DfE
The latest news and analysis on the Department for Education and the secretary of state for education, including new policy, legislation and appointments
Friday
23rd Oct 2026
Powell accused of ‘failure of leadership’ over Ofsted comments
The Conservatives’ Laura Trott claims the education secretary ‘undermined’ Ofsted chief Sir Martyn Oliver in a TV interview
Late KCSIE changes leave schools’ safeguarding policies ‘out of date’
Concerns over last-minute updates to safeguarding guidance come amid wider calls for the government to pause the ‘ever-expanding’ requirements it makes of schools
Thursday
22nd Oct 2026
Teachers could work fewer days under DfE plans
Lucy Powell also opens the door to removing the limits on how much headteachers can be paid
Teachers ‘pulling their hair out’ over ‘violence-fixated’ pupils
Children’s commissioner says children who are influenced by harmful online content are being bounced back to school because they do not meet the criteria for the Prevent programme
Trusts ‘drowning’ in ‘weaponised’ subject access requests
One trust alone is spending £100K a year handling a huge rise in requests for personal data, which are often fuelled by parents using AI tools
Exclusive
EYFS: Disadvantage gap widens for fourth straight year
Record levels of 4- and 5-year-olds meeting their development targets, annual Department for Education data also reveals
Wednesday
21st Oct 2026
Antisemitism review: what schools need to know
Lucy Powell says ‘change will come’ on antisemitism in schools as she accepts all of the recommendations in Sir David Bell’s review
How school partnerships can change the odds for disadvantaged children
With the children’s commissioner sounding an alarm over the ‘childhood lottery’ of disadvantage, the Reach Foundation’s Ed Vainker shares the success of local partnerships involving schools, support services and businesses
Susan Acland-Hood to leave DfE
The permanent secretary at the Department for Education is leaving her role after six years to be replaced by a top Home Office civil servant
Exclusive
Experienced teachers lose right to annual pay reviews
DfE also presses ahead with allowing one-off bonuses for teachers and leaders, despite union warnings about pay inequality
Oracy has arrived - the challenge now is ensuring a clear way forward
The education secretary has said oracy should be given the same status as reading and writing – this is welcome but we have challenges ahead, says the head of oracy at Oasis School 21
Call to replace Sats tests with random sampling across Years 3-6
Proposal to remove Sats would make sure schools are not incentivised to ‘teach to the test’, says IPPR research report