Alix Robertson | Schools Week

RSC league tables 2018: How are the nation’s schools commissioners doing?

The government published data last week showing how the eight regional schools commissioners are performing, three years after the posts were set up. Schools Week has crunched the stats to bring you our annual RSC league tables. Dominic Herrington has been crowned the top performing RSC for the second year in a row, according to […]

WCAT broke funding rules a year before its collapse, DfE review finds

The doomed Wakefield City Academy Trust broke government funding rules 16 times in 2016, according to a review of the chain’s finances. A review of financial management and governance at WCAT details a string of failures at the ailing trust, which announced last year it was walking away from all of its schools. The report […]

Private school pupils at risk of ‘county lines’ exploitation, warn agencies

Affluent children attending private schools are being groomed into selling drugs because they are less likely to be suspected by the police, a group of government agencies has warned. A study released by Ofsted, the Care Quality Commission, the Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services and the Inspectorate of Probation found it was not […]

DfE finally takes action against failing private school

The government is finally taking action against a private school that has failed to meet independent school standards on eight different inspections. Rabia Boys and Girls School, an independent Islamic school in Luton that charges annual fees from £1,950 to £2,300, has also been graded “inadequate” in four full Ofsted inspections. That’s the most failed […]

Exams ‘useless’ for computer science, say experts

Computing experts have questioned the future of the subject in schools after Ofqual launched a consultation on plans to remove coursework from the computer science GCSE. The exams regulator admitted it no longer believed that it was possible to use non-exam assessment (NEA) to assess programming skills in a way that was “manageable, reliable and […]

Sikh school claims DfE gives it ‘little choice’ in its future

A local Sikh community has called on the education secretary to intervene in the case of a faith school it fears is being pushed into joining a trust that it claims does not reflect its beliefs. The case reveals how minority-faith-based academies do not have the same government support in academisation as other faiths. The […]

Ofqual consults on changes to reformed music and dance qualifications

Ofqual has launched a consultation into proposed changes to the reformed GCSEs, AS and A-levels in music and dance, after their first delivery this summer exposed issues with how to assess pupils’ performances. The exams watchdog wants to change the way a student’s performance is marked if it turns out to be shorter than the minimum length; […]

Trust failed to deduct tax from £145k payments to CEO’s company

An academy trust boss has stepped down after a government investigation found payments totalling £145,006 were made to a company he owned without tax or national insurance deductions. An Education and Skills Funding Agency investigation published this week revealed that Education for the 21st Century trust failed to make the deductions on payments totalling £145,006 […]

DfE releases guide to partnerships with universities and private schools

The Department for Education has published guidance and case studies aimed at encouraging more partnerships between state schools, universities and the independent school sector. The documents include a guide to setting up partnerships and how to write a “memorandum of understanding” outlining the terms of a common plan of action. They also feature examples of […]