Nicky Phillips | Schools Week

Hypnotherapist helps to overcome teacher stress

Teachers at an east London primary have teamed up with a sports hypnotherapist who improves “mental toughness” in elite athletes to combat the challenges and stress of the pandemic. The initiative, along with online parental support groups, support dogs and yoga, are some of the measures schools have introduced as they prioritise improving mental health […]

Schools want ed tech demonstrator scheme to keep going

Schools are joining together to ensure that the “legacy” of the rerouted EdTech Demonstrators scheme stretches beyond the pandemic. The government programme was announced as part of the Department for Education’s edtech strategy in 2019 to help teachers utilise technology to reduce workload, support professional development and improve pupils’ results. However, the DfE shifted the […]

Snow days melt into the mists of time

Most people can remember listening to the radio or checking their school’s website to see if snow had shut its gates. But with the strides in remote learning during the pandemic, could disrupted learning because of the fluffy white stuff be a distant memory? Dan Bunker, an educational technologist for primary at United Learning, said […]

Is the traditional parents’ evening a thing of the past?

The traditional parents’ evening may be a thing of the past as schools hail the merits of virtual meetings. Nine months into the coronavirus pandemic, schools are backing innovative digital solutions to meet the challenges they face. While some were already well ahead on the digital journey, the pandemic has pushed the benefits of online […]

School PE kit policy is saving time and space

A pandemic policy for children to arrive and stay in their sports kit on the days they have PE is helping to save time and create much-needed space, according to headteachers. Dr Victoria Carr, the head of Woodlands Primary School in Ellesmere Port, now has five extra spaces for one-to-one or group learning from former […]

The new school day (and it’s not as you’ve known it)

Headteachers say that Covid-driven changes to the traditional school day – such as staggered break times and longer lessons – have halted playground clashes and reduced low-level disruption. A major challenge for schools has been how to implement bubbles of pupils, aimed at reducing transmission between classrooms. To help with catch-up and minimise the movement […]

Absence fines drop by 90% despite fall in attendance

The number of fines issued for school absence crashed by 90 per cent in the first half-term of this year, but councils still raked in tens of thousands from parents. Absence fines were waived during partial school closures between March and July, but the government reinstated them from September in a bid to encourage pupils […]

Faith schools waive church attendance requirements

Faith schools are amending requirements for prospective pupils to have attended places of worship in the wake of Covid-19 disruption. Last week, the Office of the Schools Adjudicator (OSA) approved a modification put forward by the governing body of Lowdham Church of England primary, in Nottinghamshire, to remove the need for pupils to have attended […]