Freddie Whittaker | Schools Week

Roll pupil premium into national funding formula, say experts

Key architects of the government’s new national funding formula have suggested the pupil premium could be rolled into core school funding before protection for it runs out in 2020. The government has pledged to keep the £2.5 billion pupil premium throughout this parliament. It gives additional funds of between £935 and £1,320 for every pupil […]

Governors in West Sussex plan strike over school funding

Plans for the first “strike” of school governors have prompted a warning about the morale of volunteers who are being forced to make school staff redundant as budgets tighten. Governors in West Sussex have written to MPs threatening to stop signing off budgets and carrying out supervisory work in protest over a growing school funding […]

Government abandons year 3 phonics check after trial prompts workload concerns

The government will not extend its phonics screening check re-takes to year three pupils after a trial run prompted concerns from teachers. Officials told Schools Week that a check for eight-year-olds will not be rolled out to all primaries following a pilot in which saw 51 per cent of pupils achieve the government’s ‘expected standard’. Pupils […]

Ofsted publishes ‘unapproved’ report placing Durand in special measures

The education watchdog Ofsted has apologised after publishing an unapproved inspection report into Durand Academy that placed the beleagured south London school into special measures. Ofsted criticised the school’s leadership and management, teaching quality and pupil welfare and outcomes in the report published late last night. But it has since been removed and is not longer […]

Nick Gibb ‘comfortable’ with schools’ approach to cost cutting

The schools minister Nick Gibb has said he is “comfortable” with the way schools are dealing with rising cost pressures. It comes despite headteachers recently revealing how they are having to cut back on textbooks, cleaning and maintenance to balance the books, on top of making teaching and support staff redundant. The Institute for Fiscal […]

John Blake appointed education chief at Policy Exchange

A former union activist and founder of the grassroots Labour Teachers website has been appointed as head of education at right-leaning think tank Policy Exchange. John Blake will leave his role as history consultant and leading practitioner at the Harris Federation to take on the new head of education and social reform position. He replaces Jonathan […]

Educational psychologists stripped from schools

A decline in the number of educational psychologists working with schools has prompted calls for a shake-up of funding. The number of educational psychologists employed by local authorities dropped 13 per cent over five years: from 1,900 in 2010 to 1,650 in 2015, according to new government figures. The change has been linked to councils […]

Treasury claws back £384m academy conversion funding

More than £380 million of a £600 million pot for building capacity in the academies system has been clawed back by the treasury. The BBC reported today that £384 million originally earmarked for converting failing schools into academies and developing multi-academy trusts has been taken back by treasury officials. The money was part of a £600 […]

Teaching apprenticeships: the new school direct?

Ministers are drawing up plans for an apprenticeship route into teaching that could replace current on-the-job training schemes, Schools Week has learned. Jonathan Slater (pictured), the Department for Education’s permanent secretary, told MPs on Monday that his department is creating a teaching apprenticeship to begin next year. Officials are considering how they can “tweak” existing […]