Sophie Scott | Schools Week

Interim executive board finds £1m deficit in Lewisham school’s accounts

Leaders parachuted in to a school embroiled in a campaign to prevent it from becoming an academy have found a £1m overspend in the accounts. The government approved an interim executive board to take over Sedgehill School, in Lewisham, London, in January. The council argued the school, which is judged as required improvement by Ofsted, […]

Gender gaps in A-level subjects: The full list

New figures have revealed stark gender gaps in pupils taking AS and A-level subjects including physics, computing and psychology. Ofsted has today published the first single source of data showing the numbers and proportions of girls and boys progressing from Year 11 to AS-levels and from AS to A-level. (The full tables are below). The figures show that only one […]

Teacher banned after telling pupils “Muslims worship the devil” in history lesson

A supply teacher has been banned from the classroom after telling an AS level class that “Muslims worship the devil” and he was “allergic to Mohammedans”. Reverend Robert West, 59, was covering maternity leave at Walton Girls’ High School and Sixth Form in Lincolnshire in November 2013. At a hearing of the National College of […]

Jack, Chloe or Smith? The most popular names for school children

The Department for Education today released a list of the 1,000 most popular names of school pupils according to the autumn census 2014. Despite well-worn tales about pop stars dominating name choices, the list is resolutely traditional with Jack and Chloe topping the first name chart. At the bottom of the list are more surprising […]

DfE threatens High Court action if teachers discuss SATs content online

Teachers could face being taken to the High Court if they discuss the content of this week’s SATs exams on social media. The Department for Education (DfE) used Twitter yesterday evening to warn teachers, headteachers and schools not to share any information about the test as some children would not be taking the key stage […]

Verdict: What does a Conservative government mean for education?

As the dust settles on the outcome of the general election, education professionals now face the question as to what the next five years will hold for them. Schools Week editor Laura McInerney has put together an explainer as to what a Conservative majority government had promised, or not, here. Here, we have put […]

General Election 2015: “The challenges of the Conservative education plan should not be underestimated”

The Conservatives will control the Department for Education, after today’s outcome of the general election which saw the party gain a majority of seats in the House of Commons. Professor Chris Husbands, director of the Institute of Education, gives his view on what to expect. No-one foresaw the scale of the Conservative victory – it exceeded […]

General Election 2015: “A threatened teacher recruitment and retention crisis will become a reality”

The Conservatives will control the Department for Education, after today’s outcome of the general election which saw the party gain a majority of seats in the House of Commons. Dr Mary Bousted, general secretary of the Association of Teachers and Lecturers, gives her view on what to expect. The next Conservative government will pursue, with added […]

General Election 2015: Conservative education ministers hold on to their seats

Conservative education ministers have all held on to their seats as their party heads to an overall majority in the general election. Education secretary Nicky Morgan led the Tory charge as she reclaimed her marginal seat in Loughborough. Morgan’s seat had long been touted as a potential scalp for Labour, but she eased to victory with a […]