The Department for Education (DfE) has announced new statutory requirements that will come into force in September 2026, mandating that all schools stock life‑saving allergy pens, provide compulsory allergy‑awareness training for staff and implement dedicated allergy policies. These measures aim to improve safety for children with medical conditions. To support these changes, the DfE has launched a public consultation on proposed updates to the statutory guidance for supporting children and young people with medical conditions and allergies. The consultation seeks views on the introduction of a published medical‑conditions policy, strengthened Individual Healthcare Plans, improved recording and reporting of serious incidents and ‘near misses,’ and a separate allergy‑safety policy covering staff training and the use of adrenaline devices. The consultation closes on 1 May 2026.

The Department for Education (DfE) has announced new measures to regulate independent special school fees and standards in England in order to reduce costs to local authorities and improve outcomes for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). The government stated that independent special schools charge an average of £63,000 per pupil each year compared with £26,000 in state special schools, with no evidence of better outcomes, and noted that over 30% are backed by private equity firms, raising concerns about public funds contributing to profit. In response to rising demand and increasing reliance on expensive placements, it will introduce national price bands to limit unjustified fee variation, implement new statutory SEND-specific standards, require full cost transparency, and give local authorities a formal role in approving new or expanding provision to ensure places reflect local need and are financially sustainable. The measures form part of wider reforms ahead of the forthcoming Schools White Paper, supported by £3.7bn to create 60,000 specialist places in mainstream schools and £200m for workforce training, with the government citing research that comparable pupils with Education, Health and Care Plans in mainstream schools are more likely to be entered for General Certificate of Secondary Education and achieve on average half a grade higher in English and mathematics than peers in special schools.

The Department for Education (DfE) has launched a consultation on the draft new national standards for personal, social and employability (PSE) qualifications and the guidance to support the interpretation of national standards. The DfE is seeking views from those with an interest in post-secondary education and training for young people and adults in England. The consultation closes on 20 May 2024.

The Department for Education (DfE) has published guidance setting out the terms and conditions for the Teachers' Pay Additional Grant for 2024-25. The document establishes binding conditions for local authorities, academies and non-maintained special schools in England, with payments structured in two tranches. The guidance includes updated methodology for fund allocation and specific provisions for mainstream, special and alternative provision schools. The DfE has taken over administration from the Education and Skills Funding Agency as of 31 March 2025.

The Department for Education (DfE) has issued an improvement notice to Reading Borough Council following Ofsted’s joint targeted area inspection report, published on 6 May 2025. The report highlighted weaknesses in multi-agency approaches to prevention, help and support for children affected by domestic abuse. The notice requires the council to take steps to improve its children’s social care services, identifying one priority action area and several areas requiring improvement.

The Department for Education (DfE) has reported that London Borough of Redbridge has been issued with an improvement notice following an Ofsted and Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspection of Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) services. The notice requires eleven specific improvements by December 2026, including enhanced Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan quality, joint commissioning strategies and co-production with families. An improvement board with independent chair must be established to oversee progress.

The Department for Education (DfE) has issued a notice to improve to the Beckmead Trust on financial management grounds, following the Trust’s request for emergency funding in May 2025 to address a projected cashflow deficit in June 2025. The notice cites breaches of the Academy Trust Handbook, including failures to ensure robust financial oversight and to notify the DfE of forecasted cashflow deficits. The notice outlines eight conditions that the Trust must meet, including engagement with peer-to-peer support, participation in the DfE’s Chief Financial Officer mentoring programme, submission of monthly management accounts and the development of a financial recovery plan by 7 November 2025. The Trust is also required to pause discussions with schools or trusts seeking to join until its financial position has improved to the satisfaction of the DfE. Non-compliance may result in the termination of the Trust’s funding agreement and potential referral to the Charity Commission or the Insolvency Service for continued non-compliance. The notice has also been added to the DfE’s ‘Academy trust notices to improve’ collection page.

The Department for Education (DfE) has published a letter from the Regional Director of Yorkshire and Humber, Carolan Goggin on 17 January 2023 to The Grange Trust regarding the inadequate Ofsted judgement at Bramley Grange Primary School, highlighting that funding may be terminated if the trust does not take action to show rapid and sustainable improvement at the academy.

The Department for Education (DfE) has announced the launch of Mission North East and Mission Coastal, two programmes set to commence in September 2026, aimed at supporting children in under-served communities across the North East, Hastings and Scarborough. The programmes will provide expert classroom support alongside wider opportunities beyond the classroom, including mentoring, careers support and enrichment activities delivered in partnership with employers, sports clubs, faith groups and youth organisations. Expert practitioners will work directly with school leaders and teachers to strengthen teacher capacity and raise educational standards, while schools will collaborate in local clusters to share learning and address challenges collectively. The programmes build on commitments set out in the Schools White Paper and follow the passage of the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act on 8 May 2026. They will adopt a ‘test, learn and grow approach’ to identify effective practices for national policy application, with plans over time to establish a wider alliance of coastal communities facing similar challenges so that children and families can benefit from the approach being implemented in Scarborough and Hastings.

The Department for Education (DfE) has launched a call for evidence as part of a government-commissioned independent review into antisemitism in schools and colleges in England, to gather information that will inform its findings and recommendations. The review will assess how effectively schools and colleges prevent, identify and respond to antisemitism, including the adequacy of existing policies, procedures, staff training, and external support, as well as the handling and accountability of incidents and the influence of external organisations on decision-making. It seeks input from a wide range of stakeholders, including pupils, parents, education staff, authorities and relevant organisations, to capture lived experiences and professional insight. The evidence will be used to develop practical recommendations for the DfE and sector leaders aimed at strengthening protections for Jewish students and addressing antisemitism and related prejudice across the education system. The call for evidence will run until  1 July 2026.

The Department for Education (DfE) and the Department of Health and Social Care have launched a call for evidence as part of an independent review of social work regulation under section 64 of the Children and Social Work Act 2017. Commissioned by the Secretary of State for Education and led by Dame Annie Hudson, the review will assess how effectively Social Work England fulfils its statutory duties to protect the public, uphold professional standards, and maintain confidence in the social work profession. It will examine the regulator’s governance, accountability, and collaboration with other bodies, as well as its delivery of education and training oversight, fitness-to-practise processes, and equality responsibilities. The call for evidence will run until 26 November 2025.

The Department for Education (DfE) has launched a 12-week consultation on establishing a Child Protection Authority in England, running until 5 March 2026. The proposed public body would provide national oversight of the child protection system and hold safeguarding partners to account, implementing a key recommendation from the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse report and addressing issues identified by the Casey Audit into group-based child sexual exploitation. The consultation seeks views on the Authority's proposed functions, governance structure and interaction with existing bodies. The Authority would address fragmented intelligence on harms, patchy data analysis, slow translation of lessons from serious cases into practice and would provide strong leadership to ensure good child protection practice is embedded consistently across local areas, while working with inspectorates and partners including healthcare professionals, social workers and police to improve practice.