Jess Staufenberg | Schools Week

Let’s have a PGCE Plus with a SEND pathway, delegates told

A PGCE top-up training course for SEND – similar to a Pass Plus driving course, but for teaching – will help to fill vacancy rates in special schools, the forum heard. Adam Boddison, chief executive of the National Association for Special Educational Needs (Nasen), told the Westminster forum that a specialist training pathway would improve […]

Ofsted will give 5 days’ notice of SEND inspections

Schools involved in new inspections designed to uncover whether local special educational needs are being met will be given a five-day notification period. Delegates at a Westminster Education Forum, held last week in central London, pressed Joanna Hall (pictured below), deputy director of schools at Ofsted, on the rules for joint inspections of local area […]

Stats watchdog slams DfE for grammar schools tweet

The government statistics watchdog has criticised a tweet from the Department for Education that claimed “white working class boys” performed better in grammar schools than in comprehensives. Ed Humpherson, the director general for regulation at the UK Statistics Authority, has written to Jonathan Slater, the DfE’s permanent secretary, over a tweet which he said had falsely labelled […]

Independents ‘don’t want to switch’ to free schools

Independent schools do not have a “widespread appetite” for moving into the state sector to make their education more widely available, according to the Independent Schools Council (ISC). Barnaby Lenon (pictured), chair of the ISC, said in response to a question posed by Schools Week that he currently had no evidence independent schools were interested […]

Councils cut support for SEND provision – while boosting reserves

Schools are struggling to fund their pupils with special needs while some local authorities are building up reserves rather than distributing resources, according to a new report by an MP. A review published last week by former Conservative MP and special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) adviser, Lee Scott, said limits on funding were “being […]

New group to boost status of ethnic minority teachers

A networking and events group aimed at encouraging more black, Asian and ethnic minority candidates into teaching and headship roles will launch in January. BAMEed aims to emulate the success of the recently launched WomenEd and “raise the status” of teaching among communities from ethnic minority backgrounds by encouraging progression up the career ladder. Co-founder […]

No-resit GCSEs prompt rise in ‘special consideration’ requests – but ill pupils lose out

The number of requests for exam scripts to receive “special consideration” in marking increased this summer, mainly thanks to the new linear structure of GCSEs which forbids re-sits – but fewer requests from pupils who were ill or not able to sit an exam were approved. According to Ofqual data released today, the number of […]

Bright Tribe investigation reveals chain breached rules – but will not face notice to improve

An investigation into a “top-performing” academy trust given government cash to drive up standards in northern schools has revealed it breached rules over payments to trustees – but will escape a financial notice to improve. A long-awaited investigation into the Bright Tribe trust, and another trust also founded by sponsor venture capitalist Michael Dwan, called […]

Unpaid DfE coaching scheme for women teachers criticised as ‘tick-box exercise’

A government scheme to encourage more women to become school leaders has been dubbed a “tick-box exercise” by those involved in the initiative. Launched by the Department for Education (DfE) and National College for Teaching and Leadership (NCTL) nearly eight months ago, the scheme promised to link 1,000 women teachers with 1,000 coaches and school […]