DfE
The latest news and analysis on the Department for Education and the secretary of state for education, including new policy, legislation and appointments
Monday
9th Oct 2023
Labour ready for ‘fight’ over RAAC and private school taxes
Shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves told the Labour Party conference that Rishi Sunak can ‘bring it on’ if he wants a fight over which party has more aspiration for children
Teachers to join DfE’s AI workload reduction trial
The government is holding a ‘hackathon’ to allow schools to experiment with artificial intelligence in areas such as lesson planning and exam marking
Unions set to question DfE over school funding error
It comes after the NEU’s Daniel Kebede said that there were ‘grounds to reopen’ the teacher pay and funding dispute
Friday
6th Oct 2023
DfE apologises over error in school funding calculation
Gillian Keegan has ordered a formal review after her department revealed a mistake in the national funding formula allocations for schools for 2024-25
Covid inquiry: ‘Mistake’ to keep schools shut
Former children’s tsar tells inquiry the government failed to ‘realistically prepare’ for Covid lockdowns and mitigate their long-term impact on pupils
Tes News podcast conference special: The end of A levels?
Join the Tes News team as we discuss the prime minister’s plan for a new post-16 qualification, the Advanced British Standard, and look ahead to the Labour Party’s conference in Liverpool
DfE drawing up country-wide MAT growth plans
The DfE is looking at producing subregional plans for areas such as London, setting out how it expects trusts to grow, a regional director has revealed
Fears catch-up progress will be lost as schools face costs struggle
Some schools are questioning the point of getting tutoring ‘up and running’ when funds are set to disappear next year
Barran: Each school should get a DfE attendance ‘deep dive’
The academies minister said a ‘more detailed diagnostic on the root causes of non-attendance’ is needed
Exclusive
Thursday
5th Oct 2023
MATs worried about financial stability
Less than half of multi-academy trusts are confident about their long-term finances, research shows
Concern for 7,000 pupils on FSM at RAAC-hit schools
Trust leader ‘really worried’ about impact of disruption on disadvantaged students, as union boss calls for special considerations for those taking exams