Pastoral

The latest news, analysis and advice on pastoral support, including pupil mental health and wellbeing, attendance and non-academic development

Wednesday

16th Sep 2026

Surge in secondaries using lockable pouches for phones
Schools must not bear costs of statutory guidance making schools phone-free, chancellor warned ahead of Budget
Data suggests increasing numbers of secondary schools are using pouches.

Saturday

12th Sep 2026

Prue Leith: School chefs can become food educators
The former Great British Bake Off host explains why she hopes school leaders will empower kitchen staff to teach pupils about the importance of eating well
Prue Leith

Friday

11th Sep 2026

How a reading partnership with Ukraine helps our pupils
Primary pupils in the UK and Ukraine reading together via video call has built empathy and global awareness, and provided positive moments for children living in a war zone, says this teacher
Children reading Ukrainian books
Free breakfast clubs scheme will take 7 years at current pace
DfE wants all primary schools to have free breakfast clubs by the end of this Parliament, but 17 months into the scheme, more than 14,000 schools are still without one
14 years to fulfil pledge

Thursday

10th Sep 2026

Schools use robots to help tackle school avoidance
New Schools Network announces two year-long projects aimed at improving parental engagement and attendance
Schools use robots to help tackle school avoidance

Tuesday

8th Sep 2026

Want to boost pupils’ sense of belonging? Let them laugh
New research suggests laughter and playfulness are key to helping pupils feel they belong and flourish – so does your school provide enough opportunities for this to happen?
How getting pupils laughing improves belonging in school

Monday

7th Sep 2026

Community cohesion takes years - not terms
A MAT CEO explains how its schools took part in a four-year project to bring pupils together across settings, with real impact
Children running in field

Friday

4th Sep 2026

‘Blanket’ approaches to suspension likely to fail, research finds
Schools need support to understand different factors behind exclusions – with disadvantage, SEND and students’ relationships all linked, study says
Suspensions

Friday

28th Aug 2026

What leading a struggling school taught me about disadvantage
When she became headteacher of a failing school in an area of high deprivation, Lottie Bloom faced a steep learning curve. Here she shares her insights into turning the school around
Mother and child walking to food bank

Friday

21st Aug 2026

How a short-term behaviour intervention can bring long-term benefits
Interventions don’t need to be long to deliver results, explains Clare Dash, whose doctoral research is exploring how a one-week residential is improving pupil behaviour and wellbeing
Dominos being interupted

Thursday

6th Aug 2026

What can the UK learn from Australia’s social media ban?
Australia’s eSafety commissioner has released the first findings in a longitudinal study of the effects of the country’s social media ban for under-16s. Here Luke Ramsden rounds up the key takeaways
Social media ban

Wednesday

5th Aug 2026

Single-sex spaces guidance doesn’t meet legal tests, warns union
Official guidance on single-sex spaces comes into force for schools today, but unions say it does not offer schools enough support and that it has arrived too late
A person washing their hands
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