Freddie Whittaker | Schools Week

Union leaders spurn NEU’s merger call

Education unions are not queuing up to join the National Education Union, the new teacher union created by a merger of the National Union of Teachers (NUT) and the Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL). None has any plans to join the union or wants to discuss the matter, Schools Week has learned. The news […]

Greening heralds £2.4bn school capital funding, but money isn’t new

The Department for Education has outlined how it will spend £2.4 billion in school capital funding in the coming years, but has confirmed that none of the investment is new money. Justine Greening, the education secretary, says councils will get almost £1 billion in 2020-21 to create 60,000 of the 600,000 school places needed by […]

Pupils to book lessons via app at new studio school

An unconventional 14 to 19 school with an eight-hour day, no homework and a system that allows pupils to use their laptops to book extra lessons will open in Cheshire this September. Christleton International Studio will open on the site of Queen’s Park High School in Handbridge, near Chester, and is planning new systems to […]

Ofqual omits ‘strong’ grade from new GCSE guidance

The exams regulator Ofqual has written to schools about proposed changes to new GCSE grades, but has left details of the government’s new “standard” and “strong” passes off its new aide-memoire. Sally Collier, the watchdog’s chief regulator, says in a letter sent today that she wants to inform schools that her organisation has “added to […]

‘Financial challenges’ at David Ross Education Trust prompt staff cuts

The David Ross Education Trust (DRET) has admitted facing “financial challenges” as it consults on plans to cut up to 40 support staff jobs across its schools. DRET, one of England’s largest academy trusts, has launched a consultation in a bid to save £1 million across its 32 primary and secondary schools, but says it […]

‘Post-Brexit Britain needs investment in teachers’ says Greening

Investment in teachers and school leaders is needed to transform social mobility, the Justine Greening has claimed in a speech in which she set out her thoughts on Brexit. However, no new initiatives or funding were announced during the address at the Social Mobility Commission conference this morning. Schools face real-terms cuts of up to £3 […]

Greening proposes scrapping KS1 SATs

The government will consult on a proposal to scrap key stage 1 SATs which could be replaced with a new baseline test at reception in order to create a more “stable and proportionate” primary assessment system. Justine Greening, the education secretary, first announced she would seek views on changes to primary testing last year. In […]

Government study reveals minimum A-level class size

A-level classes need at least 11.7 pupils to make them financially viable, a study has found. The research, carried out by the Isos Partnership on behalf of the Department for Education, also found there may be a case for more active national management of the A-level market – including a reduction in qualifications, in order to […]

MPs: Government showing ‘collective delusion’ over funding cuts

The government have a “collective delusion” about the scope for further cuts in schools, the Public Accounts Committee has said in response to its investigation into school funding. A report by the parliamentary committee, released today, states that pupils’ futures are at risk and that the Department for Education is not well-placed to act swiftly […]