From September 2013, the UK government has shifted the balance of initial teacher training (ITT) provision from higher education to ‘School Direct’, a school‐centred and employment‐based route. The National Association for the Teaching of English has conducted an online survey of professional opinion on these changes. 730 individual educators completed the survey; 382 supplemented their responses with written comments. These responses reveal considerable doubt as to whether a school will be able to resource key elements of teacher training. The majority of respondents fear that the quality of trainees' subject knowledge, understanding of educational purposes and processes, and classroom preparedness will all decline. Trainees will be less well tutored and mentored and an impoverished overall experience of teacher education may affect morale. Employers will find difficulty in filling posts appropriately and the national/regional balance of job supply and demand will be affected. Regional provision of ITT will be more variable and worse overall. Many respondents believe that University‐led training allows trainees to reflect on and learn from multiple teaching placements through contact with their tutor, their peers, and other learning communities. A wise educational policy would not destroy a teacher training culture that has developed over many decades.