Author: Nicky Phillips

The government still expects to publish sample materials in December for key stage 2 SATs resits for year 7s, but will not start consulting schools until September at the earliest. From 2017, pupils will resit English and maths tests in their first term of secondary school if they fail to reach an “expected standard” in […]

Multi-academy trusts top-slice a percentage of income from their schools’ budgets to fund their operational costs. That includes paying central staff, such as the chief executive, and providing services for their academies, such as school improvement, human resources and financial services. The name they use for this slice of income can vary; from partnership or […]

Three teaching recruitment schemes funded by the government have postponed their application deadlines at least twice, fuelling speculation that few contenders are stepping forward – and schools already strapped for staff could be left short. The National Teaching Service (NTS), Future Teaching Scholars and Return to Teaching were all launched by the government this academic […]

A new alternative provision free school for 13 to 16-year-olds is calling its pupils “gifted” to shatter misconceptions about troubled teenagers. The Ideas College, a creative digital media alternative provision (AP) school, is set to open in January next year after setbacks that include site delays and the loss of “key partner” the Kids Company. […]

The jury may be out on the success of the university technical college programme, but despite its ongoing financial and recruitment problems, politicians rushed to take credit for the controversial project in this week’s debate about the new education bill. During the Queen’s Speech debate on Wednesday, in which planned new schools legislation was debated […]

Eight “benchmarks” for careers advice will form part of new statutory guidance for schools, but the academic behind them has warned that they should never be used as an accountability measure. Schools were given statutory responsibility for careers advice in 2014, but while Ofsted inspectors currently look for evidence that all post-16 routes are being […]

Buckinghamshire’s university technical college has become the second of the institutions to be warned recently about its finances after it experienced cashflow problems and accrued a “significant deficit”,  writes Freddie Whittaker. The financial notice to improve issued to the 14 to 19 college comes about a week after Daventry UTC was warned over similar problems, and […]

Regional schools commissioners have approved nearly 20 applications for academies to up their pupil numbers or expand their age range. Recently released decision notices show that headteacher boards considered 24 applications for academy expansions during meetings from January 16 to February 15. Ten applied to expand their pupil admission numbers. Of those, seven were given […]