Whilst it isn’t a Friday I know that many schools are breaking up today and tomorrow rather than on Friday so I thought it sensible to provide my last update of this academic year now!

Governors for Schools Virtual Conference (27 and 28 September)
Registration for the Governors for Schools Conference 2022 is now open. All sessions are free to attend, with content tailored for a range of audiences, including prospective and current governors, MAT trustees, schools leaders, and more.

Sessions include academisation, governor recruitment and succession planning, a review of the September 2022 version of Keeping Children Safe in Education and improving attendance.  Please note that you must register for every session individually, as each comes with a unique Zoom link.

Government accepts pay recommendations from the School Teachers’ Review Body (STRB)
Yesterday, the STRB published its recommendations for teachers’ pay in the 2022/23 academic year. The government then accepted the recommendations in full, meaning teachers across England will receive a 5% pay increase. Starting salaries will rise by 8.9% as planned, as part of the pledge to raise starting pay to £30,000. This means teachers early in their career will receive rises of between 5 and 8.9%.

HSE to begin school inspections from September 2022
The HSE has announced it will be carrying out inspections to assess how primary and secondary schools are meeting their legal duty to manage risks from asbestos starting in September this year.

HSE inspectors will contact the school to arrange a suitable date and time for the inspection and may request certain documents in advance of the visit, e.g. the school’s asbestos register and management plan.

This week I report on updated Ofsted inspection framework and handbooks as well as updated DfE guidance on Behaviour in schools, Suspension and permanent exclusion from schools and Searching, screening and confiscation at schools which all come into force from September 2022, and also the announcement by the UKHSA that all primary pupils will be offered a flu vaccination in the Autumn term.

Updated Ofsted inspection framework and handbooks
In preparation for September, Ofsted has reviewed and updated its inspection framework and handbooks. The current Section 8 and Section 5 handbooks have now been merged into the schools inspection handbook for September 2022 and the school monitoring handbook.

Changes include the curriculum grace period, which has been in place since 2019, coming to an end.  The ‘quality of education’ judgement now contains a new grade description, “acknowledging that settings are no longer facing emergency measures and are taking longer-term approaches to return pupils and learners to the curriculum they always intended”.

Ofsted has also updated the way it refers to the different types of inspection in its school inspection handbooks. Full section 5 inspections will now be referred to as ‘graded inspections’, while shorter section 8 inspections of ‘good’ and ‘outstanding’ schools will now be called ‘ungraded inspections’.

Updated guidance on Behaviour in Schools, Suspension and Permanent Exclusion from Schools and Searching, Screening and Confiscation at School
This week the DfE has published updated guidance around behaviour in schools, along with the powers schools have to screen and search pupils and to confiscate items they find, as well as statutory guidance on suspension and permanent exclusion from schools.  All of these documents will come into force on 1 September 2022.

Flu vaccinations to be offered to primary school pupils in the Autumn
The UK Health and Security Agency has announced that all primary school pupils in England will be offered a flu vaccination in the Autumn term. The vaccinations will be given by the NHS school-aged immunisation service.

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In this most turbulent of weeks for the government I report on the new Education Secretary, the SATs results for this year and a DfE consultation to future proof the role of academy trusts.

James Cleverly appointed as new Education Secretary
Amid over 50 resignations in the government yesterday, Michelle Donelan handed in her resignation letter after less than two days in the post of Education Secretary. In the afternoon, following the Prime Minister’s resignation speech, a new Cabinet was announced to serve alongside Mr Johnson until a new Prime Minister assumes leadership. In the newly-appointed Cabinet, James Cleverly has been given the role of Education Secretary. He is a supporter of grammar schools and academisation.

SATS results 2022
As expected national attainment was down in this year’s SATs results as follows:

• 74% of pupils met the expected standard in reading, up by 1% from 73% in 2019.
• 71% of pupils met the expected standard in maths, down by 8% from 79% in 2019.
• 69% of pupils met the expected standard in writing, down by 9% from 78% in 2019.
• 59% of pupils reached the expected standard in all of reading, writing and maths, down by 6% from 65% in 2019.
• 72% of pupils met the expected standard in English grammar, punctuation and spelling, down by 6% from 78% in 2019 (remember, however, that grammar, punctuation and spelling test (GPS) results do not count towards the school accountability measures).

Review to future proof the role of academy trusts
On Wednesday the DfE launched a review of how it works with academy trusts. The review will look at the standards trusts are held to, and the thresholds at which the government uses its powers to intervene in cases of underperformance, helping minimise trust failure and retain parents’ confidence. It will also look at how the government supports the growth of existing strong trusts and the creation of new strong trusts, helping trusts improve schools. The consultation will conclude by the end of this calendar year.

This week I highlight the latest DfE School Governance update, a Governors for Schools webinar on the 2022 KCSIE statutory guidance, an update on the Schools Bill and the launch of a regulatory review to ensure there is an effective system of regulation and accountability for a trust-led schools system.

Latest DfE Governance update
The July school governance update provides information on the recently released white paper and SEND green paper, updated guidance on education recovery support, statutory safeguarding guidance which comes into effect in September 2022. The update also invites governors to a series of training webinars on the financial position of school and enabling governing bodies to support school finance teams.

Governors for Schools webinar on the new Keeping Children Safe in Education guidance on Thursday, 14 July 2022 from 8-9 am
The session will explore the guidance and key amendments that governors should be aware of, as well as how we govern safeguarding from September 2022.  Please use this link to go to the Governors for Schools website to register.

Update on the Schools Bill
This week the Government has scrapped key elements of the schools bill. In a letter to peers, Academies Minister Baroness Barran said that the government would “remove clauses 1 to 4 and schedule one from the bill”. These clauses relate to academy regulation and a proposed power for the government to set wide-ranging new standards for academies. The removal of clauses 5 to 18, which relate to how academy funding agreements are terminated, is also being supported by the government. A DfE spokesperson has said that the department is “supporting the temporary removal of clauses 1 to 18 from the bill, in advance of bringing back revised clauses later in the bill’s passage through parliament”. 

Government launches Regulatory Review
The government has launched the regulatory review promised in March’s schools white paper. The review is intended to ensure that an effective system of regulation and accountability exists for a trust-led schools system.

Questions under consideration include the standards which trusts will be required to meet, and how intervention in trusts will work in the situations where these standards are not met. The review will also consider the DfE’s approach to delivering the envisaged trust-led system, both how to support the growth of existing strong trusts, and how and when to commission new MATs.

The review has been tasked with providing recommendations for both the short and long term and will conclude by the end of 2022.