In what we expect to be a busy few days for the Free Schools programme, DfE today launched the process for new 16-19 Maths Free Schools. In a change from the standard process for free schools and that which was followed for the previous Maths Schools, proposers are being asked to complete an initial expression of interest, following which they …
Curriculum remains a popular subject of debate in the education sector (as it should!). According to a Policy Exchange think tank report, the National Curriculum 2014 (NC2014) was an attempt to address the mistakes of predecessor national curricula. The report noted that England had two problems. One was a problem of excellence: the outcomes of the schools’ system were not …
The noise around academy trusts merging with other trusts continues to increase. Comments from academies minister Lord Agnew in November 2017suggested a minimum figure of 12-20 schools for a viable MAT and advised smaller trusts to seriously consider merging. Subsequently, Sir David Carter stated the minimum size for a trust should be 1,200 pupils. He also encouraged mergers to enable …
A report published by the think tank Northern Powerhouse Partnership (NPP) clarified that pupils in the north are one GCSE grade behind pupils in London. In their attainment 8 scores in 2017, disadvantaged northern pupils are 6.5 points behind their London counterparts. Whilst it is widely assumed that school effectiveness is the primary cause of pupils in the north falling …
As part of the Armed Forces Covenant (the nation’s promise to those who serve or have served), the government unveiled a £40,000 bursary available to ex-service personnel to retrain as teachers. Anyone who has left full-time employment in the British Army, Royal Navy or Royal Airforce in the last five years will be eligible to access the bursary, which will …
Following a string of well-publicised governance and financial disputes, it was announced this week that Durand Academy Trust has hired an external consultant to campaign against the forced takeover of the trust by the Harris Federation. No stranger to controversy, the Durand Academy Trust made headline news following an initial judgement in the High Court which quashed an Ofsted report …
The question of whether business leaders with no teaching experience can become successful Headteachers and MAT CEOs has been around for some time, with devotees in both camps offering valid reasons for agreeing or disagreeing. A breakthrough of sorts occurred three years ago when a businesswoman with no teaching experience known as ‘the queen of trucks’ was appointed to one …
Following news last month that the Education Secretary was facing an intra-Party battle over the cap which currently forces new faith schools to admit a maximum of 50% of each intake using faith-related criteria, an article in The Sunday Times (18 February 2018) suggests that Damian Hinds fought a good fight and is set to follow through on an election …
30 Hour Free Childcare has been available from September 2017 to parents who receive any of the following benefits: Tax credits Universal Credit Childcare vouchers or salary sacrifice schemes Childcare grants and bursaries The 30 hours childcare offer gives eligible parents an additional 570 hours of free childcare per year. However, a survey conducted by the Pre-School Alliance in January …
Secretary of State for Education, Damian Hinds has previously expressed his belief that the attainment gap between children begins before they even start school. 30 hours childcare offer was universally implemented in September 2017. The scheme was introduced to help cover the costs of childcare for working families with 3 and 4 year olds – enabling parents to ‘double up’ on …