💰 Sixth form college teachers have accepted a pay award of 4 per cent but have rejected workload proposals by leaders feweek.co.uk/sixth-form-c...

Essential reading: Shuab Gamote & @peterhyman.bsky.social amplify the voices of KS5 students, revealing the wisdom, clarity & hope they bring to today’s challenges. Let’s empower 16–19s as #rolemodels: credible, grounded, inspiring. Meet them where they are, & listen. The recommendations are 🎯

Today's briefing with @pepediiasio.bsky.social comes from ASCL HQ and includes reflections on the first #Ofsted inspections under the new framework, Progress 8 and Attainment 8 performance measures, and the latest on the post-16 and skills white paper and V levels: ow.ly/Bz8Z50Xq23b

Check my LinkedIn post for more detail on the context of the Level 3 landscape behind this blog too: www.linkedin.com/posts/claire...

Excited to begin a series of FE college visits this week, starting in my university city! Looking forward to hearing from FE leaders on priorities, concerns, & how CAR & White Paper proposals are landing so @ascl-uk.bsky.social can ensure we are representing our FE members optimally. (1/2)

🎮 With digital literacy & enrichment key features of this week’s CAR, this exclusive 🆓 webinar for @ascl-uk.bsky.social members is timely. Join me, Kalam Neale & Alice Whorley from @britishesports.bsky.social to explore how esports can enrich curriculum & inspire future talent. tinyurl.com/22znyw7w

In today's video briefing, @pepediiasio.bsky.social is joined by ASCL Deputy Director of Policy @tommiddlehurst.bsky.social and ASCL President @drjoro.bsky.social for their summaries of and reactions to this week's #Curriculum and #Assessment Review final report: ow.ly/ymCw50Xon5b #education

Headteachers' leaders have called for schools who have volunteered to be the first to be inspected by Ofsted to be allowed to withdraw over concerns about changes in the way the watchdog will use data in new inspections. www.tes.com/magazine/new...

#Curriculum and #assessment review: Until pay and working conditions are improved, other reforms to the system only increase the issues teachers face, says @pepediiasio.bsky.social in his latest blog in @tesmagazine.bsky.social : ow.ly/8yUu50Xn4C9

*SPEAKER ANNOUNCEMENT* We're delighted to announce that two-time World Champion and athletics commentator Colin Jackson CBE will be joining us at #ASCL2026. Colin is a powerful advocate for diversity, inclusion, and #mentalhealth awareness. Join us: www.ascl.org.uk/annualconference

Thanks to all at today’s CATS Global Schools Cross-Group INSET. Key ideas on #IndependentLearning: 💡KS5 students need scaffolding 💡Make them THINK, in & beyond lessons 💡Embed high-quality T&L & resourcing 💡Foster ownership & reflection 💡Build a CULTURE for independence 🤫Silent ≠ independent!

Looking forward to presenting tomorrow for @ascl-uk.bsky.social at CATS Global Schools’ Cross-Group INSET day, focussing on developing independent learning and critical thinking skills. #IndependentLearning #CriticalThinking #Post16 #ProfessionalLearning

🚨 UCAS sees record 'early entry' October applications: 📈 79,160 total (+7.4%) 🧑‍🎓 41,010 UK 18-year-olds (+5.3%) 🏥 Medicine: 25,770 (+10.4%), incl. mature students (+11.2%) 🌍 Intl. apps: 24,350, led by 🇨🇳 🇺🇸 🇸🇬 🇭🇰 🇮🇳 📊 More applicants from deprived areas in England, Wales & Scotland. #UCAS #HE #EarlyEntry

Really interesting discussion on the White Paper, focusing on some of the aspects that have received less attention / reaction so far. I agree with @ukshane.bsky.social that this was a real missed opportunity in regards to addressing the pay gap between school & FE teachers.

#TransitionalSafeguarding is a vital issue I've explored in previous blogs: 🔗 www.ascl.org.uk/News/Blog/Se... 🔗 www.thesixthformslant.com/post/lost-in... Support for young people mustn’t stop at 18; often, that’s when they need it most.

Great insights from @DattaJon, as always. Good to see the Contextual Admissions Project ref’d in the White Paper (p.57) as a model for tackling systemic barriers to access. Proud to represent @ascl-uk.bsky.social on the advisory group with @universitiesuk.bsky.social, UCAS & @suttontrust.bsky.social

'We want V-levels to be a success. But at the moment it is difficult to look beyond the huge qualification gap that will open up next year when these BTECs are scrapped, and the tens of thousands of students that are likely to fall through it' schoolsweek.co.uk/if-opportuni...

It was a busy video briefing yesterday with @pepediiasio.bsky.social, with the launch of the Phone Free Education project, V levels, applied general qualifications, #GCSE retakes, and the #Covid inquiry. See the video here: ow.ly/vn4750XfAxa #ASCLmembers #post16 #education

The Government's Post-16 education & skills white paper is a step towards more flexible pathways for young people. We welcome the potential of these reforms, and continue to call for a 16-19 Student Premium to ensure young people get the support they need. Full comment: epi.org.uk/comments/com...

The Department for Education has just published a blog which gives their explanation of the new qualifications put forward in yesterday’s White Paper: educationhub.blog.gov.uk/2025/10/new-...

🚨 | NEW BLOG: The government’s new Young Futures Hubs could transform support for young people — but only if they meet the needs of girls and young women. Our new blog with @cfyounglives.bsky.social & @agenda-alliance.bsky.social explores how to make that happen. www.ippr.org/articles/mee...

I was delighted to speak on behalf of @ascl-uk.bsky.social on @bbc5live.bsky.social’s Drive programme yesterday,offering our immediate (20 mins post-publication!) reflections on the Post-16 & Skills White Paper. #ASCLMembers:👀 for ‘White Paper Special’ 📧 newsletter today for a key issues summary.

🎓I’m happy to share that I’ve completed my MA @uniofbuckingham.bsky.social, achieving a Distinction 🥂 Seems bizarre timing that this result arrived today - on the day of the biggest post-16 curriculum reform in years - when my dissertation focused on post-16 curriculum reform!

📃The Post-16 Education & Skills White Paper is out, setting out reforms to qualifications, pathways & lifelong learning: tiny.cc/g52u001 @ascl-uk.bsky.social will update members via tomorrow’s newsletter & formally respond to the consultation: tiny.cc/h52u001 #VLevels #ALevels #TLevels #Post16

🎧 If you work in education, take 15 mins to listen to this. #FE drives social mobility & opportunity every day. I’m proud to be learning from this inspiring sector in my new role @ascl-uk.bsky.social.Thanks to @realgeoffbarton.bsky.social & Simon Cook for spotlighting FE’s role in inclusion. #Post16

We are very keen to hear from @ascl-uk.bsky.social members in/with post-16 settings regarding the campaign, led by Make It Mandatory, to make RSE mandatory for all 16-18 yr-olds. 📧 Check today’s newsletter for more details & how to share your views. Thank you in advance for your feedback.

🆕16–18 Destination Measures 23/24 78.7% sustained (down 1.1pp) 📚 Education: 43% 🧑‍🏭 Employment: 28.3% 🛠️ Apprenticeships: 7.4% Inequality persists: 📉Disadv/SEND less likely to sustain 📍 NE: highest apprenticeship rate (10.6%) 🏙️ London: highest HE entry (49.3%) 🔗tiny.cc/fhwt001 #Post16

This very much chimes with what I wrote in my @ascl-uk.bsky.social blog this week in response to the PM’s pledge for schools to ‘guarantee’ post-16 destinations: www.ascl.org.uk/News/Blog/Oc...

🍎Happy @unesco.org #WorldTeachersDay2025. The impact of a great teacher should not be underestimated. Thank you to all our educators for everything you do to support children & young people 🍎

The Prime Minster announced a bold ambition this week, where schools will play a greater role in ensuring every pupil has a clear post-16 destination. This must be matched with infrastructure, funding and collaborative frameworks, writes @c-jgreen.bsky.social in her latest blog: ow.ly/tSFB50X6ac1

Welcome to @c-jgreen.bsky.social as ASCL Post-16 and Skills Specialist. In her first blog, she writes that post-16 #education isn't just about qualifications, and calls for holistic reform in the sector, matched by investment in infrastructure, services and support: ow.ly/uRVW50X0OSb

#ASCLmembers: September's Post-16 News is on its way to you now. We welcome @c-jgreen.bsky.social as ASCL Post-16 and Skills Specialist, plus there's a summary of the key recommendations for #post16 #education in the Education Select Committee report 'Solving the SEND crisis'.

If you’re a @ascl-uk.bsky.social member with a post-16 provision, please do check you are subscribed to our post-16 newsletters to ensure you don’t miss out on any important sector updates.

Thank you, @ukshane.bsky.social , for approaching @ascl-uk.bsky.social to include me in your ‘Movers and Shakers’ section of @feweek.bsky.social 😊

Calling @ascl-uk.bsky.social Business Leaders. Our first online forum of the year is on 2 Oct. @melmoff.bsky.social Pensions Specialist will be joining us to talk all things pensions and we will be seeking your views on the #estatestandards and #schoolfoodreview. Free as part of your membership.

🧵Good to see @@departmentforedu.bsky.social has updated guidance to include new Alternative Academic Qualifications (AAQs) in 16-18 performance measures from 2026/27. Providers now have surety: AAQs are approved, funded & will count. ✅ 🔗 www.gov.uk/government/p... 1/7

Fascinating blog from @theeef.bsky.social on the definition of ‘Disadvantaged’ at 16-19. We need more ‘joined up’ thinking on this if we’re to mitigate the widening disadv gap, esp in the context of regional variation in outcomes & quals reform. educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/news/right-m...