Weekly round-up: Next Ofsted chief’s vision and concrete chaos

Catch up on all your must-read education news and analysis from the past week right here:
 

• MPs back Sir Martyn Oliver to be Ofsted’s next chief inspector
  MPs have voted to support the appointment of Sir Martyn Oliver as the next chief inspector of Ofsted after he faced their questions this week.
   
• Next Ofsted chief’s aims for the watchdog revealed
  The next Ofsted chief inspector’s covering letter for the job offers some compelling insights into how he may lead the organisation forward and how that could impact schools nationwide.
   
• What the next chief inspector of Ofsted told MPs 
  The government’s preferred candidate to be the next Ofsted chief inspector has been questioned by MPs - this is what we learned.
   
• Heads call for consultation on single-word Ofsted judgements 
  A school leaders’ union has urged Ofsted and the DfE to consult on the removal of single-word inspection judgements “as soon as possible”.
   
• The 147 schools named by the DfE as having RAAC 
  The Department for Education has published a full list of nearly 150 schools with confirmed reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC), which is prone to collapse.
   
• ‘No new money’ for crumbling school buildings 
  Money to repair school buildings at risk of collapse owing the presence of RAAC will come from the DfE’s existing capital budget, it is understood.
   
• RAAC: ‘Reasonable’ relocation costs will be funded, schools told
  The government has said it expects to fund “reasonable” requests from schools needing help with the costs associated with closing buildings containing RAAC.
   
• Leaders warn over asbestos and unsafe cladding in schools
  Fears that cash earmarked to fix asbestos and unsafe cladding in schools will be diverted have been raised by trusts and heads’ leaders as the government scrambles to fix the concrete crisis.
   
• Unions demand Keegan answers urgent RAAC questions
  School staff union leaders have written a joint letter to the education secretary with urgent questions about RAAC, warning that “hundreds more schools” could be affected.
   
• RAAC: Keegan apologises for off-camera comments 
  Education secretary Gillian Keegan has apologised after she was recorded swearing and suggesting she deserved praise for her handling of the RAAC crisis in schools.
   
• Sunak ignored ‘critical risk to life’ warnings, says ex-DfE boss 
  Rishi Sunak, when he was chancellor, responded to dire warnings about the state of school buildings by halving the number of schools to be rebuilt, a former top civil servant has claimed.
   
• Crumbling schools crisis reveals the cost of austerity 
  The controversy over RAAC concrete is only a foretaste of the wider problems that exist with the school estate - but will any political party commit to spending the billions of pounds needed to fix things, asks former DfE adviser Sam Freedman.
   
• Teacher pay: ‘Disappointing’ delay over pay rise guidance
  Headteachers’ leaders have said it is “disappointing” that schools are still waiting to find out how to apply to the government’s £40 million hardship fund, announced as part of the teacher pay deal.
   
• Uniform is critical - that’s why we spent £70K on it for pupils 
  With new research highlighting how schools are covering the cost of uniforms to help families struggling with money, Rowena Hackwood, chief executive of Astrea Academy Trust, talks about the approach taken at one of her schools.