Weekly round-up: DfE changes - Gibb out, Hinds back

Catch up on this week’s must-read education news and analysis right here:

• Nick Gibb resigns as schools minister
  Long-serving schools minister Nick Gibb announced this week that he was stepping down as part of a government reshuffle.
• Gibb: ‘I will never cease to be deeply involved in education policy’
  In an exclusive interview after stepping down as schools minister, Nick Gibb outlined what he’s proud of, whether he has any regrets and why he doesn’t see himself as a “radical”.
• What can schools expect from Damian Hinds?
  The latest government reshuffle has brought a familiar face back to Sanctuary Buildings as schools minister. What will the appointment of the former education secretary mean for the DfE’s approach to schools?
• GCSEs 2024: Support for maths and science due to Covid
  Students sitting maths, physics and combined science GCSEs next year will be given additional support during exams as the last cohort “who experienced two years of national closures during secondary school”, the education secretary has announced.
• A levels: Disadvantage gap narrows to pre-Covid levels
  The A-level disadvantage gap has narrowed to where it was before the pandemic, but school leaders have said more work is needed to close it.
• 99 per cent of secondary schools face cuts next year, unions claim
  Nearly all secondary schools will be unable to cope with cost increases in 2024-25 without making cuts to education provision, according to the relaunched School Cuts website.
• Academy reserves plan ‘will take cash from frontline’
  Concern has been raised over a plan for government officials to contact academy trusts if their reserves drop to less than 5 per cent of income.
• ‘400 years’ to rebuild all schools with current funding
  The prime minister has been warned by school business professionals that, at current funding levels, it would take more than 400 years to rebuild all schools in the country.
• Teacher wellbeing survey reveals record levels of stress
  The proportion of school and college staff and senior leaders reporting stress is the highest ever recorded by a support charity.
• Ofsted: More schools keep ‘outstanding’ grade
  More schools with the top Ofsted grade are keeping it after inspection, and the overall proportion of schools rated as “good” or “outstanding” has increased compared with last year, data shows.
• Why Ofsted can’t do school improvement
  There are calls for Ofsted to be given a school improvement function - but this would present clear dangers, argues Steve Rollett, deputy chief executive of the Confederation of School Trusts.
• Three AI safeguarding issues schools should know about
  The rapid rise of artificial intelligence in everyday life presents these safeguarding concerns for schools, warns Luke Ramsden, chair of trustees for the Schools Consent Project.