Special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) is an area of public policy that is eye-wateringly expensive for local government. It is also, like adult and children’s services, failing to deliver on a spectacular scale. We are racking up an £11 billion bill, without getting the quality of service required, and without driving improvements in outcomes […]
In the past few weeks, the school inspectorate, Ofsted, announced a significant change in how schools are regulated. These reforms were announced by Ofsted’s new Chief Inspector, Martyn Oliver, against a backdrop of controversy following a Berkshire headteacher taking her own life after her school was downgraded from ‘outstanding’ to ‘inadequate’. The problem the schools […]
Now that the new Government has settled in, its intention to deliver fundamental changes to the education system is clear. However, it is crucial to distinguish between change and progress. In reality, some of Labour’s proposed reforms risk harming educational standards and diminishing opportunities for working-class children. The proposed reforms fall broadly into three categories: […]
