At the Conservative Party Conference, one of the few new (i.e. previously unannouced) initiatives is the plan to scrap A and T Levels and create a new Advanced British Standard, a new Baccalaureate-style qualification for 16 to 19 year olds. The DfE have published a report "A world-class education system: The Advanced British Standard" that … Continue reading The Advanced British Standard
Tag: DfE
Mobile phone use to be banned in schools in England
The headline announcement from Education Secretary Gillian Keegan is currently non-mandaory, though. However, if schools fail to implement the new guidance, the government will consider legislating in the future to make the guidance statutory. The announcement - which can be read on the DfE webiste at the link below - makes the point that other … Continue reading Mobile phone use to be banned in schools in England
Permanent exclusions and suspensions in England, 2021-22
The most recent Department for Education data on exclusions paints a worrying picture of increasing trends in exclusions, with disadvantaged children being the most affected. The Social Work News website notes "For the first time, the majority of suspensions are of children living in poverty, further widening the poverty gap in lost learning." and further … Continue reading Permanent exclusions and suspensions in England, 2021-22
Delivering Better Value in SEND?
The latest controversy in education seems to be whether the DfE aims to reduce EHC plans by 20%, despite the Education Minister's denials. This centres on a contract between the DfE and external supplier Newton Europe issued in July 2022 and running until the end of May 2024. You can downoad a redacted copy of … Continue reading Delivering Better Value in SEND?
SEND reforms to be trialled across England
Thirty-two regions across England have been selected to trial the SEND reforms detailed in the SEND and Alternative Provision Improvement Plan (March 2023). The list and the Plan can be viewed via the links below, but Derbyshire is not included. AP Improvement Plan SEND reform trials list
List of education settings with confirmed RAAC
The government has published the list of schools and colleges where the presence of Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (RAAC) was confirmed by 30 August on Wednesday 6 September. The vast majority of school remain unaffected. RAAC reports download link
Qualification results 2023
Dr Jo Saxton, Chief Regulator at Ofqual, the regulator of qualifications, exams and assessments in England, has written to governors and schools regarding this year's GCSE and A Level results, and he has summarised the arrangements for the future. In 2021, Ofqual set out a two-year plan to return to pre-pandemic grading after the exceptional arrangements during … Continue reading Qualification results 2023
School Sport and Activity Action Plan
The Department for Eductaion has published an updated plan for sports and physical education. High quality physical education (PE) and sport are a vital part of what makes a greatschool. Physical activity has a wide range of benefits to pupil health and wellbeing, andthe best schools acknowledge that – far from being an ‘either-or’ decision … Continue reading School Sport and Activity Action Plan
Sir Martyn Oliver recommended as new Chief Inspector of Ofsted
The Secretary of State for Education, Gillian Keegan, has announced that she is recommending Sir Martyn Oliver for the post of His Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills at Ofsted. Sir Martyn has been selected as the preferred candidate because he is an accomplished school and trust leader with a track record … Continue reading Sir Martyn Oliver recommended as new Chief Inspector of Ofsted
Length of the school week
Updated Government Non-statutory guidance and case studies for schools in England wanting to increase the length of their school week, including those delivering below the minimum 32.5 hours. These documents provide information on the expectation for all state-funded mainstream schools to deliver a school week of at least 32.5 hours by September 2024 at the … Continue reading Length of the school week
GCSE and A Level qualification results 2023
Dr Jo Saxton, Chief Regulator at Ofqual, has written to governors and trustees to explain how this year's exam marking regime will work. Although there is a return to pre-Covid standards, there will still be an element of protection in recognition of the "Covid-effect". You can read the full letter at the link below. Nina … Continue reading GCSE and A Level qualification results 2023
The National Tutoring Programme review
The National Tutoring Programme (NTP) was introduced by the Department for Education (DfE) in the 2020-21 academic year to provide subsidised tuition to disadvantaged pupils and help close the attainment gap caused by school closures in response to Covid-19. NFER’s Teacher Voice Omnibus survey was used to get feedback from teachers about how successful this has … Continue reading The National Tutoring Programme review
National Leaders of Governance programme to end
National Leaders of Governance (NLGs) are experienced college governors, governance professionals and clerks with a strong record of supporting college improvement. They provide mentoring and improvement support to governance boards. The current leaders are listed on the DfE website here. A useful summary of what they do can be found on the Edapt website here. The programme … Continue reading National Leaders of Governance programme to end
SEND and alternative provision improvement plan
The Government published its long awaited SEND and alternative provision improvement plan on 2 March 2023 - you can find it on the DfE website here. You can find both the full report "SEND and alternative provision improvement plan: right support, right place, right time" and the "SEND and alternative provision roadmap" on this page. The NGA, who … Continue reading SEND and alternative provision improvement plan
The schools white paper policy tracker: What’s still left?
This article from Schools Week analyses the outcomes (so far) from the recent DfE ‘Opportunity for All’ White Paper. You can read it here, but below are the bare bones of how things are going: The two ‘ambitions’ - neither of these is on track An excellent teacher for every child: 2 delivered, 1 on track, … Continue reading The schools white paper policy tracker: What’s still left?
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