Blogs

At a glance

• System reform season: Skills white paper headlines drop for FE/skills (new 16–19 funding model; barring “unsuitable” leaders); schools white paper trails behaviour expectations and grouping of schools.
• New route at 16–19: Government signals “V Levels” alongside A- and T-levels; FE voices outline opportunities and risks.
• AI in classrooms: DfE to encourage AI tutors; trusts continue to trial teacher-avatar catch-up (pedagogy, safety, ethics in play).
• SEND & funding pressures: Trust cashflow strains hit headlines; teachers raise concerns planned SEND reforms could worsen the crisis; Sky highlights inequity for low-income families accessing special school places.
• Leadership & oversight: ASCL shifts Ofsted strategy; new FE improvement/oversight structures discussed; free schools update “later this year”.
• Evidence use: EEF shares survey insights on how leaders engage with research—useful for setting this year’s CPD culture.

Deep-dive summaries (with STEM takeaways)

1. V Levels take shape — a third vocational route signalled alongside A- and T-levels. Sky News (within window) frames aims (job-standard alignment); FE Week (op-ed) argues for coherence.
   STEM angle: Start mapping where engineering/digital/science pathways might sit across A/T/V-levels, HTQs and apprenticeships in your local offer.
2. Skills white paper: FE oversight and funding changes — plans include a new 16–19 funding formula and powers to bar “unsuitable” FE leaders. FE Week.
   STEM angle: Provider stability affects T Level and apprenticeship placements in engineering/digital. Keep a contingency list of partners.
3. Schools white paper: behaviour & ‘schools in groups’ trail — early signalling on behaviour expectations and proposals for encouraging schools to be part of a group. Schools Week (behaviour); Schools Week (school groups).
   STEM angle: Lab safety and practical learning time benefit from consistent routines; groups/trusts can pool technicians and specialist kit.
4. AI tutors encouraged by DfE — Tes reports policy intent to promote AI tutoring tools in schools. Tes.
   STEM angle: Pilot AI for practice & feedback (quizzes, code review, spaced retrieval), not for core thinking (planning investigations, data analysis). Write a simple staff code of use.
5. SEND pressure points — multi-academy trust seeks emergency cash amid delays to SEND/free school funding (Schools Week); teacher survey warns planned reforms could worsen the crisis (Tes); access inequity highlighted for low-income families (Sky News).
   STEM angle: Protect practical access with consistent department-wide adjustments (benching, apparatus variants, visual prompts, alternative write-ups).
6. Parliamentary Qs: free schools & IB cuts — ministers promise an update on paused free-school projects “later this year”. Schools Week.
   STEM angle: Estate/planning delays ripple into labs/workshops; keep decant plans and practical-lite sequences in reserve.
7. How leaders use evidence — EEF blog summarises survey findings on what helps heads engage with research and turn it into action. EEF.
   STEM angle: Use this to shape your CPD rhythm (micro-CPD on required practicals, maths-in-science, computational thinking).

Quick actions for STEM departments

• Routes map: Build a one-pager for A/T/V-levels + HTQs/apprenticeships in your area (entry, progression, local providers).
• AI guardrails: Publish a short “AI in teaching & assessment” note (what’s OK, what’s not; data/privacy; watermarking of generated media).
• Practical equity: Create a practical access profile template so SEND adjustments are consistent across classes and teachers.
• Partner resilience: If you run T Levels/apprenticeships, review partner stability and line up alternates ahead of white-paper changes.
• Evidence into action: Pick one EEF-aligned focus (e.g., disciplinary literacy in science write-ups) and run a 6-week try-measure-share cycle.

Direct links (copy/paste)

• Sky News — V Levels announcement
• FE Week — V Levels: coherence op-ed
• FE Week — Skills white paper: FE leadership & funding
• Schools Week — White paper to set behaviour expectations
• Schools Week — Plan for schools to be part of a group
• Tes — DfE to encourage AI tutors
• Schools Week — MAT notice to improve after bailout plea
• Tes — Teachers fear SEND reforms could worsen crisis
• Sky News — SEND & disadvantage access gap
• Schools Week — Ministerial Qs: free schools update due
• EEF — Who supports leaders to act on evidence?