In my first update of the new academic year I provide information on governor training opportunities, updated/new statutory and non-statutory guidance from the DfE and changes to Ofsted inspection.

Governor training
Governors for Schools are offering a free webinar on the range of recruitment services that they offer to help Governing bodies to recruit new governors. The webinar is taking place on Wednesday 18 September at 12.30pm and you can register via their website using this link.

North Tyneside’s Governor Services Team have published their training offer for this term and the North Tyneside Learning Trust has just finalised its training offer for Trust schools for this academic year. I will share full information at our first Governing body meeting this term.

The DfE is offering online training for governors to help them to understand their responsibilities and the importance of the Prevent duty. The sessions are taking place on the following dates:

• Thursday 17 October from 7-8pm
• Tuesday 22 October from 12-1pm
• Thursday 7 November from 12-1pm
• Thursday 12 December from 5-6pm
• Monday 6 January from 5-6pm
• Tuesday 21 January from 5-6pm

To register via Eventbrite you can use this link.

DfE Update
I’ve provided a roundup of the new/updated statutory and non-satutory guidance published by the DfE which is now in force as follows:

Statutory guidance
• Keeping Children Safe In Education – this year’s version contains an updated safeguarding definition with an emphasis on early help and support, additional indicators of the potential need for early help clarification around alternative provision safeguarding responsibilities and amendments in line with the draft non statutory guidance Gender Questioning Children.

• Working together to improve school attendance – this updated guidance came into force in August and whilst governance responsibilities have not changed, updates include an emphasis on working in partnership with families to improve attendance; new absence thresholds where schools will have to consider a penalty notice; considerations for pupils absent due to mental or physical ill health or their special educational needs and/or disabilities; clarified expectations for Senior Attendance Champions and a requirement for schools to share daily attendance data (most schools were already doing this).

Non statutory guidance
During the summer break, the Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced that she would be accepting the STRB’s recommendations for teachers’ pay in full, meaning that teachers and leaders will receive a 5.5% pay increase from this September.

The DfE then released new non-statutory guidance on ‘Managing teachers’ and leaders’ pay’, which replaces the previous guidance on ‘Implementing Your School’s Approach to Pay’. One major change from the new guidance is that schools are no longer required to implement performance-related pay for teachers and leaders.

The DfE also released new non-statutory guidance on ‘Teacher appraisal’ and ‘Teacher capability’, replacing the department’s teacher appraisal and capability model policy. No doubt the LA’s Schools HR Team will share updated policies with schools in due course.

Ofsted update
Ofsted has now scrapped single headline grades for schools but inspections this academic year will continue to have four grades across the existing sub-categories: quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development and leadership and management. School Report Cards will be introduced from September 2025 aiming to provide parents with a full and comprehensive assessment of how their child’s school is performing and ensure that inspections are more effective in driving improvement.

The DfE has advised that schools that would have been judged to be Inadequate will still receive an academy order and while there is no longer a threat of conversion or transfer for those that may once have been deemed Requires Improvement (now termed “struggling” by the DfE based on sub-judgements), there is an immediate intervention from a “high-performing school”. From early next year the government will introduce Regional Improvement Teams that will work with struggling schools to quickly and directly address areas of weakness.

On Tuesday a summary of the findings from Ofsted’s Big Listen consultation was also published with changes including a new inspection framework, a new focus on inclusion and a new policy of only notifying schools of their impending inspection on a Monday.