Category: Press Releases

The press release issued by the Department for Education on 9 February 2012.

The revelation comes as the Department for Education publishes over a million items of data – first published by the Coalition Government last year – about the performance of every state school in last year’s GCSE exams. This comes on top of the publication two weeks ago of 400 per cent more league table data.

The figures show that across England there are:

• 137 schools where no pupils were entered for geography GCSE
• 57 schools where no pupils were entered for history GCSE
• 30 schools where no pupils were entered for a modern language GCSE
• 219 schools where no pupils were entered for French GCSE
• 1,067 schools where no pupils were entered for Spanish GCSE
• 516 schools where no pupils were entered for any of the individual science GCSEs

Research published last year by the Department from NatCen showed the huge positive impact the EBacc is having on future GCSE choices. Since its introduction, 47 per cent of pupils taking GCSEs in 2013 are now studying a combination of EBacc subjects – English, maths, a language, history or geography, and two sciences. In 2011, only 22 per cent of pupils were entered for the EBacc in state-funded schools.

Today’s figures also show that schools are not entering as many boys as girls for the EBacc. In 2011, almost one in four girls (23.9 per cent) were entered for the EBacc subjects, compared to under one in five boys (19.4 per cent).

Schools Minister Nick Gibb said:

Today we have published even more data, which until last year was kept secret, so that parents can see what is happening in our schools. Parents can now tell how many children are entered for key academic subjects.

These core subjects are the stepping stone to higher education and employment. But far too many schools simply aren’t giving their pupils the opportunity to study them.

We should have high expectations for all children regardless of their circumstances. Thanks to the EBacc, more young people are now studying the subjects that universities and top employers value.

The statistics also reveal that thousands of disadvantaged children are being failed by their schools. White British boys who qualify for free schools meals are less than half as likely as their peers to get five or more A*-C grades at GCSE including English and maths. Only 26 per cent of them achieved this level, compared with the national average of 58 per cent.

Nick Gibb added:

All too often, talented children from poorer backgrounds simply don’t have the same opportunities as their wealthier peers, meaning they struggle to go onto further education or the jobs they deserve.

Through the Pupil Premium, we are specifically targeting funding at disadvantaged pupils, so that schools have the resources they need to make a difference.

We want to create good schools for all, by expanding the Academies programme to give more schools real freedoms over how they are run, recruiting the best graduates into teaching, and restoring order in the classroom.

The statistics also show a far greater proportion of children with Chinese (78.5 per cent) and Indian (74.4 per cent) origins achieve five or more A*-C grades at GCSE English and maths than their peers. As well as being the highest attainers, children with Chinese origins also have higher levels of progress for English (88.5 per cent) and maths (94.7 per cent) than their peers.

Girls continue to outperform boys. 61.9 per cent of girls achieved five or more A*-C grades at GCSE including English and maths, compared with 54.6 per cent of boys – an attainment gap of 7.3 percentage points.

The press release issued by the Department for Education on 7 February 2012.

The competition is open to all seven- to 12-year-olds at schools in England. It will launch in the autumn.

The Department for Education is considering bids to design and co-deliver the competition and will choose a preferred partner in the coming weeks.

The competition will:

• Involve school-led events which Ministers envisage will result in local, regional and national prizes to make reading more attractive.
• Contain a strong peer-to-peer element including getting young people to select competition titles.
• Create a link between school and home to encourage the involvement of parents to support their children.

Nick Gibb said:

I am passionate about wanting all children to develop a real love of books and of reading for pleasure.

Children should always have a book on the go. The difference in achievement between children who read for half an hour a day in their spare time and those who do not is huge – as much as a year’s education by the time they are 15.

A new national reading competition is designed to give a competitive spur to those reluctant readers who are missing out on the vast world of literature.

The Government is committed to driving up reading standards of young people because:

• One in 10 boys leaves primary school with the reading age of a seven-year-old.
• 15 per cent of seven-year-olds do not reach the expected level (level 2) in reading.
• 16 per cent of 11-year-olds do not achieve the expected level (level 4) in reading.
• England has slipped down the international table for reading in primary schools. The Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) of 10-year-olds saw England fall from third out of 35 countries in 2001 to fifteenth out of 40 countries in 2006.
• Fifteen-year-olds in England are at least six months behind those in Hong Kong, Singapore, Canada, New Zealand, Japan and Australia, according to the Department’s analysis of the OECD’s 2009 Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) study.

Evidence shows that the regular enjoyment of reading leads to higher achievement at school.

• A 2010 survey by the National Literacy Trust (NLT) of eight- to 17-year olds and their reading showed that more than 96 per cent of those that read daily were reading at or above the expected level.
• A 2009 PISA study shows that almost 40 per cent of pupils in England never read for pleasure and that the difference in reading ability between these pupils and those who read for just half an hour a day is equivalent to a year’s schooling at age 15.
• Another survey by the NLT of primary and secondary pupils showed that only 48 per cent of young people think they read enough and that more young people preferred to read websites and text messages than fiction.

The Government wants every child to leave school with a lifelong love of reading and the necessary literacy skills to succeed in life. The Department’s phonics evidence paper shows that the teaching of systematic synthetic phonics is proven to be the best method of teaching early reading. Once a child has mastered the mechanics of reading, building on it in a literacy-rich environment will enable them to become accomplished readers. Only then will they find it easier to read a wider range of literature for their own enjoyment.

The Department announced a scheme to help primary schools teach systematic synthetic phonics and drive up reading standards by offering them up to £3,000 match funding to spend on materials and training. Since the launch of the scheme in September 2011, more than 4,200 schools have signed up to spend more than £10 million on approved products and training.

The press release issued by the Department for Education on 7 February 2012.

• £6m Higher Apprenticeship Fund will deliver thousands more degree level places.
• £250m given directly to businesses, so they can take control of the way skills training is delivered.
• £1,500 apprenticeship incentive for small firms now available.

Marking National Apprenticeship Week, the Prime Minister announced a new round of Government funding to help deliver the world class skills firms need to drive growth.

_ Read the Prime Minister’s article on apprenticeships in the Huffington Post _

Businesses and training providers can bid for a share of £6m from the Higher Apprenticeship Fund, which will support the development of thousands of new Higher Apprenticeships in sectors including aerospace, energy and renewable technologies.

The Prime Minister also opened the bidding for the new Employer Ownership pilot, inviting employers in England to apply to access up to £250m of public investment and secure more control over how skills training is designed and delivered. Detailed guidance and application forms for the pilot will be issued towards the end of February. Bidding will close on 26 April 2012.

He also announced that from this week, small firms will be offered an incentive of £1,500 to hire their first apprentices aged 16-24. This is expected to support up to 40,000 new apprenticeships over the next year.

Prime Minister David Cameron said:

“I’m delighted to underline our commitment to strengthen our economy by helping employers take on apprentices and ensure that the UK workforce has the skills that businesses need. Under this Government apprenticeship starts are increasing at a record rate, with improvements across the age range, in all sectors, throughout the country.

“By making apprenticeships a gold standard option for ambitious young people, we are sending a message that technical excellence is as highly valued as academic prowess. And by focusing investment where it is most needed to deliver sustainable growth and offering real ownership of vocational training to employers, we are equipping businesses with the skills they need to rebalance our economy and distribute opportunity more widely.”

Skills Minister John Hayes said:

“Clarity of policy and certainty of purpose in Government has delivered a record number of apprenticeships and driven up standards at every level. We must now go further to create new pathways to excellence for the brightest and best young people and help employers to secure the high-quality skills they need.

“Our mission is to put practical training on a level playing field with academic study, creating a highly skilled, creative workforce that can take on the best in the world.”

The press release issued by the Department for Education on 2 February 2012.

Dame Patricia Hodgson DBE has been appointed to serve as Chair of the School Teachers’ Review Body (STRB) from 1 February 2012 for three years.

The STRB provides independent advice to the Government on pay and conditions for just under half a million teachers and school leaders in England and Wales.

Michael Gove, Secretary of State for Education, said:

I am very pleased to announce the appointment of Dame Patricia Hodgson as the Chair of the School Teachers’ Review Body. She will bring considerable experience to the STRB, which is responsible for providing independent advice on teachers’ pay and conditions.

The right framework for pay and conditions is key for taking forward my vision to drive up standards by enabling heads and governors to recruit and retain high quality teachers.

Having begun her career as a producer and journalist, Dame Patricia Hodgson is currently Deputy Chair of Ofcom, where she previously served as a Board Member. She has a wealth of experience having been Principal of Newnham College, Cambridge, since 2006. From 1993 to 2000 she was Director of Policy and Planning at the BBC, where she was responsible for Charter and licence renegotiations, and for project managing the BBC’s switch to digital.

Accepting her new role, Dame Patricia Hodgson said:

Good teachers change lives. I very much look forward to leading the work of the School Teachers’ Review Body in supporting them.

The Secretary of State will provide the STRB with a remit to introduce greater freedoms and flexibilities in the teachers’ pay framework in due course.

The press release issued by the Department for Education on 24 January 2012.

These changes, proposed for September 2012, are intended to raise expectations for further improvement in the performance of these schools, for the benefit of children, parents and carers.

Inspection reports will provide a clear assessment of how children are doing in the context of their age and ability. They will be based on observations of work, taking into account starting points and a school’s record of pupil progress.

Read the consultation: Introducing a new framework for inspecting non-association independent schools.

The key inspection judgments proposed are:

• overall effectiveness
• pupils’ achievement
• pupils’ behaviour and safety
• quality of teaching
• quality of the curriculum
• provision for pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development
• provision for pupils’ welfare, health and safety
• leadership and management

In view of the diversity in size and nature of independent schools Ofsted is seeking to consult as widely as possible to gain the views of all interested parties on the proposals.

Ofsted Director of Education and Care, Jean Humphrys said:

The quality of teaching is the key driver of school improvement. One of the main findings from Ofsted inspection in this sector is that the quality of teaching in non-association independent schools tends to be competent but seldom inspiring.

It is vital that our inspection is incisive and rigorous, and that judgments are fair, clear and helpful to a school’s further development. With these new arrangements we will focus more sharply on what makes teaching truly effective.

The proposals build on the current arrangements for inspection. Ofsted will continue to use a 4 point scale to make qualitative judgements. Detailed grade descriptors will seek to provide more consistency, openness and transparency and encourage independent schools to strive further for improvements to the quality of provision.

Ofsted currently gives independent schools 2 days’ notice of their education inspection but for inspection of care in boarding and residential special schools no notice is given. Ofsted intends to adopt a similar system for the education inspection of independent schools. Pupils, parents and carers have told Ofsted that inspection without notice is important as it lets the inspectors see the school as it really is.

The views of the pupils themselves, as well as parents, carers, staff and local authorities who use the services of independent schools are highly valued by inspectors who follow up the issues they raise. These views will continue to be an important feature of inspection.

Despite recent improvement, the biggest single weakness in non-association independent schools remains the high proportion of schools (12%) which do not have sufficiently robust arrangements for safeguarding pupils’ welfare, health and safety. Ofsted will continue to check that secure and robust arrangements are made to provide a safe environment for children. It is therefore proposed to retain the separate judgement for pupils’ welfare, health and safety.

Additional proposals put forward for consultation cover children’s homes offering education, focussing on the quality of education where it is weakest: for looked after children in independent children’s homes which are registered education providers.

Among independent children’s homes which are registered education providers there is a comparatively lower proportion that makes good or outstanding educational provision. The new framework will focus on the educational progress and achievements of looked after children and look critically at what schools are doing to close the gap between their achievements and other pupils.

Following the consultation, Ofsted intends to test the new inspection arrangements in pilot inspections, before introduction in September 2012.

Ofsted inspects all non-association independent schools in England. These comprise around half of more than 2,000 independent schools. The remainder is inspected by the independent inspection bodies, Independent Schools Inspectorate (ISI), School Inspection Service (SIS) and Bridge Schools Inspectorate (BSI).

The press release issued by the Department for Education on 23 January 2012.

Education Secretary Michael Gove has extended the appointments for three Board Members of the Government’s delivery agency, Partnerships for Schools (PfS).

Richard Baldwin, Stella Earnshaw and Brian Rigby will serve on the Board from now until PfS closes and becomes part of the new Government Executive Agency – the Education Funding Agency. They will serve until 31st July 2012 to allow for liquidation to take place. Erica Pienaar will remain as the fourth Board Member, for the same period of time.

Richard Baldwin has also taken over from Mike Grabiner as Chair of the Board of Directors this month.

Richard Baldwin was first appointed as a PfS Board member in January 2005, and was reappointed in January 2008 for a further three years. Richard has a strong background in the private sector including the construction industry. He was previously a non-voting member of the BSFI Investment Committee. More recently, Richard chairs a national Centre for Innovation in Health and Social Care and is a Visiting Professor to the Centre for Research and Innovation (Construction and Property Management) at the University of Salford.

Stella Earnshaw is the Chair of the PfS Audit Committee. Stella was originally appointed to the PfS Board in 2005, and her appointment has now been extended three times. Stella has held various board positions in the public and private sector, Stella is also Vice Chair of the West Midlands Ambulance Service NHS Trust.

Brian Rigby was first appointed to the PfS Board in 2005. His appointment has been extended three times. Brian is a Visiting Fellow of Warwick Business School. He has previously been the Director of the Procurement Group for HM Treasury and enjoyed a long career in senior management with BT.

Erica Pienaar was first appointed to the PfS Board in 2010, to serve until 2013. Erica’s term of office will now run until PfS is liquidated. Erica Pienaar is the executive head teacher of the Leathersellers’ Federation of Schools. She began her career as a science teacher in 1973 and has taught for 36 years in South East London. Erica is also a National Leader of Education (NLE), a Non-Executive Director at James Allen’s Girls School, and a Freeman of the Company of Educators.

The press release issued by the Department for Education on 20 January 2012.

Sir

No teacher whose standards fall below an acceptable level will go unpunished as you alluded to in your story – Cases go unheard in GTC “shambles” (6 January 2012).

All serious cases of misconduct that could lead to teachers being barred will be transferred to the new Teaching Agency if those cases have not been concluded by 31 March 2012 when the GTCE closes. Where appropriate, all other cases will have been dealt with at a local level.

The current system does not work – it is weighed down by the bureaucracy of minor cases instead of dealing swiftly with the most serious referrals.

The new system will ensure that serious cases are dealt with much more quickly by giving headteachers greater freedom to deal with incompetent teachers themselves. We are bringing in clear, new standards for all teachers and there will be a new list of teachers barred from the profession available to employers and the public.

Nick Gibb MP Minister of State for Schools

The press release issued by the Department for Education on 19 January 2012.

Gibb: Phonics funding for schools to raise reading standards

So far 3,211 schools have taken advantage of the Government’s match-funding scheme to buy the products. The products include a range of teaching resources, including books, software and games. Additionally, 987 schools have booked phonics training for their staff (at a total spend of £1.3 million) to improve their teaching of phonics, the method internationally proven to improve reading, especially among younger children.

The scheme went ‘live’ in September last year with the publication of the phonics catalogue of approved products and services. Under the scheme, any state-funded school with Key Stage 1 pupils – including Academies and Free Schools – can claim up to £3,000 to buy products and training until March 2013.

Schools have signed up to spend £1.66 million on products in the past month alone. The number of schools that have booked phonics training has almost doubled in the same period.

But the figures present a mixed picture.

Some local authorities – Thurrock, Rochdale, Walsall, Lincolnshire, Windsor and Maidenhead, Plymouth, and Sutton – are leading the way. More than one in three of their schools have already signed up for products. In others, a high number of schools have booked training so their staff can teach phonics as effectively as possible.

Two local authorities with reading rates well below the national average at Key Stage 2 – Derby and Coventry – are also among those that have a high proportion of their schools taking advantage of the scheme.

But in other areas, including where there is a higher than average proportion of 11-year-olds failing to reach the expected level in reading, there has so far been a low level of take-up of products. These include Central Bedfordshire, Bedford, Hull, Medway, Portsmouth, Luton and Sheffield. And in 20 local authorities, not a single school has booked training for their staff yet.

Schools Minister Nick Gibb said:

This is a chance for schools to gain extra funding to improve reading standards so I am naturally concerned at the number of areas where few schools have not yet taken the opportunity to do so.

The money is available until March next year so there is still time to claim it.

But every week that goes by is another week that children are missing out on the best possible teaching of reading.

This is an open invitation to all schools to improve the way they teach systematic synthetic phonics – the tried and tested method of improving the reading of all our children, especially the weakest.