To wonder what all these changes Labour has made to schools are?

@twistyizzyhas the numbers but I agree it’s so bad. Just a GE gimmick to damage a sector and jobs.

Well considering 5 x the number of children have left than government predicted and the number of school closures is +67% on a 'normal' year the answer is looking like £0.
The children, teachers + staff impacted are just accepted collateral damage.

I want to see the net figure of actual VAT collected from private schools. I want to know exactly how much cash the government has actually physically collected by hurting this sector. Sibling teaches in one and the redundancies have been awful.

There were never going to be 6500 more teachers

The other problem with this is that even if there were 6500 new teachers, 'new' teachers don't come with wisdom and experience or knowledge of the community and families.

There are many, many issues in education.

It's gone from being a profession I loved and am good at to one I am making an exit plan to leave and am willing to take a pay cut to do so. I will not be a teacher this time next year. And I am not alone in that.

Agree. See also the seemingly universal use of the metric ‘relative poverty’. By definition there will always be a massive chunk of the population who live in ‘relative poverty’. It masks real deprivation and it makes me cross!

To everyone? Even parents who could afford to buy the uniform? See, this is my issue with doing these things universally ie "free" breakfast clubs. Nothing is "free", the taxpayer pays. So wealthy parents are then getting handouts they don't need ie it's a waste of money and takes money away from other things.
I 100% support those on FSM and low incomes getting the support but making it universal is crazy when we have so little money as a country. If we are means testing WFA etc then we should means test breakfast clubs + uniforms.
Phillipson + Labour hide behind child poverty stuff cos she's taking a wrecking ball to actual education.

This is still brand new for me though and they’re giving them to everyone.

Grants have been available since 2021 though. For FSM families

Nope. I also have a child going into year 11 and this is the first it’s ever happened. I’ve been doing the school run for many years.

That scheme has been in place for a while though hasn't it?

Agreed and also for many parents it seems. The fact so many parents with kids in state schools haven't even read the Schools Bill is scary.
Why aren't state school parents shouting from the roof tops, lobbying their MPs en masse etc? There are approx 4 million+ parents with kids in state schools so that's enough power to hold politicians to account.
Sadly it seems many just aren't aware. Until you get the awareness then people won't vote with education in mind.
Maybe its just a sad indictment of the importance the average voter puts on education 🤔

Well I have to go into my children’s school tomorrow to collect a free uniform pack for September. I wondered where they might’ve come from.

Problem is who do you vote for? Education seems to be at the bottom of the pile for everyone

Thank you - this isn't Becky Francis' report - are you able to link that?
The interim report doesn't set out huge changes but does refer to the current review of subject matter, which is to be reported on in the Autumn, did you mean that and do you have any information about that?

They did and the unions especially did but they, like many, also didn't do enough scrutiny of Labour during the election. They saw Labour attacking independent schools with soundbites around "eiltes" + "privilege", bought the lie of 6500 teachers and dug no further.
The fact Labour have now made UK only country in the world to tax education should have told them everything they needed to know about how Labour value education. We are now ideologically behind Nigeria FFS who have just reversed the tax on education.

There were never going to be 6500 more teachers cos Labour lied to everyone about the impact of VAT on independent schools.

Labour should have been held up to more scrutiny during election ie their plans for SEND, but most people (quite rightly) just wanted to see the back of the Tories so didn't bother asking Labour the hard Qs.

The 2024 budget saw less money going to education than 2014 PLUS unfunded NI rise + first payrise.

twistyizzy I completely agree.

I’m confused. I thought the teaching profession wanted a Labour government. This thread sounds like they’ve been very disappointed.

Who to vote for next? I genuinely don’t think politicians can satisfy people at all anymore!

SEND hubs" in schools = broomcupboards with unqualified staff and will be used as holding pens.

Exactly this. This is not quality first teaching or even inclusion, it's just cheap.

We no longer have to buy expensive logoed uniform as every clothing item. They still have a mandatory logoed jumper, tie and PE top but we no longer need to buy logoed PE leggings, sweatshirt, skirts and trousers.

@twistyizzy

My thoughts exactly.

I can't comprehend why there was so much outcry re PIP but nobody's protesting about SEN children being denied special provision they need and parents not being allowed to appeal. Ridiculous

I have a strong view.

It goes along the lines of "government will restrict EHCPs for all but several cases, force more kids into mainstream and then claim they've solved the SEN crisis"
By reducing number of EHCPs they will reduce legal demands on LAs + schools plus reduce number of kids exempt from VAT. They will create "SEND hubs" in schools = broomcupboards with unqualified staff and will be used as holding pens. They are already saying they will make all teachers "SEND specialists" ie 1 or 2 x CPD sessions and then claim all teachers can now teach SEND within the mainstream classes.

Bigot Phillipson is the anti-education and the fact that court case forced them to admit they considered exempting all SEND kids from VAT but then decided against it cos it would significantly reduce amount of ££ collected, tells you everything. Then she followed up with "children need more resilience" and the fact the Schools Bill will bring in guidelines to reduce parent ability to appeal and complain says it all. Anyone with a child with SEND (and no current EHCP). in state schools should be worried!

Keeping exhausted older teachers who don't want to be there sounds like a recipe for disaster.

I suspect early retirement is cost neutral, as the pension is reduced to account for the longer retirement.

Any views on SEND reform?
In context that many SEN kids were in private but can't afford it anymore so are forced to state?

Only difference in the Primary i work at is a redundancy this summer plus we are shuddering at the thought at having to expand our breakfast club to what the trial schools did - it is so severely underfunded. If we have 75% uptake itll be unsafe as govt been ridiculous with ratios.

www.gov.uk/government/publications/curriculum-and-assessment-review-interim-report