DfE
The latest news and analysis on the Department for Education and the secretary of state for education, including new policy, legislation and appointments
Tuesday
15th Sep 2026
Barton urges new government to review White Paper
Former headteachers鈥� leader warns government is trying to do too much and warned it could 鈥榝log the system to death鈥�
National centre promises to 鈥榬evitalise鈥� arts in 鈥榰nder-served鈥� schools
New online centre鈥檚 drive for high-quality arts teaching and enrichment will prioritise 鈥榗hildren and communities currently least able to access them鈥�
Secondaries gain 鈥榝lexibility鈥� on school food standards
Government sets out healthy food plans after consultation received mixed views on a range of proposed restrictions
Fears over lack of teachers for new natural history GCSE
Experts also highlight concerns about the new qualification overlapping with other subjects and schools鈥� ability to provide equal access to high-quality fieldwork
Exclusive
Monday
14th Sep 2026
How some schools turn parent power into an unfair advantage
The real differentiator between top-performing state schools and the rest is something policymakers won鈥檛 speak about 鈥� the ability to curate an engaged parent cohort, says this headteacher
Hundreds of schools denied cash for fire safety repairs
糖心Vlog investigation reveals how schools are 鈥榩itted against one another鈥� to secure funding for building repairs
Exclusive
Thursday
10th Sep 2026
Fund schools to keep classrooms cool, leaders tell government
Capital funding is needed to make schools climate-proof following this summer鈥檚 record heatwaves, a school leaders鈥� union warns
KS2 Sats: Disadvantage gap rises to highest level in 4 years
The disadvantage-related attainment gap has only been higher in three years since 2010-11, while today鈥檚 DfE data also shows that girls continue to outperform boys
9 in 10 secondaries financially 鈥榳orse off鈥� than in 2010
Coalition of teaching and school leader unions says schools would need an extra 拢4.5 billion a year to restore funding to 2010 levels
How we drove a huge increase in our GLD score in 3 years
A primary school leader outlines how a thorough redesign of its nursery site and more staff training had a huge impact on good level of development outcomes