of applicants, our job adverts explicitly encouraged applications from individuals from diverse backgrounds. To support this, a short animation on our website provides an overview of the EWC, our employee values, positive organisational culture, and inclusive recruitment processes. A standardised recruitment requisition form, used to inform all recruitment exercises, ensures that common standards and processes are applied, while all employees undertake unconscious bias training in advance of sitting on selection panels.

We collect diversity information for all direct applicants, but our application process ensures that all references to names, contact details, or other potential indicators of protected characteristics are anonymised prior to being shared with the interview panel for shortlisting. In this reporting year, we advertised one post and received seven diversity monitoring forms. The recruitment for the post of Chief Executive, and Director of Finance and Corporate Services was managed by an external agency who collected diversity information as part of their processes. Further details about the profile of direct applicants can be found in Annex A.

This year also saw the completion of a comprehensive review of our recruitment processes and practices, with EDI considerations embedded throughout. This included:

• reviewing the language we use in recruitment materials - including advertising, job descriptions, application forms, and candidate packs - to ensure accessibility, remove potential barriers, and encourage a wide range of diverse applicants
• reviewing our current workplace accreditations, and setting a clear plan to progress further with these (for example, Disability Confident), as well as researching other potential opportunities
• reviewing the external websites we use to advertise our vacancies to seek further opportunities to reach more diverse audiences
• reviewing how we utilise our current networks and establishing vacancy sharing arrangements

The review concluded on 31 March 2026 with the changes being rolled out from April 2026.

We continued to collect equality data on our Council members based on the nine protected characteristics. Although appointments are made through the Welsh Government public appointments process, our data supports ongoing efforts to ensure diverse representation. As at 31 March 2026, there were three vacancies on the Council following the resignation of one member during the year and two vacancies remaining from resignations received in 2024-25. We have worked closely with Welsh Government to promote the vacancies to registrants, stakeholders, and networks, with the aim of attracting a diverse range of candidates to bring the Council to its full complement of 14 members.

Where we do have jurisdiction over the appointment of panel members², we seek to attract a broad range of candidates who are representative of the diverse landscape of the education workforce in Wales. We collect equality information from our fitness to practise panel members, Initial Teacher Education (ITE) accreditation board members, and pool of Quality Mark for Youth Work (QMYW) in Wales assessors. We will continue to do this on an annual basis to help inform future recruitment exercises.

Throughout the year we also maintained our processes to monitor employment practices to identify barriers to recruitment and career progression, regularly reporting our findings to our Executive Committee and Council through our quarterly reports.

Objective 2: Monitor the gender pay gap and identify opportunities to reduce it

How will we achieve this objective?

We are committed to reducing, and ultimately eliminating the gender pay gap by ensuring that our policies and practices concerning pay and progression provide equal opportunities for all employees. It is essential that all employees are treated fairly and consistently in relation to pay and conditions, regardless of their gender. To achieve this, we closely monitor gender pay gap within the EWC, and take action to address or minimise any disparities identified. As a relatively small organisation, our gender pay gap can be significantly influenced by individual recruitment decisions, which can have a noticeable effect on overall figures.

Our work in this area focuses on:

• monitoring and publishing information relating to our gender pay gap
• improving our understanding of any links between gender and pay within the EWC
• ensuring that all employees have equal opportunities to progress within the EWC when opportunities arise, irrespective of gender

Progress in 2025-26

To ensure fairness in opportunities for progression, all EWC vacancies continued to be advertised both internally and externally. Prospective applicants were provided with contact details allowing them to discuss any aspects of the role or raise any concerns relating to potential barriers to progression, before applying.

During this reporting year, we undertook a gender pay analysis. This involved examining any gender pay gaps by job level, comparing full-time and part-time employees, and reviewing differences across departments. This analysis helped ensure that we understand the EWC’s workforce profile and will inform future work to ensure equitable pay and progression for all employees.

Objective 3: An inclusive workplace where diversity is celebrated

How will we achieve this objective?

We want the EWC to be an inclusive organisation where employees feel safe, respected, and are supported to perform to the best of their ability, irrespective of any protected characteristic they may have. By ensuring that all employees are valued and are treated fairly, we aim to nurture a culture in which everyone can flourish and fulfil their potential.

To achieve this, we focus on:

• ensuring that our offices are welcoming and accessible
• continuing to develop and promote anti-racist practices across the organisation
• organising events that celebrate and raise awareness of diversity and issues relevant to people who share different protected characteristics
• delivering an accessible and engaging programme of EDI training for all staff
• producing regular equalities newsletters to share information, encourage engagement, and celebrate diversity
• implementing a varied wellbeing programme and identifying any barriers to participation
• providing opportunities for employees to provide feedback, and empower everyone to raise concerns relating to EDI

Progress in 2025-26

During 2025-26, we continued to promote an inclusive and supportive working environment for employees, ensuring that wellbeing, engagement, and EDI remained central to our organisational culture.

In November 2025, our Chief Executive and Director of Professional Development, Accreditation and Policy attended Academi Wales’ Driving forward anti-racist leadership symposium for change. Informed by proven anti-racist strategies and practical insights from lived experiences, the event explored how leaders across public bodies can drive meaningful change and support the effective delivery of the ARWAP. Attendance at the event has informed our intention to engage with Welsh Government’s anti-racist maturity matrix during 2026-27.

Our hybrid working policy continued to enable employees to combine office-based working with remote working from home, while our flexi-time system allowed them to vary their start and finish times to better suit their individual needs. Within our office space, dedicated spaces such as the staff room and multipurpose quiet room offered employees’ comfortable areas for breaks, eating, prayer, reflection, and other activities.

We published quarterly EDI newsletters on our intranet, providing employees with information, guidance, and resources. Over the year, newsletters highlighted awareness days, promoted engagement with national and internal campaigns, and shared organisational updates. They also encouraged employees to consider EDI in their daily actions and decision-making, helping to embed a positive and inclusive culture across the organisation.

Throughout the year, we continued to use our intranet to share information and raise awareness of cultural and identity-based events and festivals. Featured topics included the Welsh language Commissioner’s ‘Defnyddia dy Gymraeg’ campaign, seasonal affective disorder, child safeguarding week, and autism acceptance month.

Training remained an important part of our approach to promoting equality. All employees received regular training relating to the equality duty, and our annual training plan included at least one mandatory equality focussed session. This year’s session covered anti-racist practice and was delivered by Race Council Cymru. New employees were also introduced to our employee values and our statutory duties relating to equality during induction.

Through the annual performance and development review process, staff and managers identified individual training and development needs, reviewed progress, and discussed any barriers to accessing development opportunities. All employees have equal access to professional development relevant to their role and training data is analysed annually for equality monitoring purposes. Because our equality data is anonymised, no information relating to protected characteristics is linked to specific training records.

We also incorporated equality-focussed training into our annual programme for Council and committee/panel members³ . These sessions supported open discussion of discrimination and lived experience, helping members to understand relevant issues and legal frameworks, as well as serving to advance equality of opportunity and foster good relations between people who share a particular protected characteristic and those who do not.

Our annual wellbeing programme continued to offer employees a range of activities designed to support their wellbeing. Feedback and suggestions were regularly sought through the employee forum to ensure activities were relevant and accessible. This year’s programme included a nutritional workshop, personal safety awareness training, and opportunities for group volunteering at a local nature reserve.

Employees also had access to Optima Health’s range of wellbeing webinars, guidance and information, and a 24/7 employee assistance helpline, which provides confidential support including telephone counselling. In addition, employees were able to access a dedicated wellness hub, providing resources on health, fitness, and wellbeing, including an NHS approved app for the prevention, early detection, and self-management of common mental health conditions.

We currently have four trained mental health first aiders within the organisation, with two more employees due to complete the training in 2026-27.

We also continued to review and update our employment policies and accompanying IIAs to ensure that they are up to date. Policies reviewed this year included our learning and development policy, and career break policy.

Objective 4: Deliver accessible services for registrants and stakeholders

How will we achieve this objective?

We want to ensure that all our services are accessible for registrants and stakeholders, taking account of diverse needs and abilities. Our aim is to continuously improve the accessibility of our services in line with best practice and legal requirements.

We are committed to identifying, mitigating, and, where possible, removing any barriers that our registrants and other stakeholders, including learners and young people, and parents or guardians, may experience when interacting with us or using our services.

Our work in this area focuses on:

•  listening to registrants to ensure our services meet their diverse needs
• identifying barriers that registrants and stakeholders may face when interacting with the EWC, and taking steps to remove these, as appropriate and proportionate
• identifying opportunities to broaden the accessibility of our services and making appropriate and proportionate improvements
• seeking opportunities to bring our work to the attention of a wide range of audiences with diverse needs and characteristics

Progress in 2025-26

During this reporting year, we continued to prioritise the accessibility of our services for registrants and stakeholders.

We remain committed to making our communications and information as accessible as possible. Our website conforms to level AA of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2, and we continue to monitor best practice and gather feedback to support ongoing improvements. Online content is organised to ensure ease of navigation, and information can be easily found using search engines.

To support users with diverse needs, our website includes the ReachDeck toolbar, which offers functions designed to assist people with visual impairments, lower digital skills, or a preference to view content in a language other than Welsh or English. Employees also regularly attend accessibility-focussed webinars and events, such as those hosted by the Centre for Digital Public Services (CDPS) to improve our understanding of emerging best practice.

All video content, that includes speech, published on our website (in Welsh and English) is fully captioned. Audio-only content (such as podcasts) is accompanied by transcripts in both languages. We also issue all our publications digitally, with alternative formats available on request. We are gradually increasing the number of publications available in HTML, and are working towards a position where all documents on our website will be available in this format.

In September 2025, we published our revised Code of Professional Conduct and Practice (the Code) in British Sign Language (BSL). We also refreshed two key corporate animations to include BSL, bringing the total number of BSL media assets in our library to three. We continue to review our publications to ensure they are accessible and inclusive for our registrants and the public.

As part of the enhanced IIA process introduced in 2024, this year, we reviewed our approach to engagement and events. This work saw the communications team working with managers across several teams that are involved in delivering training, presentations, and/or events and drew upon previous feedback relating to reasonable adjustments. The process was highly collaborative and will inform future practice across the organisation.

We delivered several online events throughout the year. Registration was facilitated through the online ticketing platform, TicketSource, which allows attendees to indicate any accessibility issues they may have. We then contact those who have noted potential accessibility issues to confirm what adjustments we can offer to help them access the event. Adjustments made during the year included ensuring presenters always faced the camera for lip-reading purposes, and providing slides in advance to attendees on request. In total, adjustments were made for seven participants, across the year.

BSL interpretation continued to be available for deaf and hard-of-hearing professionals or registrants involved in fitness to practise hearings.

For individuals preferring paper copies of any of our documentation, we provided printed materials, by post, upon request.

Engagement with stakeholders remained an important part of our work. Throughout the year, we used meetings with key stakeholders and interest groups to discuss equality and diversity issues relevant to our remit. In June 2025, we established a partnership with KidsCare4U, working alongside them at several events to promote careers to individuals from Black, Asian, and ethnic minority backgrounds. We also renewed our formal partnership with Ethnic Minorities and Youth Support Team Wales (EYST), helping us to reach audiences with a wide range of needs and characteristics.

We maintained our engagement with a range of EDI networks and groups, including BAMEed Network Wales and attended meetings of the PSED Network and Schools Research Network. We also participated in several events and webinars focussed on EDI issues.

We have continued to gather equality data from registrants who are subject to fitness to practise proceedings through our case management database. In August 2025, we published our fitness to practise annual report, which included equality data for all registrant groups.

Finally, to support our registrants, and promote awareness of mental health issues, we highlighted several equality, diversity, and inclusion related resources to our registrants through Meddwl Mawr, our book and journal club. This included providing free access to a selection of books by Dr Dean Burnett, covering neuroscience in education, following our Masterclass event in May 2025, at which he was the guest speaker.

Objective 5: Help develop an education workforce that is representative of the diverse population of Wales

How will we achieve this objective?

We want to see an education workforce in Wales that reflects the diversity of the wider population of Wales. We believe that the education workforce should mirror the richness of society, encompassing diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and experiences. It is therefore essential to ensure fair and equitable career opportunities, and to break down any barriers that may be preventing people from diverse backgrounds from working within the registered education professions.

Our regulatory responsibilities include promoting careers in the education professions and advising Welsh Government on matters related to the education workforce, and teaching and learning. In addition, we are identified within Welsh Government’s Anti-racist Wales Action Plan (ARWAP) as a key partner/lead on contributing to increasing the ethnic diversity of the education workforce. We also embrace the aims of other key plans and strategies for promoting diversity, including the LGBTQ+ Action Plan for Wales.

A more diverse education workforce will play a key role in fostering social cohesion by ensuring learners and young people can see themselves reflected in the role models around them. It will also enrich their educational experience, by exposing them to a wider range of perspectives, helping prepare them to be informed and engaged global citizens.

To support this objective, we focus on:

• using our Register to monitor the diversity of the education workforce
• improving the completeness of the data we hold on the ethnic diversity of the workforce (as well as in relation to age, disability, and sex)
• using our platform to highlight issues relating to diversity
• fulfilling our statutory function to promote careers in education and engaging a diverse audience, with a particular emphasis on increasing ethnic diversity
• promoting the Educators Wales website and advisory service and engaging face-to-face with individuals from diverse communities
• investigating opportunities to better understand diverse groups and communities and to identify any barriers to pursuing careers in education

Progress in 2025-26

During this reporting year, we continued to strengthen our work to support the development of a diverse education workforce, using our statutory functions, data, and partnerships to drive progress.

Our Register provides a high-quality evidence base in relation to the diversity of the education workforce in Wales. We have undertaken a number of actions over the last year to enhance the completeness of the data on our Register. In December 2025, we contacted 13,915 registrants, including 7,013 who had gaps in their ethnicity data. This targeted approach resulted in a 31.1% response rate and a reduction in the number of null or unknown fields. As of 31 March 2026, this engagement had resulted in a reduction of 2% in unknown data fields relating to ethnicity on the Register.

In July 2025, we published the Annual Education Workforce Statistics for Wales (AEWS), which included data detailing the diversity of practitioners across our registrant groups. For the first time since new legislation was enacted in May 2024, the data set included information on adult learning practitioners, and further education principals and senior leaders. In October 2025, we hosted a stakeholder briefing event to present the findings of the AEWS, where data and accompanying analyses on diversity within the workforce was presented.

During autumn 2025, we also published a range of data insights, which included EDI information.

These covered:

• recruitment and retention (across all registrant groups)
• newly qualified schoolteachers
• school teachers - leadership and National Professional Qualification for Headship (NPQH) qualification
• school teachers - workforce profile of Welsh language ability
• school learning support workers – qualifications
• supply schoolteachers and supply school learning support workers

At our data and policy briefing event in November 2025, we presented analysis based on our data and intelligence, supported by research undertaken by our policy team to highlight key trends, challenges, and policy issues affecting recruitment and retention in the education workforce.

In November 2025, we worked with Welsh Government to allocate ITE intake numbers to ITE partnerships for programmes commencing in September 2026. As part of this, we communicated to partnerships the expectation that the recruitment of Welsh medium teachers should be 30% of total recruitment, and teachers from Black, Asian, and minority ethnic communities should make up 5% of total recruitment. We monitor recruitment to programmes monthly (including in relation to these indicators), and report this to Welsh Government. We also annually publish ITE student results.

Our Educators Wales advocacy and support team delivered targeted recruitment and engagement work throughout the year, including activity designed to encourage people from Black, Asian and ethnic minority communities to consider a career in education. This work was led by a dedicated recruitment and support officer, who continued to play a central role in coordinating and delivering targeted activity across Wales.

Engagement during the year included work with national and sector-wide organisations and networks such as the Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic Education (BAMEed) Network, ITE Partners, Ethnic Minorities and Youth Support Team Wales (EYST) and DARPL.

We also worked closely with a wide range of community-based organisations and local groups across Wales, including Amanah Cymru, KidsCare4u, Ethnic Minority Welsh Women Achievement Association, Cynefin Pamoja, Cathays High Family Engagement, Maindee Festival, Pill Carnival, Cardiff Mela, Grange Pavilion Youth Forum, South Riverside Community Development Centre, Urban Circle, North Wales Africa Society, the Welsh Islamic Cultural Association (Swansea), and secondary schools across Wales with a high proportion of learners from Black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds.

During 2025-26, we have delivered or contributed to 41 targeted events aimed at promoting careers in education to people from Black, Asian, and ethnic minority backgrounds. We renewed our formal partnership with EYST, attending two of their sessions and delivering three open evenings in targeted communities across Wales. EYST also attended a recruitment event alongside Educators Wales at the University South Wales. A second partnership agreement was established with KidsCare4u, enabling participation in two of their events and delivery of a bespoke session to their members on careers within the education sector in Wales.

We continued to support registrants in upholding their professional duty to demonstrate a commitment to EDI, as set out in one of the six key principles of the Code of Professional Conduct and Practice. To support this, we recorded a webinar, published a series of FtP case studies, and delivered 47 training sessions on the Code, between 1 April 2025 and 31 March 2026.

Annex A – employment information

Number of people employed by protected characteristic

We gather employee equalities data through our annual diversity monitoring survey. Employees are informed that completing the survey is voluntary, but that providing this information enables us to better understand the composition of our workforce and examine our practices more fully. This, in turn, helps us to target our activities and priorities where under-representation or inequalities are identified. The data is used to inform impact assessments, policy development, and training plans. Our most recent survey took place in March 2026. Due to the size of our organisation, figures accounting for 10% or less of the responses have been redacted (represented by an *) to prevent individuals from being identified.

Age

 

Sex

 

Is the gender you identify with the same as your sex registered at birth?

 

Sexual orientation

 

What is your legal marital or registered civil partnership status?

 

Religion or belief

 

Ethnic Group

 

National identity     

 

Do you have any caring responsibilities?

 

Disability

Do you consider yourself to have a disability?

 

Please tick those impairments or health conditions that apply to you

 

Do you have a disability, as defined by the Equality Act 2010?⁴

 

Recruitment data

Where possible, we collect and analyse equalities information relating to staff recruitment. In some instances, where limited applications are received and the use of a recruitment agency is necessary, equalities information is not always provided. Additionally, where internal staff apply for posts, completing a diversity monitoring form is not mandatory.

In the reporting period, one post was advertised by the EWC for external recruitment⁵. All direct candidates were provided with the opportunity to complete a diversity monitoring form at the point of application⁶. We received 10 direct applications, from which we received seven completed diversity monitoring forms. Categories where the response was zero have not been included in the data reported below.

Number of applications received by protected characteristic (where a diversity monitoring form was completed)

Gender/sex

 

Are you trans?

 

Age

 

Sexual orientation

 

Relationship status

 

Religion or belief

 

National identity⁷

 

Do you have any caring responsibilities?

 

Disability

Do you consider yourself to have a disability?

 

Do you have a disability, as defined by the Equality Act 2010?

 

Grievance Procedures

No grievances were upheld during 2025-26 and there are no ongoing grievances procedures.  

Disciplinary Procedures

No employees were subject to disciplinary procedures during 2025-26 and there are no ongoing disciplinary procedures.

Leavers

As all staff diversity data is anonymised, no specific data relating to the protected characteristics of individuals who left the organisation is available.

Additional gender pay information as at 31 March 2026                    

 

 Analysis includes employees on maternity leave.

 

 

^[1] Including members of the Fitness to Practise (FtP) committee, Initial Teacher Education (ITE) accreditation board, and our Quality Mark for Youth Work (QMYW) assessors.

^[2] Including members of the FtP committee, ITE accreditation board, and our QMYW assessors.

 ^[3] Including members of the FtP committee, ITE accreditation board, and our QMYW assessors.

^[4]You are disabled under the Equality Act 2010 if you have a physical or mental impairment that has a ‘substantial’ and ‘long-term’ negative effect on your ability to do normal daily activities.

^[5] External consultants were contracted to undertake the recruitment exercises for the vacancies within the senior management team; Chief Executive, and Director of Finance and Corporate Services.

^[6] In quarter four of 2025/26, we undertook a comprehensive recruitment review which included reviewing our diversity monitoring forms. The information recorded on the forms in this report relate to the forms used throughout the reporting year prior to the review.

^[7] One candidate did not answer this question on national identity.

Download Fitness to Practise Annual Report for the year ending 31 March 2026.

This report provides information and data about the fitness to practice work of the Education Workforce Council (EWC) for the period covering 1 April 2025 to 31 March 2026.

About the EWC

About us

The Education Workforce Council (EWC) is the independent, professional regulator for the education workforce in Wales. 

Established by the Education (Wales) Act 2014 (the Act), we regulate education practitioners in 13 different registration categories spanning schools, further education, youth work, adult learning, and work-based learning. Our Register of Education Practitioners is the biggest public register of any profession in Wales, and the most wide-ranging register of education professionals in the world, with over 91,000 practitioners registered.

Regulation

Our core function is to regulate in the public interest. To do this, we first maintain a Register of Education Practitioners (the Register) eligible to practise in schools, further education, youth work, and work-based/adult learning. Secondly, we publish a Code of Professional Conduct and Practice which sets out the standards expected of those registered. Thirdly, we investigate and hear allegations of unacceptable professional conduct, serious professional incompetence, or relevant criminal offences.

The Register of education practitioners

As of 10 May 2024, we register and regulate 13 education practitioner groups in Wales. All are legally required to register. Our Register is the biggest public register of any profession in Wales, and the most wide-ranging of education professionals in the world.

As at 31 March 2026, there were 100,027 eligible to practice/91,357 individual registrants education practitioners registered with us, across four different education sectors in Wales.

The Code of Professional Conduct and Practice

Our Code of Professional Conduct and Practice (the Code) sets out the standards expected of those registered with us and is intended to support and guide their behaviours and judgements as professionals working in education and training roles in Wales.

The latest version of the Code came into force on 1 September 2025. 

Registrants commit to upholding the six key principles of the Code:

1. Personal and Professional Responsibility
2. Professional Integrity
3. Collaborative Working
4. Leadership
5. Professional Knowledge and Understanding
6. Professional Learning

Failure to comply with the Code may call a practitioner’s registration into question.

To give focus to the Code, specifically professional responsibilities and the use of social media, we have, during 2025-26:

• delivered 47 in-person and virtual presentations to registrants, employers and other of our stakeholders across Wales
• reviewed our 14 good practice guides, designed to complement the Code and help support and guide registrant’s behaviours and judgements

About Fitness to Practise

We have a statutory duty to investigate and hear cases involving our registrants where we are informed of their alleged misconduct or incompetence (discipline). We also decide whether or not education practitioners in Wales should be granted entry to the Register when they apply (suitability for registration), and are the appeals body for those school teachers who wish to appeal against a local authority’s decision to fail their statutory induction period (induction appeals).

Our Disciplinary Procedures and Rules, Registration Rules, and Guidance for the hearing of induction appeals set out the procedures we follow in undertaking our work in these key areas. This includes our powers to impose Interim Suspension Orders (ISO) in specific circumstances.

Our Regulatory Year

Casework

Discipline

This year, we have:

• concluded 90 disciplinary cases
• held 12 Investigating Committees, where 78 cases were considered
• held 51 fitness to practise hearings
• imposed 43 disciplinary orders
• imposed 23 ISOs

Suitability for registration

This year, we have:

• assessed 268 applications for EWC registration where a declaration was made
• refused six applications for EWC registration where a declaration was made

Committees

As at 31 March 2026, our committee member pool consisted of 57 independent panel members.

All fitness to practise committees include at least one member who is practicing and registered in at least one of the 13 registration categories, and a lay member. A committee may also include a retired practitioner, or a former practitioner. A quorum is three.

One member is appointed as chair to a committee.

All panel members must attend refresher training annually to ensure their skills and knowledge are kept up to date.

No member of Council – which governs the work of the EWC - has any involvement in fitness to practise cases, nor do they sit on panels.

Disciplinary casework

Our disciplinary work relates to those education practitioners in Wales who are registered with us.

We are informed of concerns about them in a number of different ways, and from a number of different referral sources.

Most of the referrals we receive come from employers and involve allegations which could amount to unacceptable professional conduct, serious professional incompetence, and/or a conviction of a relevant offence.

Employers and private supply agencies have a statutory duty to refer a registrant to us where:

• a registrant is dismissed, or leaves employment prior to a possible dismissal (for example, due to a resignation or settlement agreement) (employers)
• an agency ceases to use the services of a registrant, or may have done so had the registrant not stopped providing those services (agents)

In both cases, the grounds for a referral are:

• misconduct; and/or
• professional incompetence; and/or
• conviction of a relevant offence

We also receive information from the following:

• police forces can make direct referrals to the EWC under common law police disclosure (CLPD)
• any individual or organisation can make a complaint to us about the alleged conduct or incompetence of a registrant
• the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) sends us information for consideration on professional grounds where it decides not to include one of our registrants in the Children’s Barred list - we cannot investigate any person who is DBS barred
• we can self-refer registrants where we become aware of information that we consider is in the public interest to investigate
• registrants are required by the Code to tell us of any conviction, caution, or restriction to which they are subject

As a regulator, our role is not to punish registrants where their conduct or performance brings their registration into question, but to safeguard learners, young people, parents/guardians, and to maintain public trust and confidence in the education workforce.

Investigations and hearings

Investigations

Most referrals we receive are investigated in private by independent panels called Investigating Committees¹.

An independent legal adviser sits with this committee to make sure the investigation is fair, but does not take part in the decision.

Investigating Committees decide whether or not the registrant involved has a case to answer, that is, whether or not there is a real prospect of first, a finding of fact, and second, unacceptable professional conduct², serious professional incompetence³, a conviction of relevant criminal offence⁴ being made by a fitness to practise committee at a hearing.

The real prospect test means there is a genuine (rather than a remote or fanciful) possibility that a committee, sitting at a hearing, will make such findings.

Hearings

A hearing is held when an Investigating Committee decides that a registrant has a case to answer. The registrant is invited to attend and/or be represented at the hearing.

There is a presumption all hearings will be held in public. However, there may be exceptional reasons why all, or part of some hearings are held in private.

Most of our hearings are now held virtually. However, the registrant involved can request an in-person hearing if they confirm they will attend, and/or be represented at the hearing.

Fitness to Practise Committees are independent panels that decide whether a practitioner’s registration should remain in place, be suspended, or if that person should be removed from the Register. After considering all the evidence, including from witnesses, committees decide whether or not the facts of the allegations are proven. If so, it then determines whether this amounts to unacceptable professional conduct, serious professional incompetence, and/or a conviction of relevant criminal offence.

An independent legal adviser sits with this committee to make sure the hearing is fair, but does not take part in the decision.

Decisions open to the committee are as follows:

• facts not proved
• facts proved but not unacceptable professional conduct, serious professional incompetence, and/or a relevant offence
• unacceptable professional conduct, serious professional incompetence, and/or a relevant offence – no disciplinary order
• reprimand – recorded on the Register for two years
• conditional registration order – recorded on the Register for a period specified by the committee - if no period is set, this order will apply permanently
• suspension order – removed from the Register for a period specified by the committee (not exceeding two years) - conditions may be applied to a suspension order
• prohibition order – removed from the Register indefinitely - no application can be made for re-admission to the Register until at least two years have elapsed

Where a Fitness to Practise Committee decides a disciplinary order is appropriate and proportionate (other than an ISO), we publish that decision on our website for six months from the date of publishing.

We also make sure the practitioner’s Register record reflects this decision.

A list of live disciplinary orders is publicly available on our website

Interim Suspension Orders (ISO)

If we are informed a registrant has been accused of serious misconduct, we may recommend to a committee that it imposes an ISO as an emergency measure. This is to protect learners, young people and the public, whilst, for example, a police investigation is concluded. An ISO can be in place for up to 18 months.

We also hold ISO reviews to make sure that no such order is in place longer than is necessary and proportionate.

All hearings of this nature are held in private.

Summary data

The following information and data provide a high-level report of our disciplinary activity covering 1 April 2025 to 31 March 2026. This covers investigations, hearings, and our ISO work, as described above.

Information and data about previous financial years is provided as a comparison.

Please note:

• since 2015, we have been responsible for registering and regulating 12 additional categories of registrant, across five areas of education and training in Wales - the newest groups, from the further education principals/senior leaders, and adult learning practitioner groups are not currently represented in our data because there have not been any cases for these two new groups
• some registrants are registered in more than one category - for the purposes of this report, those practitioners are described as multiple category registrants
• we report on our ISO work separately to our investigations and hearings

Number of cases by outcome

	2021-22	2022-23	2023-24	2024-25	2025-26
Concluded with no order imposed	27 (31%)	25 (35%)	28 (38%)	27 (36%)	38(42%)
Reprimand	20	19	18	20	16
Conditional Registration Order	1	0	4	1	0
Suspension Order (no conditions)	4	2	2	1	8
Suspension Order (with conditions)	2	2	1	5	2
Prohibition Order	23	17	17	17	17
Application for eligibility following a Prohibition	3	0	1	0	2
DBS Barred before EWC concluded	6	5	3	5	6
Case closed – registrant deceased	0	0	0	0	1
Total	86	71	74	76	90

Of the 38 cases concluded with no order, five were concluded at hearing stage, 11 were considered as no case to answer by an investigating committee, and 22 related to minor convictions/did not meet the threshold for investigation and were closed as no further action.

Number of cases by registrant category

Registrant group	2021-22	2022-23	2023-24	2024-25	2025-26
School teachers	25	21	22	22	21
FE teachers	11	9	6	10	5
FE learning support workers	3	0	6	4	3
School learning support workers	21	21	26	29	45
Work-based learning practitioners	9	5	10	9	7
Independent school teachers	-	-	0	0	0
Independent school learning support workers	-	-	0	0	1
Independent special post-16 institution teachers	-	-	0	0	0
Independent special post-16 institution learning support workers	-	-	0	0	0
Youth support workers	1	0	0	0	2
Youth workers	0	0	0	1	1
Adult learning practitioners	-	-	-	0	0
FE Principals and senior leaders	-	-	-	0	0
Multiple registrant categories	16	15	4	1	5
Total	86	71	74	76	90

Of the 90 cases, 51 were considered at fitness to practise hearings, including two applications which related to readmission to the Register following a prohibition order. Both applications were refused.

Referral source - cases concluded

	2021-22	2022-23	2023-24	2024-25	2025-26
Employer	73.3%	85.9%	71.3%	73.7%	69.7%
Police	10.5%	7.0%	13.8%	6.6%	13.5%
EWC referrals	3.5%	0.0%	8.8%	6.6%	4.5%
Self-referral	11.6%	2.8%	6.3%	11.8%	12.4%
Other*	1.2%	4.2%	0.0%	1.3%	0.0%

 *Other includes complaints, referrals from the DBS, and other regulators

 ISO imposed

Registrant group	2022-23	2023-24	2024-25	2025-26
School teachers	1	5	9	9
FE teachers	0	0	2	0
FE learning support workers	0	0	0	2
School learning support workers	1	4	2	8
Work-based learning practitioners	0	0	0	2
Independent school teachers	-	0	1	0
Independent school learning support workers	-	0	0	0
Independent special post-16 institution teachers	-	0	0	0
Independent special post-16 institution learning support workers	-	0	0	0
Youth support workers	0	0	0	0
Youth workers	0	0	0	0
Adult learning practitioners	-	-	0	0
FE Principals and senior leaders	-	-	0	0
Multiple registrant categories	1	0	0	2
Total	3	9	14	23

 

2025-26 demographic data relating to gender, age, national identity, and ethnicity of those registrants subject to disciplinary proceedings, compared to the demographic of the Register

Please note that FtP cases means fitness to practise cases, and registered workforce is derived from the Register as at 31 March 2026.

 Gender

Age

National identity

Ethnic group

2025-26 demographic data about the Welsh language skills of those registrants subject to disciplinary proceedings, compared to the demographic of the Register

Welsh Language

When a practitioner applies to join our Register, they are asked to confirm whether or not they are able to speak through the medium of Welsh. A ‘yes’ response means they are fluent, or fairly fluent in the language.

They are also asked to confirm whether they currently deliver, or are able to deliver education and training through the medium of Welsh.

In both cases, the responses are based on self-declaration

Welsh-language speaker

	FtP cases	Registered workforce
Yes	20.4%	24.9%
No	72.6%	69.5%
Unknown	7.1%	5.6%

 Able to deliver education and training through the medium of Welsh

	FtP cases	Registered workforce
Yes	16.8%	20.2%
No	76.1%	74.1%
Unknown	7.1%	5.7%

 

Suitability for registration

Our suitability for registration work relates to those education practitioners in Wales who are applying for registration with us.

We assess suitability where an applicant makes a declaration when applying.

Prospective registrants are asked to answer a number of questions about their previous history when they apply. If an applicant answers yes to any question in the declaration, their application will be assessed by the fitness to practise team.

The onus is upon the applicant to demonstrate their suitability for registration with us.

Suitability assessments

Stage one: Where we consider the declaration made to be relatively minor, and that which would not affect the applicant’s suitability for registration, we will grant registration.

Stage two: Where the applicant makes a declaration which does not fall under stage one, we will ask them to provide more detailed information about the circumstances of their declaration. This should include an explanation of their declaration, testimonials, and other representations in support of their suitability for registration. If we are reassured by the applicant’s response, we will grant registration.

Stage three: Where we are minded not to grant registration at stage one or two, we will refer the application for independent scrutiny by a suitability committee at a private meeting. The applicant is invited to attend the meeting.

Suitability committee meetings

Our suitability committee meetings are held in private/virtually, and are an opportunity for the applicant to explain to an independent panel why they consider they are suitable to be registered with us.

Suitability committees are our independent panels which decide whether or not an applicant should be granted entry to our Register, based on their declaration. Under these procedures, it is the applicant who is responsible for persuading the committee that they are suitable by providing information and evidence.

If a committee decides that entry to the Register should be refused, the applicant is not eligible to make any further application in the same registration category/categories for 12 months.

An independent legal adviser sits with this committee to make sure the meeting is fair, but does not take part in the decision.

Summary data

The following information and data provide a high-level report of our suitability assessment activity covering 1 April 2025 to 31 March 2026. This covers all stages of our suitability for registration process.

Information and data about previous financial years is provided as a comparison.

Please note:

• since 2015, we have been responsible for registering and regulating 12 additional categories of registrant, across five sectors in education in Wales - the newest groups, from further education principals/senior leaders, and adult learning practitioner groups, are not currently represented in our data because no declarations have been made by applicants seeking registration in these new categories
• some practitioners are registered in more than one category - for the purposes of this report, those practitioners are described as multiple category registrants
• applications can be withdrawn/closed by both us and the applicant, for example, where an applicant fails to respond to our enquiries about the declaration they have made, we may discontinue our assessment. An applicant may also decide to withdraw their application at any time during the assessment process

Number of suitability assessments by outcome

Outcomes	2021-22	2022-23	2023-24	2024-25	2025-26
Application granted(stage 1/2)	149 (81.4%)	159 (85.5%)	159 (72.9%)	148 (71.2%)	176 (65.7%)
Application granted(stage 3)	10 (5.5%)	4 (2.2%)	8 (3.7%)	6(2.9%)	11 (4.1%)
Application refused(stage 3)	2 (1.1%)	4 (2.2%)	1 (0.5%)	3 (1.4%)	6 (2.2%)
Application withdrawn/closed	22 (12.0%)	19 (10.1%)	50 (22.9%)	51 (24.5%)	75 (28.0%)
Total	183	186	218	208	268

 

Number of suitability assessments by registrant category

Registrant group	2021-22	2022-23	2023-24	2024-25	2025-26
School learning support workers	86	96	137	117	167
School teachers	30	24	22	25	21
FE teachers	20	12	9	10	18
FE learning support workers	6	7	8	12	7
Work-based learning practitioners	9	13	17	7	16
Youth workers	0	1	0	3	2
Youth support workers	3	0	2	1	3
Independent school learning support workers	-	-	3	8	14
Independent school teachers	-	-	1	1	2
Independent special post-16 institution learning support workers	-	-	0	0	0
Independent special post-16 institution teachers	-	-	0	1	0
Adult learning practitioners	-	-	-	0	0
FE Principals and senior leaders	-	-	-	0	0
Multiple registrant categories	29	33	19	23	18
Total	183	186	218	208	268

 

Declaration type 2025-26

 

2025-26 demographic data relating to gender, age, national identify and ethnicity of those applicants who have made declarations when applying for EWC registration, compared to the demographic of the Register

Please note applicant’ means an application where a declaration was made. and registered workforce is derived from the Register as at 31 March 2026.

Gender

Age

National identity

Ethnic group

Induction appeals

We are the appeals body for those newly qualified teachers (NQTs) in Wales who:

• fail their statutory induction period
• have their statutory Induction period extended
• wish to appeal against those decisions, as made by the local authority involved

NQTs can request a further extension to their induction period as part of their appeal.

Any appeal needs to be made in writing within 20 working days of the local authority’s decision.

Hearings

We will arrange an oral hearing if the NQT appealing requests it. The NQT attends and/or can be represented at the hearing, as do representatives for the local authority which made the decision.

There is a presumption all hearings will be held in public, however, there may be exceptional reasons why all, or part of some hearings are held in private.

As explained above, most of our hearings are now held virtually. However, the NQT appealing can request an in-person hearing if they confirm they will attend, and/or be represented at the hearing.

Induction appeals committees are our independent panels which decide whether or not the NQT’s appeal should be allowed, or dismissed. In order to make that decision, the committee must first establish if, having heard all evidence from both parties:

• the NQT appealing failed to meet Professional Standards for Teaching and Leadership
• the NQT appealing was subject to any defect in the induction process of sufficient importance so as to have seriously disadvantaged the NQT in meeting these standards
• there are any other special circumstances that justify the appeal being allowed or the induction period being extended

An independent legal adviser sits with this committee to make sure the hearing is fair, but does not take part in the decision.

Summary data

 In 2025-26, no induction appeals were received or concluded by us.

Our regulatory year ahead

During 2026-27, we will:

• recruit additional panel members in order to maintain a complement that allows the effective administration of our casework
• continue to develop the fairness and efficiency of our regulatory function by reviewing our disciplinary and registration rules – both may involve some form of consultation
• continue work on developing a range of online material and resources including a number of information videos which inform the public about this area of our work and to assist and support all parties involved in FtP casework
• continue to deliver training to a range of different audiences - current and future registrants, employers, agents, and other key stakeholders about the Code

 

[1] We can close cases without investigating. For example, minor criminal offences, and conduct which is not capable of amounting to an allegation of unacceptable professional conduct, and/or serious professional incompetence.

[2] Conduct falling short of the standard expected of a registrant.

[3] A level of competence falling seriously below that expected of a registrant, taking into account all the relevant circumstances.

[4] A criminal offence which has material relevance to the person’s fitness to be a registrant.