Skip to content
26 April 2026

Become a member today for unlimited access to Schools Week

Enjoy expert journalism on schools policy with fewer ads and exclusive benefits
subscribe

Opinion

What does a fully-Conservative government mean for schools?

At a certain point last night I grabbed our election supplement and flipped nervously to the Conservative education pledge list. It was the first time I’d considered a party might need to deliver their list in full. So, what can we expect from a fully Conservative department? The Ministers David Cameron said before the election […]

‘If I were education secretary (again)…’

I would secure all-party support to launch a ten-year programme to spread technical education throughout the whole education system. One of the biggest challenges for the next government is to fill the skills gap: by 2020 we will need 830,000 STEM graduates and 450,000 technicians and engineers at levels 3 and 4. The institutions in […]

‘If I were education secretary (again)…’

Money is not the sole salvation in achieving quality education for all children. However, cutting the money available can have a devastating impact on those schools that have been making the most progress, reaching out and engaging with families and for whom the pupil premium was a lifeline at a time of retrenchment. That is […]

‘If I were education secretary (again)…’

Secondary schools have become an increasingly diverse and rather chaotic gathering. It seems to be held together (more or less) by Ofsted and the examination system, with huge emphasis on league tables and exam grades to the detriment of creativity and imagination. The result is the imposing of great stress on youngsters in the later […]

A GOLDEN OPPORTUNITY TO UNLEASH GREATNESS IN OUR EDUCATION SYSTEM

For too long the relationship between government and the teaching profession has been strained. Ministers have imposed frequent changes to curriculum, assessment and accountability, leaving school leaders and teachers to manage constantly moving goalposts. Their aim may have been to raise standards, something with which we would all agree. However, their approach – of micro-management […]

If I were education secretary…

I should keep at the back of all my policymaking the remembrance that what goes on beyond the world of education has an impact on what takes place inside it, and that a popular culture more or less founded on the glorification of stupidity will necessarily colour the atmosphere in which children make the decisions […]

Beware! Live streaming ahead

Filming that special lesson to share with others seems a good idea. But it’s not that simple; you will need to think about safeguarding, privacy laws and the need for parents’ permission You can “live stream” at the click of a button these days. Apps such as Periscope and Meerkat are becoming more commonplace in […]

Testing DfE Transparency – How easy is it to see the Register of Interests?

Were the Dead Sea Scrolls any easier to discover, I wonder? My setting was the more mundane headquarters of the Department for Education in Westminster, rather than caves in the Middle East, but at times the documents seemed just as elusive. Two weeks ago  – under orders from the editor – I was tasked with […]

Do the education manifesto pledges stand up?

It’s the election next week and all the parties have waved their education banners long and hard. But the evidence that any of their policies might work in raising attainment or participation is slight or non-existent With the general election looming, the three major political parties have all promised to protect the education budget for […]