In the news: your weekly round-up

Top stories

Ofsted’s School Inspection Handbook updated for September 2024. Changes include the scrapping of the overall effectiveness grades and inspections can now be suspended for 3 months to allow leaders to improve safeguarding [GOV.UK]. 

Support from GovernorHub Knowledge: Read our summary to be clear on the changes Ofsted has made to its inspection handbook, in force from September 2024.

Children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) have fallen further behind their peers despite a focus on their attainment. Better specialist support and funding to help reverse the trend are needed, according to school leaders [The Guardian]. 

Support from GovernorHub Knowledge: Learn about governors' duties in relation to education for children with SEND, and understand the rules set out in key guidance and legislation.

No funding to be offered to the National Governance Association (NGA) for a national school governor recruitment drive. The NGA says that before the general election, money was offered, but the current government has confirmed that no funding is available [Tes Magazine - registration required]. 

Support from GovernorHub Knowledge: Work through our step-by-step process to recruit new maintained school governors. 

This week's headlines

Schools Week

• 5 biggest tutoring providers wind down as National Tutoring Programme (NTP) closes
• Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA)’s merge with the DfE leads to questions over conflict
• Schools look to SEND trusts for support with increasing pupil need
• Natural history GCSE likely blocked until at least 2026
• 'Accountability gap' opened by pause in Ofsted SEND inspections
• Compulsory survey of schools ordered by children's commissioner
• Schools draw up own 'report cards’ ahead of Ofsted’s official launch in September 2025
• Schools inspected this year can no longer use Ofsted logos after new handbook published 
• Trusts look to grow to weather falling rolls storm, survey suggests

Tes Magazine – registration required

• Ofsted SEND reforms risk blaming schools for SEND crisis
• National Institute of Teaching calls for unsuccessful teacher trainee applicants to become TAs
• Transparency called for with Ofsted board minutes
• Academy CEOs worried about inclusion
• Caroline Barlow and Keziah Featherstone named the new co-chairs for school leaders group Headteachers' Roundtable
• Call for curriculum panel review over links to Oak National Academy
• Trust leaders could be wasting their time on bids for trust capacity funds
• Career breaks could boost teacher recruitment, according to Teach First

BBC News

• Primary school numbers in London set to fall at double the national average 

GOV.UK

• Music pilot launched with focus on disadvantaged pupils and those with SEND

The Guardian

• Concerns over 'unreliable' marking of GCSE English
• Teachers in England offered lie-ins to make job more appealing

Upcoming dates for this week

Saturday 21 September – International Day of Peace

Monday 23 September – Cycle to School Week begins

Thursday 26 September – European Day of Languages

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