Freddie Whittaker | Schools Week

Everything you need to know about the government’s new Institute of Teaching

Just £17 million of £121 million budgeted for the government’s “world-leading” Institute of Teaching is guaranteed to set up and run the organisation. The rest is dependent on recruitment and future spending reviews, Schools Week has learned. It has also emerged that the Department for Education is already considering expanding the institute’s recruitment targets for […]

Heads plan greater weighting on ‘exam-style papers’ for teacher assessment grades

Over half of leaders plan to give greater weighting to “exam-style papers” than other forms of assessment when issuing grades this summer, a union survey has revealed. The poll of 521 members of the ASCL school leaders’ union also found that around one in 14 respondents plan to base grades on exam-style papers alone, despite […]

Ofqual reveals more about how 2021 grade appeals will work

Pupils on grade borderlines are unlikely to be marked up at appeal even if the evidence showed they could have got a higher grade, draft Ofqual appeals guidance suggests. The exams regulator has published draft guidance on the appeals process for general qualifications this summer following the cancellation of exams and move to teacher assessments. […]

United Learning to take over edtech demonstrator programme

England’s largest academy trust United Learning has been awarded an £850,000 contract to run the government’s edtech demonstrator scheme for the next year, Schools Week can reveal. The Department for Education will shortly name the trust’s sponsor, United Church Schools Trust, as its delivery partner for phase two of the programme, set up to help […]

DfE extends Institute of Teaching’s remit to 6 years with £121m contract

The government’s new Institute of Teaching will run for at least six years with £121 million on offer to a potential contractor for the scheme. Plans for the new institution were announced earlier this year. Once at capacity, the government expects it to train 1,000 initial teacher training trainees, 2,000 early career teachers, 2,000 mentors […]

Former RSC Rebecca Boomer-Clark is new Academies Enterprise Trust CEO

Former regional schools commissioner Rebecca Boomer-Clark has been appointed to lead the Academies Enterprise Trust, one of England’s largest academy chains. Boomer-Clark, currently national director of secondary education at Ark Schools, will take over at AET after the summer half term break. Current CEO Julian Drinkall is leaving to head up the international Aga Khan […]

DfE lifts Ampleforth College pupil recruitment ban despite continuing safeguarding concerns

A ban on recruiting new pupils at the prestigious Ampleforth College has been lifted, despite Ofsted inspectors flagging continuing safeguarding concerns. The Department for Education today withdrew an enforcement notice issued in November, which ordered the private school in North Yorkshire to “cease to admit any new students” from the end of December. The notice […]

Exclusion ‘must still be available’ to keep pupils and staff safe, say NEU leaders

The sanction of exclusion “must still be available” to keep victims of sexual abuse, violence and bullying safe, the leaders of the National Education Union have said. Joint general secretaries Dr Mary Bousted and Kevin Courtney addressed the NEU’s virtual annual conference today. We believe that the sanction of exclusion must still be available if […]

DfE to target £20m SEND capital funding at councils with ‘safety valve’ bailout deals

Up to £20 million from a £300 million capital fund to provide more school places for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) will be targeted at councils that have agreed to cost-cutting measures in exchange for deficit bailouts. The Department for Education has today re-announced a capital funding injection announced at last year’s […]