Samantha Booth | Schools Week

Boards return just 25% of fees for cancelled exams

Exam boards gave back to schools just a quarter of the exam fees paid last year. The country’s three main boards had pledged to return any savings after exams were cancelled last summer. The boards are waiting to find out the final exam replacement plans before amending their fees for this year. AQA, the UK’s […]

Schools don’t have to complete early years foundation stage profile in 2021

The early years foundation stage profile (EYFSP) will not be mandatory this year, the government has announced. Schools will instead be asked to use their “best endeavours” to carry out the assessment, which is how pupils’ development and learning is assessed in reception. The Department for Education had previously said the process would go ahead, […]

When will schools reopen? How ministers responded to that key question this week

After announcing the current partial schools closures will last until at least February half-term, politicians are now increasingly being quizzed about how and when they expect schools to reopen fully. Prime minister Boris Johnson suggested this week it was still too early to tell if any rules can be relaxed by the middle of next […]

DfE plans two-year extension to National Tutoring Programme

The Department for Education intends to extend its National Tutoring Programme for a further two years, Schools Week can reveal. Launched in November to help children catch up on learning lost during the pandemic, the £350 million scheme is due to run until 2022. It’s important that policymakers continue to assess the impact of the […]

Council seeking £500,000 back from ex-superhead Sir Craig Tunstall over ‘unauthorised payments’

A council is attempting to recover damages of potentially £500,000 from former superhead Sir Craig Tunstall, who is alleged to have received unauthorised payments, court papers reveal. The development follows news that Sir Craig Tunstall is suing Lambeth council and the Gipsy Hill Federation (GHF) in south London for at least £200,000, over claims that […]

Government rules out relaxing SEND support rules – for now

The government has tentatively ruled out relaxing SEND support requirements during the current lockdown, instead urging authorities to make alternative arrangements if they are struggling to meet children’s legal provision. As Schools Week reported last week, ministers were asked to “guarantee” they would not re-introduce temporary legislation that “downgrades” support for SEND pupils. For three […]

Majority of primaries had more than a fifth of pupils attend this week, DfE stats show

The majority of primary schools that opened this week had more than a fifth of children attending on Monday, new statistics have revealed. The government’s attendance survey – responded to by 82 per cent of state-funded schools in England – found that 14 per cent of pupils on roll were in school on January 11. […]

£350m National Tutoring Programme faces slipping behind schedule

A £350 million flagship programme offering tuition to help pupils catch up may now fall behind schedule as providers have been told delivery milestones can be “re-forecast”. Plans to provide additional funding to the National Tutoring Programme (NTP) scheme are also being reviewed as a result of school closures. Tuition providers already signed up to […]

Union anger as schools face long wait for plan B after exams cancelled

Ministers have been accused of a “dereliction of duty” as schools face a near two-month wait for the government’s plan to replace GCSEs and A-levels with teacher assessments. Few details were released this week after the exam cancellations were announced on Monday, apart from the government saying it will “trust teachers rather than algorithms” and […]