John Dickens | Schools Week

DfE fails to meet target of delivering 230k laptops by end of June

The Department for Education has failed on its promise of delivering 230,000 laptops to vulnerable and disadvantaged pupils by the end of June. Last month, education secretary Gavin Williamson told parliament the laptops “would all be distributed by the end of June and we are on target to do that”. The commitment was made amid […]

High Court judge slams pricey legal rows as RSC’s academy conversion ruled unlawful

A judge has hit out at expensive legal wrangling after ruling a regional school commissioner unlawfully approved an academy conversion that “curtailed” a council’s education provision review. Hannah Woodhouse, RSC for the south west, granted Swanmead Community School, in Ilminster, permission to become an academy and join the Bridgwater and Taunton College Trust (BCT) in […]

Exam boards to investigate claims of ‘bias’ in teacher-assessed grades

Exam boards will be expected to investigate claims from pupils that schools have not shown “care or integrity” in stamping out “bias” in teacher-assessed grades. In updated draft guidance on appeals for exam boards, Ofqual said while they expect such allegations to be rare, it is an “important safeguard” for pupils in this year’s grading […]

Leicester schools to close in first localised lockdown

Schools will have to close in Leicester from Thursday in response to a “growing outbreak” of coronavirus in the country’s first localised lockdown. Health secretary Matt Hancock announced in the House of Commons tonight some lockdown measures were being put back in place in Leicester. The seven day infection rate is 135 cases per 100,000 […]

Gavin Williamson promises ‘detailed’ plan to get all pupils back in September ‘by end of week’

Education secretary Gavin Williamson has promised to deliver a detailed plan “by the end of the week”, outlining how the government will get all pupils back to school in September. Although he batted away questions about the details of the proposals, he admitted localised closures of schools or certain year groups was likely once schools […]

New admission rules proposed to crackdown on schools refusing ‘challenging’ pupils

The government plans to overhaul admission rules to crackdown on schools wrongly turning away pupils with special education needs because their behaviour is too “challenging”. It follows Schools Week investigations revealing how vulnerable children were being shut out by schools outside the normal admission rounds under fair access protocols (FAPs). We also revealed vulnerable pupils […]

Head says she was suspended for ‘being honest’ about teachers ‘sat at home doing nothing’

A headteacher has hit out about her suspension for suggesting during an interview on local radio that some of her teachers were “sat at home doing nothing”. Pauline Wood is being investigated for potentially bringing her Sunderland school into disrepute during an interview with BBC radio about the wider reopening of primary schools. When asked […]

DfE refuses to confirm if £1bn catch-up cash is new funding

The Department for Education has refused to clarify whether the £1 billion “catch-up” premium is actually all new cash. Headteachers have questioned where the funding is coming from after the department announced on Friday the £55 million year 7 catch-up premium would be axed next year. The department originally said the funding would now come […]

DfE ‘rewriting history’ over claims schools have never had to keep pupils 2-metres apart

The Department for Education has denied it’s “rewriting history” after publishing a blog today claiming schools have never had to keep pupils two metres apart. The blog stated that primary schools do not need to keep children two metres apart from each other while in their “bubbles”, adding “this has been the cause throughout the outbreak”. […]