The security agency said teachers’ people skills made them “ideal candidates”.

An advert placed in a trade paper urges school staff to apply because they can “build trust and relationships with all sorts of individuals”.

The post - for an operational intelligence officer - carries a salary of £35,425 plus benefits, broadly similar to that of an experienced secondary school teacher.

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Teachers who successfully pass the recruitment process will find themselves taken out of the classroom and into “the heart of intelligence gathering”.

According to the job description, they will be responsible for building contacts with people who can “provide information of relevance to national security”.

They will also have to write reports and give briefings.

Full article here