LinkedIn Newsletter – October 2023

Welcome to The School Bus October newsletter!

Change is inevitable in education, and multiple updates are released daily by the DfE, ESFA, Ofsted, UKHSA, HSE, and various other government departments. We’re here to help you keep safe, informed, compliant, and ready for the month ahead.

Read on to learn about the news and education sector updates from the last month and discover our latest content.

Mobile phone use is to be banned in schools, including at break times

New guidance from the Department for Education will support headteachers in banning mobile phone use throughout the school day, including at break times. The government already encourages headteachers to limit phone usage, and many schools have restrictions in place.

This guidance will bring England in line with other countries who have already banned mobile phone use in schools, aiming to reduce distractions, improve behaviour and boost attention in the classroom.

Our recent poll on LinkedIn revealed that 62% of respondents believe that mobile phones should be banned in all areas of the school, 20% in some areas of the school, and 18% believe that there should not be a ban.

Though the new guidance is non-statutory, the DfE has said that if schools fail to implement it, then it may be made statutory.

The DfE has stated that: “No timescale has been committed to publishing the new guidance. However, it will be available in due course.”

Keep an eye out for the latest updates on our social media and our website.

DfE publishes proposal for new Advanced British Standard (ABS)

The government's proposed Advanced British Standard (ABS) aims to take the best of A-levels and T-levels and bring them together into a single qualification for 16 to 19-year-olds. It proposes to increase the number of teaching hours for this age group by 15% and ensure that all young people study English and maths up to the age of 18.

While most A Level students only take three subjects, students who take the ABS will be expected to embrace a broader curriculum with a minimum of five subjects, categorised into 'majors' and 'minors'. Plus, students will have the freedom to mix technical and academic subjects, offering more flexibility for young people to tailor their education to their future career.

This is a long-term reform that will take up to 10 years to deliver. However, there are concerns in the areas of funding, teacher recruitment, and school building conditions.

The ‘School teachers’ pay and conditions document’ (STPCD) for 2023 has been released

In October 2023, significant changes in teachers’ pay and conditions in England were confirmed.

The updated ‘School Teachers' Pay and Conditions Document’ (STPCD) for 2023 has been released, outlining pay adjustments. The DfE also uploaded its non-statutory guidance on ‘Implementing Your School’s Approach to Pay’ in line with the STPCD 2023.

Teachers will receive a 6.5% pay increase for the 2023/2024 academic year, with schools funding 3.5% of this raise from their own budgets. This change ensures a minimum ￡30,000 starting salary and will be backdated to 1 September 2023.

Minimum and maximum pay across the leadership, upper, and main pay ranges has been amended to reflect the pay uplift. These changes aim to provide fair compensation and conditions for educators in England.

We have updated our Teachers’ Pay Policy in line with the confirmed pay increase for 2023/2024.

Ofsted updated its ‘School inspection handbook’ on 6 October 2023

Ofsted has made several changes to its ‘School inspection handbook’, which came into force from 1 September 2023.

In October, further clarifications were made concerning the types of safeguarding evidence inspectors seek and the need for schools to provide details about adults living on the premises. Ungraded inspections began focusing on attendance, and minor changes were made to align with suspension and exclusion guidance from the DfE.

Read our latest article here, which breaks down everything you need to know about the most recent version of the handbook.

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