News

On 17 January Ofsted published its new draft inspection framework, and accompanying draft inspection handbooks and research commentary.

This month we bring you news of the new Department for Education teacher Recruitment and Retention strategy and new teacher Early Career Framework; the school snapshot survey showing how accountability and funding is really impacting the school curriculum; Nesta school resources on the future of skills and the launch of the Arts Council England 25 year talent pipeline research.

On 18 January the Secretary of State for Culture, Jeremy Wright, made a speech about the importance and value of the arts.

The start of this year has been marked by a flurry of announcements from different members of the Department of Education: from music curriculum reform and the launch of a new Primary Activity Passport, to funds for international visits and an interview about the value of arts degrees. This post gives you the low-down on what our DfE Ministerial Team has been up to.

Welcome to our annual round-up of our activity.

2018 was a cracker of a year. Brexit dominated our political life. The value of creativity and the importance of arts education were nevertheless discussed and written about extensively.

Arts curriculum quality higher at secondary than primary level

This month we bring you news that the Creative Industries are now worth £101bn to the UK economy; the first report from the new Creative Industries Policy and Research Centre; an ISM Future of Music Education report; how to Fly The Flag for UN Human Rights Day; the SSAT Pure Imagination Conference; and a reminder that the Arts Council England 2020-30 Strategy first stage consultation closes on 2 January.

On 12 December the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee took evidence on a current inquiry into the social impact of participation in culture and sport from five government ministers:

On 31 October Amanda Spielman, the Chief Inspector wrote to the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) to set out what Ofsted considers to be major risks to the quality of education and school effectiveness. 

This month we bring you news of two reports from the Edge Foundation and CBI/Pearson that reinforce the case for arts education; a Radio 4 Front Row debate on arts education; a Royal Albert Hall call for arts GCSEs and DfE response; funding for teacher development from the Paul Hamlyn Foundation; and a call for nominations to the National Creative Learning Awards.