Author: James Carr

One of England’s largest academy trusts has been cautioned over standards at one of its schools due to concerns over pupils’ behaviour and curriculum planning for SEND pupils. REAch2 Academy Trust received a minded to terminate letter regarding Sprites Primary Academy in Ipswich. The trust received the letter in January following an Ofsted inspection in […]

Britain’s largest teaching union has joined calls for a Serious Fraud Office investigation into allegations of financial impropriety at two collapsed free schools. National Education Union joint general secretaries Dr Mary Bousted and Kevin Courtney have written to SFO chief Lisa Osofsky to demand a probe into Collective Spirit Free School and Manchester Creative Studio […]

Ninety-six per cent of school business leaders are white, a new survey has found, prompting warnings that “structural racism” could be holding minority candidates back. The Institute of School Business Leadership (ISBL) has today published its School Business Professional Workforce Survey Report – the first comprehensive report on the sector in almost a decade. The […]

Eight leading education academics have hit back at a “flawed” study that claimed poor pupils at grammar schools were twice as likely to attend Oxbridge. The Higher Education Policy Institute has published a collection of essays today, titled ‘Social Mobility and Higher Education: Are grammar schools the answer? ‘ It was published partly in response […]

An Ofsted inspector discovered fire escapes at a proposed private school were boarded up and didn’t work while trying to escape when a kitchen fire set the alarm off. Empire Coaching Academy’s proposed site at Smithfield House in Digbeth, Birmingham, was deemed “not likely to meet” all independent schools standards and failed a pre-registration inspection. […]

The Department for Education is rolling out its risk protection arrangement (RPA) to local authority-maintained schools after saving “more than £420 million” for academies. RPA acts as an alternative to commercial insurance and has been available to academies on a voluntary, opt-in basis since September 2014. It was initially launched to reduce the public cost […]

A controversial headteacher known for his “army-like” behaviour rules has been moved out of his school after an incident involving restraining a pupil. Barry Smith, known as one of the strictest headteachers in the country, has not been in charge of day-to-day activities at Great Yarmouth Charter Academy, in Norfolk, since early December. Sources told […]

An investigation has been launched after betting companies were “wrongly provided access” to an education database containing the information of 28 million children. The massive breach was revealed through a Sunday Times investigation which found the Learning Records Service had been accessed by data intelligence firm GB Group – whose clients include 32Red and Betfair […]

An Ofsted director said the watchdog needs to do more to help black boys in London, adding he “worries about the number excluded and off-rolled”. Mike Sheridan, Ofsted’s London regional director, made the comments today during a keynote speech at the third annual BAMEed conference in London. In a talk which recognised some of the […]