Tuesday
Decision on future of Scottish exams delayed until new school year
Publication of long-awaited Hayward review response – as well as behaviour action plan and mobile phone guidance – put on hold, as education secretary cites pre-election rules
Councils consider learning hours as leverage in teacher numbers dispute
Scottish councils could offer to protect the time children spend in class in exchange for relaxing the rules on teacher numbers – but is the government interested in compromise?
Monday
Main parties ‘silent’ on urgent school funding problems
School finance leaders and trust governors call for the main political parties to set out how they would tackle the ‘most significant’ issue that schools are facing
Sir Kevan Collins to advise on schools if Labour wins election
Sir Kevan was the government’s education recovery commissioner until quitting over a lack of funding for his catch-up package
How to entice more teachers? Simple: talk up teaching
The next government could do itself a favour by talking up the profession and making society value the work of educators, says chair of Headteachers’ Roundtable
Friday
EIS hustings: ‘What Scottish schools need is more money’
But where will it come from? From VAT on private school fees to calls for independence – here’s what the main political parties had to say
The scale of the teacher retention crisis revealed
Over 12 years, 40,438 state school teachers left within one year of qualifying. New DfE data exposes the extent of the problem, which leaders say must be a post-election priority
Sir Jon Coles: Government needs ‘complete reset’ with schools
Leader of the biggest MAT wants higher expectations of trusts, new school improvement structures and the scrapping of DfE ‘micro-interventions’ like the times tables check
Thursday
Weekly round-up: GCSE students hit and MAT fears
This week’s essential education news and analysis includes disadvantaged GCSE students being disrupted by teacher absence and a halt on key decisions affecting academy trusts
Limited SEND funding pledges pose ‘serious threat’ to provision
The next government must tackle the challenges of the special educational needs and disabilities system, urges Education Policy Institute
Wednesday
Schools ‘in the dark’ over budgets after manifesto pledges
None of the main parties’ election manifestos offer ‘significant extra levels of core funding to help schools’ meet their financial challenges, IFS warns
PFI contracts must be tackled to ease funding woes
The next government should take action over expensive private finance initiative contracts costing schools millions, writes this headteacher
