Theme 1 news Covid Williamson provided wine and mince pies for DfE lockdown Xmas party Sue Gray report finds 50 staff were invited to the ‘festive drinks’ – organised days in advance Samantha Booth 3y Samantha Booth 3y Covid, Schools Exclusive Another procurement legal row emerges as DfE ‘under stress’ At least three major outsourcing contracts from the DfE have been at the centre of legal challenges Samantha Booth 3y Samantha Booth 3y Covid Reception pupils falling behind after pandemic, warns EEF Experts warn of ‘particularly concerning’ drop in early years development James Carr 3y James Carr 3y Covid Covid inquiry chair wants to investigate impact on children The UK’s public Covid inquiry chair wants to expand her remit to investigate how children and young people were… Samantha Booth 3y Samantha Booth 3y Covid Half of pupils kept wearing masks after January guidance change Most secondary pupils felt face coverings should be mandatory Freddie Whittaker 3y Freddie Whittaker 3y Covid ‘Sorry if I caused offence’, says MP who claimed teachers broke lockdown rules In a letter to heads, Michael Fabricant admits ‘error’ in implying lockdown drinks were ‘general practice’ among school staff Freddie Whittaker 3y Freddie Whittaker 3y Covid SATs: No ‘special consideration’ for Covid disruption Special consideration will not apply when a key stage 2 pupil ‘has been affected by illness or other issues… James Carr 3y James Carr 3y Covid, Exams Exclusive Heads plan Covid isolation rooms so symptomatic kids can take exams ‘Ambiguous’ guidance leaves leaders playing Covid guessing game as tests return James Carr 3y James Carr 3y Covid Teacher recruitment targets hiked as DfE predicts post-Covid exodus Ministers have repeatedly missed past targets, but slashed trainee bursaries during a short-lived Covid boom Tom Belger 3y Tom Belger 3y Newer 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 18 Older Must Read Covid Exclusive DfE threatened with legal action over ‘unlawful’ Covid attendance rules The government is being threatened with legal action if it fails to update attendance guidance for vulnerable children and… James Carr 3y James Carr 3y Covid Academy trusts’ cash stash rises to £3bn despite pandemic pressures Academy trusts boosted their reserves and surpluses last year despite the upheaval of Covid, official figures show. New Department… Tom Belger 3y Tom Belger 3y