HEP Talks

The Education Brief: Saturday 20 April 2024 - Top stories include: There will be no Progress 8 replacement for school performance measurements in the current and next academic years. 75 percent of primary schools have been forced to reduce their number of teaching assistants. DfE data indicate a rise in pupil absence rates last term compared to spring 2022-23. Ofsted's latest report criticises...

It's GCSE revision season, and if you or your students need some extra motivation to review, BBC Bitesize and BBC Sounds have you covered with free podcasts covering a range of subjects from English literature to chemistry. In this episode of HEP Talks, Luke Kemper speaks with award-winning author, journalist, and podcaster Carl Anka about the English literature resources in which he played a...

With the advent of AI and dominance of social media, it's easy for educators to worry about digital literacy and how best to integrate it into their students' learning. In this episode of HEP Talks, Luke Kemper talks with Andrew Swanson, Executive Producer for BBC Bitesize, about BBC Bitesize's news and media literacy resources collectively titled 'Other Side of the Story'. The...

The Education Brief: Saturday 30 March 2024 - Top stories include: Robert Halfon steps down as the Minister for Skills, Apprenticeships, and Higher Education. Some schools are resisting admitting children with SEND. Schools will face a delay in learning their 2024/25 pupil premium funding allocations. Over a quarter of applicants to Initial Teacher Training courses are from overseas. Teachers in E...

The Education Brief: Saturday 23 March 2024 - Top stories include: NFER annual labour market report highlights declines in trends in teacher recruitment. The government has decided to terminate funding for the Inspiring Governance scheme. The government has decided to scale back the free National Professional Qualifications. There is significant demand among teachers for AI training to enhance usi...

The Education Brief: Saturday 16 March 2024 - Top stories include: The Tes Schools Wellbeing Report highlights challenges in workload, funding, and job satisfaction. The National Institute of Teaching has met its first-year recruitment target… with a little bit of help. The DfE has lowered the recruitment target for secondary teacher trainees by 9 per cent. Only two of 41 councils are adequately p...

The Education Brief: Saturday 9 March 2024 - Top stories include: The Teacher Development Trust's new report highlights the importance of funding for professional development and empowering schools with the autonomy to choose their CPD initiatives. Ofsted's newest report reveals marked improvement in reading instruction across English schools but highlights weaknesses in writing and spoken...

HEP Talks Roundtable discussions are aimed at giving our schools a voice. In this episode, James Page, Chief Executive of HEP, and Fran Hargrove, Deputy Chief Executive, host Headteachers Jade-Simone Bacon, Lucy Walker-Collins, and Stephen McNicholas, as well as Senior Improvement Partner Malcolm Willis to talk about Ofsted judgements, the latest Ofsted framework, and what a meaningful inspection...

The Education Brief: Saturday 2 March 2024 - Top stories include: Fines for unauthorised school absences will increase from £60 to £80 starting in September. Education Secretary Gillian Keegan proposes "more sustainable" teacher pay rises. Nearly 90% of large multi-academy trusts in the UK plan to expand within the next two years. FFT Education Datalab reports a significant rise in pupil...

The Education Brief: Saturday 24 February 2024 - Top stories include: The trend towards home education has doubled with significant growth in deprived areas. Dame Rachel de Souza seeks to audit UK schools' mobile phone policies. Around 20% of the UK's largest MATs gave their CEOs pay rises of £10,000 or more in 2022-23. Over 10,000 pupils have vanished from the English state education rada...

The British Army isn't necessarily associated with education, but in this episode of HEP Talks, Richard Watts, Director of Educational and Regional Marketing for the Recruiting Partnership Project at British Army and Capita, explains to Luke Kemper that, actually, the Army is an educational provider. On top of the Army Foundation College in Harrogate, the Army has also developed the BASE - Bri...

The Education Brief: Saturday 17 February 2024 - Top stories include: New DfE guidance advises academy trusts to collaborate with LAs to manage school places. Baroness Barran highlighted emerging progress in school attendance in a House of Lords speech. An EPI report suggests extending the school day to enhance disadvantaged pupils' access to extracurricular activities. A University of Cambrid...

The Education Brief: Saturday 10 February 2024 - Top stories include: Over 100 schools identified with RAAC are set for reconstruction. The government has announced guidance for primary schools to offer wraparound childcare. Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission will assess how the SEND system prepares young people for adulthood. DfE report suggests over half of special school pupils could thrive...

The Education Brief: Saturday 3 February 2024 - Top stories include: In September 2025, the government will combine the Initial Teacher Training and Early Career Framework. The EEF is launching a trial to explore if ChatGPT can reduce teacher workload. A new NFER report makes recommendations to address the "invisible glass ceiling" facing teachers of colour in the UK. Ofsted's digita...

The Education Brief: Saturday 27 January 2024 - Top stories include: Ofsted has adjusted its approach to accessing school websites. The number of local authority maintained primary schools in deficit has surged by 62 percent. Government experts urge funding for schools to trial and formulate a long-term strategy for AI. The AP sector is experiencing a significant surge in demand for pupil referral...

In this episode of HEP Talks, Luke Kemper talks with Phil Birchinall, Senior Director of Immersive Content at Discovery Education, about the concept of immersion and its connections with learning, and how augmented reality (AR) can induce a state of immersion in pupils. Discovery Education, an edtech company which provides digital learning resources to millions of teachers around the world, has de...

The Education Brief: Saturday 20 January 2024 - Top stories include: Ofsted and the DfE have announced significant reforms in response to the inquest into Ruth Perry’s death. A new Ofsted policy allows school inspections to be paused for up to five days over concerns about leader wellbeing. A new study has shed light on the complex factors driving school absences. Lucy Livings has been announced a...

The Education Brief: Saturday 13 January 2024 - Top stories include: Disadvantaged pupils are significantly less likely to attend top-performing comprehensive schools. £30,000 bursaries could attract more individuals to consider a career switch to teaching. A recent decision by the DfE will see many misconduct verdicts removed from its website. The DfE has announced it will reimburse schools up to...

In this episode of HEP Talks, Luke Kemper talks Charles Golding and Lawrence Hoo, cofounders of the CARGO movement. CARGO stands for 'Charting African Resilience Generating Opportunities' and the organisation has created some wonderful opportunities for expanding the presence of Black-heritage characters in the school curriculum. The resources they created, altogether titled CARGO Classroo...

The Education Brief: Saturday 23 December 2023 This special edition of The Education Brief includes an Education news review of Autumn term 2023 as well as HEP’s end-of-year reflections. Music by Slo Pony

In this episode of HEP Talks, Luke Kemper talks Charles Golding and Lawrence Hoo, cofounders of the CARGO movement. CARGO stands for 'Charting African Resilience Generating Opportunities' and the organisation has created some wonderful opportunities for expanding the presence of Black-heritage characters in the school curriculum. The resources they created, altogether titled CARGO Classroo...

The Education Brief: Saturday 16 December 2023 - Top stories include: The DfE has launched a consultation on the Advanced British Standard. Private equity-backed firms and a Middle East sovereign wealth fund are profiting from the UK's struggling SEND system. Ofsted's grading landscape for schools has evolved under the leadership of Amanda Spielman. There has been a significant increase in...

The Education Brief: Saturday 9 December 2023 - Top stories include: An Ofsted inspection was found to have significantly contributed to the tragic death of headteacher Ruth Perry. The UK government won't confirm a deadline for addressing the RAAC crisis in schools until the new year. Exam board OCR is set to launch the first GCSE to be assessed solely on screen in 2025. NASUWT accused the Edu...

The Education Brief: Saturday 2 December 2023 - Top stories include: The government is eyeing new laws for minimum service levels during teacher strikes. Experts warn of a potential 12% funding gap for UK schools next year. Reception pupils show overall improvement in Early Years Foundation Stage results. Reduction in bursary amounts led to a net loss of nearly 200 maths teacher entrants. This wee...

The Education Brief: Saturday 25 November 2023 - Top stories include: Amanda Spielman's final Ofsted report warns of a fractured social contract between schools and families. School exclusion rates have returned to pre-pandemic levels. Chancellor Jeremy Hunt set out the government’s spending plans, but they don’t include schools. Ofsted is set to implement changes to its post-inspection compla...