LONDON teachers warned yesterday of a mass exodus from the capital due to the acute housing crisis.

Sixty per cent of newly qualified teachers surveyed by the National Union of Teachers (NUT) said that they could not see themselves still working in schools in the capital in five years’ time.

Nearly two-thirds of the respondents said that high living costs would be the main reason for leaving, and there were fears too that their students’ families are also being priced out from the capital — or trapped renting unsuitable homes. Rent for a one-bedroom flat costs about £1,600 a month, while a newly qualified teacher takes home £1,600 a month.