General
Friday
11th Jul 2025
SEND inspections will change after DfE reforms
Ofsted chief inspector defends area SEND inspections, which he says have helped to push the government towards reforms
Schools aren’t financially sustainable, say governors
Half of schools and trusts are considering restructuring staff because of funding pressures, National Governance Association research shows
Schools face ‘unsustainable’ rise in AI-generated complaints
Parents’ use of AI in making complaints means schools are having to deal with complex letters loaded with references to the law, leaders warn
Exclusive
School supplier cost hikes ‘significantly’ worse than feared
Warning of schools facing bigger bills comes as many chief financial officers say they expect their trust’s finances to worsen next year, according to findings seen by 91¶¶Òõ
Exclusive
Thursday
10th Jul 2025
‘Sensitive’ school files stolen in cyberattack on local authority
‘Extra vigilance’ advised at the affected schools in Scottish local authority, as criminal investigation continues
Suspensions and exclusions reach ‘shocking’ record highs in 2023-24
State school suspensions near 1 million and set a new peak as exclusions cross 10,000 threshold
Ofsted seeks to address schools’ fears about new inspections
Watchdog will host a series of webinars on new-style inspections after announcing that schools will only get half a term’s notice on its finalised plans
Wednesday
9th Jul 2025
Revealed: the 20 leaders in DfE’s MAT chiefs group
The new advisory group, due to meet for the first time next week, includes the leaders of many of the biggest academy trusts, an email seen by 91¶¶Òõ reveals
Exclusive
Teacher unions call for government to fully fund pay award
ASCL, NAHT, NEU and Community are also calling for a fair national pay structure and the full removal of performance-related pay
Schools ‘bridging funding gap’ to provide free school meals
Caterers are being forced to cut portions and reduce their menus because of the shortfall in free school meals funding, research shows
Shield ‘anxious’ heads from Ofsted fears, Cruddas tells trusts
With government planning a series of major education reforms, academy trusts must tell a ‘stronger story’ about their work, says Confederation of School Trusts’ chief executive
Exclusive
DfE ‘lacks coherent plan’ to boost teacher recruitment
It is not clear how the government intends to fulfil its promise to recruit 6,500 more teachers, an MPs’ committee warns