This week I report on new details published by the DfE on the Inclusion Strategy all schools will have to produce by the end of this calendar year; new DfE screen time guidance for young children and Public First research on parents views on attendance, SEND and behaviour.

New information on the requirement for schools to produce an Inclusion Strategy
On Wednesday the DfE published new details on the Inclusion Strategy that all schools will have to produce by 31 December 2026, with £400 million per year in inclusive mainstream funding to help develop and implement them. The funding will provide the average secondary school with around £48k per year and the average primary school with around £14k per year. This will help schools implement new expectations for inclusion, which involves developing an inclusion strategy and creating inclusion bases for pupils with additional needs.

New DfE screen time guidance
DfE guidance published this week aims to give parents clear, evidence-backed advice on screen time for children under five. It recommends:

• For under-twos, screen time should be avoided except for shared activities.
• For children aged two to five, it should be limited to around one hour a day and avoided at mealtimes and before bed.

Research on parents views on attendance, SEND and behaviour published
The second research report from the Public First run Parent Voice Project, shines a light on parents’ views on various key policy topics including attendance, SEND provision and behaviour. Based on a survey of more than 6,000 parents of children aged four to 19 in England, across both state and private schools key findings included:

• Parents don’t see attendance as a major challenge – attendance might be a key focus of national policy discussions, but polling showed parents don’t generally see it as a pressing issue. Just 8% selected poor attendance rates as one of the top challenges affecting children, far behind issues like underfunding, behaviour, problematic mobile phone and social media use and mental ill health.
• High rates of term-time holidays – 37% of parents reported taking their child out of school at least once in the last year for a holiday or family event. This was most prevalent among parents of young children, with 44% of four-year-olds reporting doing so, compared to 29% of parents of 16 year olds. Rising holiday costs coupled with “relatively modest” fines were among reasons given by parents, while others framed time away from school as educational.
• Missing school normalised in some areas – the report also revealed wide regional variation in views about attendance enforcement. Nearly 60% of parents polled in the north east believed they should be able to take children out of school whenever they wanted, compared to 37% in London.
• Positive views on behaviour – though parents ranked poor behaviour as one of the top school issues affecting children, this did not translate into dissatisfaction with behaviour at their child’s school.
• Parents doubt teachers over SEND – although 50% of parents said it was important for children with SEND to be educated in mainstream schools, only 52% believed teachers were currently well equipped to deal with SEND.
• Less satisfaction among parents of children with SEND – parents of children with SEND but no EHCP had the lowest levels of satisfaction with their child’s education, the report found.
• Regional differences in navigating the SEND process – 54% of parents of children with SEND said they found the assessment process difficult or very difficult. But just 40% of parents of children with SEND in London found the process difficult, compared to 62% of parents in the south east.

This week I highlight new data from the DfE on the number of complaints to Ofsted about schools last financial year as well as new research highlighting teachers’ concerns that children don’t receive enough support for their reading at home and that screen time is a major challenge in encouraging children to read.

Rise in parental complaints to Ofsted
Data released by the DfE indicates complaints to Ofsted about schools rose by 5% in the 2024-25 financial year, reaching 16,700 cases, the equivalent of more than 45 complaints per day. Despite this, fewer complaints met the criteria for investigation, with only 9% deemed to be qualifying, down from 12% the previous year, meaning 91% were classed as non-qualifying. Noting a growing trend of families bypassing schools entirely, Ofsted emphasised the need for parents to first exhaust their school’s complaints procedure before going to them.

Research highlights concern over children’s reading skills
The latest research commissioned by education technology company Renaissance indicates over 80% of teachers are worried that children do not receive enough support for their reading at home, and around 90% fear that screen time is a major challenge in encouraging children to read. The research comes amid the DfE’s initiative, The National Year of Reading 2026, which aims to encourage children and young people to read for pleasure. Government guidance on screen time for children aged under five is due to be published soon.

This week I report on the announcement of a new DfE KS3 alliance to build the evidence base for what works for early secondary students and the launch of new V levels in digital, education and early years, finance and accounting.

Trust bosses to lead DfE KS3 alliance
The Government is launching a Key Stage 3 alliance to build the evidence base for what works for early secondary students, the Education Secretary announced at the ASCL conference, in Liverpool this morning. The alliance will form part of the Government’s universal RISE offer and Rebecca Boomer-Clark, Chief Executive of Lift Schools and Dame Lesley Powell, Chief Executive of the North East Learning Trust, will co-chair the new alliance.

The move comes after the recent Francis review of curriculum and assessment warned that there is slow progress in the earlier years of secondary and a need to maintain momentum. The alliance will be supported by regional networks, which the Government said would allow sharing of excellent practice and harness local innovation.

New V level subjects
From 2027, pupils will be able to take V levels in digital, education and early years, finance and accounting.

V levels were first announced in the government’s recently published post-16 Education and Skills White Paper and will exist alongside A levels (the academic route) and T levels (the technical route). This streamlines the approximate 900 qualifications currently offered and means students will be able to take V levels alongside A levels. Transition to the new system will be phased to give schools time to prepare.

This week I highlight a new DfE consultation on draft statutory guidance on supporting pupils with allergies and a consultation on understanding how technology impacts on children’s wellbeing.

Supporting pupils with allergies
This week, the DfE launched an eight week consultation on draft statutory guidance aimed at supporting children with allergies and medical conditions. Some of the proposed requirements include:

• stocking spare allergy pens for emergency use on-site
• providing allergy awareness training for all staff
• maintaining a comprehensive policy that supports children with medical conditions, including the role of Individual Healthcare Plans to record specific arrangements for pupils

National consultation: Growing up in the online world
The government has launched a consultation to understand how technology impacts children’s wellbeing, and what more can be done to help families strike the right balance.

Key proposals include setting a minimum age for social media access, restricting addictive features like infinite scrolling and autoplay, and whether mobile phone guidance should be statutory for schools.

A government response is expected this summer and the Prime Minister has announced new legal powers to act on the findings faster than usual. Governors and trustees are encouraged to share insights and promote participation among school communities.

This week I focus solely on the publication of the Schools White Paper and the accompanying SEND consultation.

Schools White Paper
The white paper sets out the government’s long term plan to reform the education system so that high standards and inclusion are better delivered. It responds to challenges facing the sector in key areas such as attainment, disadvantage, SEND and attendance.

While the paper sets out a decade-long vision for the education system, changes and targets will roll out in stages following a period of consultation, starting as early as next year. The NGA has helpfully provided a summary paper for your information.

This week I highlight the DfE’s consultation on KCSIE 2026 which is a major update for September and contains a new section focusing on how best to support children questioning their gender, as well as publication of the DfE’s new 10 year school estates plan with an investment in education capital of £38 billion for 2025-26 to 2029-30.

Consultation on KCSIE 2026 and a new section on gender issues included
The DfE has published a consultation for the revisions to Keeping Children Safe in Education for September 2026. This is a major update to KCSIE and the list of changes runs to six pages (see Annex D, page 195) including strengthening or clarifying existing content, changes to multi agency working ahead of any legislation changes in the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, where appropriate the recent Casey Audit, and adds content in relation to Violence Against Women and Girls.

The draft statutory guidance also includes a new section focusing on issues that might arise when considering how best to support children who are questioning their gender, along with new sections on single-sex spaces and single-sex sports. These sections are informed by the public consultation on the draft non-statutory Gender questioning children: guidance for schools and colleges. The DfE won’t be publishing standalone guidance for schools and colleges on gender questioning children, but proposes instead to include this content in KCSIE so that children’s wellbeing and safeguarding are considered in the round, and so that schools and colleges can easily access this information in one place.

The consultation closes on 22 April with the new version coming into force from September.

Publication of the DfE’s 10 year schools estates plan
On Wednesday the DfE published its 10 year schools estates plan with an investment in education capital of £38 billion for 2025-26 to 2029-30, which the Government says is the highest since 2010. The plan includes:

• Replacement of the Condition Improvement Fund by Autumn 2028 – in its place will be a new programme through which the body responsible for a school’s estate, be that an academy trust, local authority, voluntary-aided school body or church diocese, can access maintenance funding more easily than before, without the need to submit a full bid. To support this, responsible bodies will be required to collect granular and timely data on their estate and share this with the DfE.
• New digital tools and expectations – a new digital platform ‘Manage Your Education Estate’, will be launched this month bringing together related guidance, tools and data. From Autumn 2026, all responsible bodies will have to submit a “light touch” annual return via the service to confirm they are meeting national standards.
• Strategic planning for spare space – the Government will centralise strategic planning for spare space in schools. This will help to develop a framework for the use of school space during demographic change e.g. a falling birth rate, which is leading to falling rolls, alongside an increase in the need for SEND provision.
• A new Renewal and Retrofit Programme – in April a new programme, backed by £710 million up to 2029-30, to improve the condition of school buildings will be launched.
• The School Rebuilding Programme – over 500 schools are already in this programme and a further 250 will be selected by early 2027. Responsible bodies can nominate schools for the programme until 23 April 2026.

This week I highlight a DfE consultation on Early Years screen time and usage and confirmation that the free breakfast club rollout continues.

Early Years screen time and usage consultation
The DfE is giving people an opportunity to provide evidence that will inform the development of new parental guidance on screen time and usage for early years (0-5 year-old) children. The consultation will close on 16 February 2026.

Free breakfast club rollout continues
The DfE has announced 500 more schools will offer free breakfast clubs from April, set to benefit over 300,000 children. This forms part of a package of measures the government is pursuing to help families with the cost of living.

From today, schools with at least 40% of pupils eligible for free school meals can also apply to offer free breakfast clubs. 1,500 schools will then be selected for a September 2026 rollout. All schools who are eligible will be contacted directly and must complete an expression of interest form by 20 March.

This week I report that the DfE is looking to publish guidance for schools on the use of internal suspensions and that AI powered tutoring tools will be available to Year 9-11 pupils by the end of 2027.

Proposed DfE guidance on the use of internal suspensions
This week Ministers have said schools should only suspend pupils in the most serious cases of poor behaviour and violence, as the DfE looks to publish guidance for schools on the use of internal suspensions. The Government has said the new national framework will be included in the upcoming schools white paper, before a consultation with headteachers.

AI tutoring tools to support 450,000 disadvantaged pupils
AI powered tutoring tools will be available to Year 9-11 pupils by the end of 2027, benefitting up to 450,000 disadvantaged pupils, the Government has announced. Teacher-led trials of the tools will begin this summer, co-created alongside AI and tech companies. The AI tools will aim to provide personalised, one-to-one learning support, adapting to individual pupils’ needs.

This week I report on the publication of non-statutory guidance for parents and schools on complaints, new guidance for schools on the use of mobile phones which schools should use from April and the Education Secretary’s announcement of strengthened safety standards for AI products used in schools.

New parental and school complaints guidance published
New guidance has been published to address a sharp rise in parental complaints, with a focus on rebuilding trust and encouraging calmer, more constructive dialogue between parents and schools. Published by Parentkind, the guidance was developed in collaboration with the DfE, Ofsted and 13 education bodies, including the NGA.

The guidance sets out a five-step process to help parents raise concerns respectfully and at the appropriate level, from classroom issues to whole-school matters. It urges families to reflect on whether an issue is feedback, a concern or a formal complaint, and discourages aggressive behaviour, personal accusations, unnecessary escalation and the use of AI to generate complaints. Separate guidance for schools recommends being open, transparent, personal and accessible when dealing with concerned parents.

The upcoming Schools White Paper will set out planned improvements to the complaints system.

New DfE guidance on mobile phone policies
The DfE has published new non-statutory guidance for schools on the use of mobile phones. This comes amid growing concerns about the impact of mobile phones on children’s wellbeing, alongside increasing calls to raise the minimum age for accessing social media platforms.

As part of this shift, Ofsted inspections will place greater emphasis on mobile phone use, with schools expected to demonstrate how effectively their mobile phone policies are implemented as part of their wider behaviour management strategies.

The DfE has also launched a consultation on restricting children’s use of social media, which could ultimately lead to a ban for children under the age of 16.

Updated AI safety standards for schools
Speaking at the UK AI for Education Summit on Monday, the Secretary of State for Education announced strengthened safety standards for AI products used in schools. The updates are aimed at developers and suppliers and cover critical areas including mental health and cognitive development.

The Government has also announced a £23 million investment to expand the use of AI and edtech in education. The four-year pilot will see more than 1,000 schools and colleges involved and will begin in September.

This week I report on the announcement of a new national SEND training programme, the launch of a GCSE exam results app and the launch of the national Year of Reading.

National SEND training announced as part of additional funding package
This week the Government announced a £200 million national SEND training programme, as part of a wider additional funding package to be confirmed in the forthcoming Schools White Paper.

The new training programme will ensure every teacher and member of education staff receives support on SEND and inclusion, addressing long-standing gaps in confidence and consistency. Online and in-person training will cover areas such as adapting teaching, assistive technology and working with parents.

DfE launches new GCSE exam results app
From this summer, Year 11 students will be able to view their GCSE results on an app, following a successful regional pilot.

Whilst pupils will still go into school to receive their results, the app aims to modernise how young people access their exam results once they have left school, making it easier to enrol in post-16 destinations and enabling employers to verify education history. It is also expected to save schools an estimated £30 million per year in administrative costs.

National Year of Reading launched
As part of the National Year of Reading, the DfE and the National Literacy Trust have launched the ‘Go All In’ campaign, encouraging people of all ages to rediscover reading for pleasure. This follows data revealing only one in three 8 to18 year olds say they enjoy reading.

The campaign aims to bring together families, schools, libraries, businesses and other community organisations to connect reading with everyday passions such as football, music, food, film and gaming. Activities will include national events, local community programmes, volunteer opportunities and new resources for parents and schools.