The closure of schools due to Covid-19 has been an unprecedented challenge. In addition to the difficulties associated with remote learning, independent schools have had to contend with parents questioning whether the education being delivered justifies the fees being charged. In particular, we have seen parents challenging the fees due for examination year groups where […]
For the second year running, responsibility falls on teachers to award exam grades to their students. After the fiasco of last summer which saw a controversial algorithm in place to moderate results (later withdrawn following a backlash from students and parents), the government has announced a return to teacher assessed grades, having given assurances that […]
One of the many additional challenges presented to schools as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic was the requirement for schools to produce Centre Assessed Grades (CAGs) for last summer’s A levels and GCSEs. Whilst a challenge in itself, the task was made no easier by the Government’s changing policy and last minute U-turn on standardisation […]
When schools were forced to close in March, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, many schools chose to make use of the Government’s Job Retention Scheme and furloughed some of their staff. Whilst most employers acted honestly and were grateful for the lifeline offered by the scheme, the Government revealed last month that an estimated £3.5 […]
The Government has been under increasing pressure to extend the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme which will cease providing support to employers at the end of October 2020. With infection rates of Covid-19 on the rise and anticipation of continued disruption to the economy, the Chancellor has outlined new measures to support employers in the form of […]
The Government has just released the updated version of Keeping Children Safe in Education (KCSIE), which will come into force on 1 September 2020. You should continue to refer to the current version of KCSIE until 31 August 2020, but schools will want to start preparing for the upcoming changes. The key new developments are […]
Conclusion of Phase 1 of the residential schools investigation The Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) was set up in 2014 to investigate concerns that some institutions had failed to protect children from sexual abuse, and to make meaningful recommendations to keep children safe in the future. The Inquiry, which is unprecedented in its […]
The recent case of Harpur Trust v Brazel witnessed the Court of Appeal attempting to clarify the complex issue of holiday pay for teachers on zero hours contracts who work only during term-time. Peripatetic music teachers are an obvious example of teachers who are likely to fall into this category. The issue concerns the treatment of school […]
Last year we reported on the case of C and C –v- Governing Body of a School and Others which changed the law regarding exclusion of pupils presenting with violence in school. As discussed in that article, a school can now only exclude a child presenting with violent behaviour, whose behaviour is connected to a disability, where […]