Freddie Whittaker | Schools Week

No expansion of shortage occupation list for teachers, rules Migration Advisory Committee

The government’s Migration Advisory Committee has urged against expanding the list of subjects for which schools can freely recruit teachers from outside Europe, after it ruled that the profession’s vacancy rate is “around average”. The MAC, which advises ministers on migration issues, has recommended that while secondary maths, physics, general science, computer science and Mandarin […]

Conservative Party leadership contenders: What will they do for schools?

Theresa May has announced she will stand down as Conservative Party leader on June 7, meaning the search for a new prime minister is on. Here, Schools Week rounds up those who have launched bids to become the next leader and PM, and what their ascension could mean for schools… This article will be updated […]

DfE named and shamed trust for failing to justify CEO pay by mistake

The government has been forced to update a list of academy trusts named and shamed for failing to justify executive pay after a chain was included by mistake. Earlier this month, the Department for Education published a list of 31 academy trusts who had received a second warning for being “non-compliant” with its order to […]

ITT review to look at what happens in schools

A new advisory group formed to review the content of initial teacher training will focus on the time trainees spend in school. Professor Sam Twiselton, director of the Institute of Education at Sheffield Hallam University, told Schools Week the review would seek to persuade all schools of “the benefit to them, but also their obligation […]

DfE leaving parents to police the 11-plus

The government has been accused of passing the buck over 11-plus admissions tests in Kent. Documents seen by Schools Week show that the campaign group Comprehensive Future was referred to the Office of the Schools Adjudicator (OSA) when it complained to the Department for Education about the testing regime used for selective school admissions in […]

Boss of bust school support company is back in business

The former boss of a school support company that collapsed owing hundreds of thousands of pounds to its local authority is now a director of a new business offering similar services to the same institutions. Buckinghamshire Learning Trust (BLT), formed in 2013 to run services outsourced by Buckinghamshire County Council, went into liquidation in April. […]

Rayner: Labour will put climate change ‘at the core’ of the curriculum

A future Labour government will make teaching about climate change a “core part of the curriculum” for all pupils, the shadow education secretary has said. Angela Rayner announced her party will review the curriculum to ensure “all young people”, including primary school pupils, are “educated about the ecological and social impact of climate change”. The […]

Revealed: The three inconvenient truths about the EBacc

The government is facing renewed calls to review its controversial EBacc accountability measure after three separate claims by ministers about the success of the reforms were debunked. The Russell Group of elite universities yesterday ditched its list of “facilitating subjects” amid concerns that too many pupils felt they had to study only academic subjects to […]

GCSE entries: Engineering and design technology flop as EBacc subjects soar

Entries to engineering and design technology GCSEs slumped by 36 per cent and 22 per cent respectively this year, while almost all EBacc subjects saw a rise. Provisional exam entries data published by Ofqual today shows an overall drop in the number of entries to non-EBacc entries of 9 per cent. However, most of this […]