Nice front page...

Di'lasio says ASCL leadership have received 'too many reports' of local disputes in which members 'have been targeted in a way that is personal and vindicitive' 'We will not tolerate this behaviour'. Read more on our live blog https://schoolsweek.co.uk/ascl-conference-2026-schools-week-live-blog/

My friend asked if I knew what ‘nihility’ means. I had to admit it means nothing to me. #weakendpun

ICYMI: Three-quarters of school leaders are struggling to recruit teaching assistants, while support staff are leaving at the highest rate since records began, a report has warned https://schoolsweek.co.uk/support-staff-turnover-hits-record-high-as-experts-call-for-action/

There's nothing selfish about putting yourself first. Prioritising your wellbeing isn't a 'nice to have' - it's essential. Watch out webinar for tips and advice: https://ow.ly/Glrj50Yql7c

🚨 We're recruiting a Lead Trustee for Policy! Influencing national policy change is critical to achieving our mission. If you have senior experience in policy, research or public affairs, come and help us break the link between background and success ⤵️

ASCL policy director Julie McCulloch has been appointed as the new chief executive of The Education Policy Institute https://schoolsweek.co.uk/julie-mcculloch-to-join-epi-as-new-chief-executive/

wtf is a FIFA peace prize? that's like being an NFL laureate in physics

The uncertain future of Education, Health and Care Plans has become a national political story. Here is the latest from today as pressure mounts on the govt to set out its plans for SEND reform. www.tes.com/magazine/new...

Exclusive: Potential bans on building companies involved in the Grenfell Tower disaster could impact 'every' school project, the government’s property arm has warned schoolsweek.co.uk/dfe-official...

Sunday morning book recommendation. Spent 2 hours reading it this morning, it caught my attention!

My @schoolsweek.bsky.social piece on curriculum reviews. If we learn from 35 yrs of them, we might avoid the ever-recurring problems. But without strong subject-curricular training, espec for senior/system leaders, the finest rubric will still feed old distortions. schoolsweek.co.uk/what-a-natio...

Fantastic! Congratulations from @qpcs.bsky.social Jonathan Rowe !

ICYMI: The DfE sets out how local authorities are allocating funding for next year through the National Funding Formula

Is it difficult to support and implement #Ofsted reforms? @ascl-uk.bsky.social and @naht.org.uk say yes it is, and here is what members are prepared to do about it. www.theguardian.com/education/20...

open.substack.com/pub/johnsonp... After a difficult read from Schools Week, I have replied. #thisisAP #edusky

In this video, @judeenright.bsky.social Chair of ASCL Funding Committee, summarises the Committee's recent discussions at #ASCLCouncil including the impact of last week's #SpendingReview on schools and colleges. See our position statements for all Committees at www.ascl.org.uk/position-statements

"Auto-enrolment is something ASCL and many other organisations have been calling for for some time, and has been shown to work well at a local level." Our full comment on @edupolicyinst.bsky.social calls for auto-enrolment for #freeschoolmeals: ow.ly/xBbe50W7FQW #education

NEW: Think you’ve got what it takes to be the Chancellor? 📊 Ahead of next month’s Spending Review, use our new and improved tool created by IFS researchers in partnership with @nestauk.bsky.social‬ to set your own fiscal plans and see the results:

Hey #WomenEd new headteachers, come along to this @ascl-uk.bsky.social event and hear @keziah70.bsky.social and @carolinebarlow.bsky.social speak 💜💜💜

We are hiring ! Come and join our excellent team at Queens Park Community School www.qpcs.brent.sch.uk/index.php?i=2

I am so disappointed to admit this, but we now need a powerful, collective response to the school funding situation in 2025-2026. @ascl-uk.bsky.social @naht.org.uk Better together. Our children and their teachers have made enough sacrifices over the past 5 years.

Vote, vote, vote in @ascl-uk.bsky.social elections for Council members to represent your region. Papers received by post. Deadline to post them back is before 23rd May. www.ascl.org.uk/About-us/Org...

I agree with Pepe here. For the very long-standing teacher pay system to work, two things must happen: 1. Unions have to accept the amount. 2. Government has to fund it. Anything else is chaos.

3. The assumption that the Ofsted framework offers a good guide for school improvement. I don't think this is true, certainly not in every area. I have written here about why I think the separation of curriculum from teaching will be actively harmful. occamshairdryer.wordpress.com/2024/11/16/a...

2. The assumption that school staff are motivated to improve their practice by Ofsted frameworks. My experience has been that, while Ofsted certainly drives action, it tends to involve lots of evidence gathering to look good, which more often than not gets in the way of meaningful improvement.

1. The assumption that Ofsted can award these grades reliably. There can and should be evidence for this. Where is it? At the very least Ofsted should be investigating it thoroughly before implementation and committing to transparency about what they find in the interests of public scrutiny.

Important from @ascl-uk.bsky.social Many members are inspectors and share concerns that plans are flawed. This deep thinking on accountability is needed. To be great leaders we need to be held to account reliably, fairly and consistently. schoolsweek.co.uk/ascl-floats-... @schoolsweek.bsky.social

@profcoe.bsky.social says he likes the explicit mention of inclusion, focus on PD and requirement to share best practice in the proposed system. BUT is concerned about the validity of judgements. The consequences are disproportionate to the amount of control schools have in influencing judgements.

Thanks to our panel with @edupolicyinst.bsky.social at #LDConf for a lively discussion examining Ofsted’s plans for report cards. @pepediiasio.bsky.social, @mp4stratford.bsky.social, @munirawilson.bsky.social, @jonnyuttley.bsky.social, @natalieperera.bsky.social, and @profcoe.bsky.social.

Full house for our panel with @neunion.bsky.social on how to address the SEND funding crisis. Updates below 👇

Tim is 100% correct about the Ofsted changes.

The Chartered College of Teaching is immensely grateful for the significant contributions that Sir Hamid Patel has made to the education sector over the years and continues to make, positively impacting the lives of thousands of students, especially those from disadvantaged backgrounds.

Sam Freedman at #ASCL2025: government departments must "tell the story" with policies - education leaders won't know what is expected of them or what the government is aiming for if the narrative isn't clear. It is unusual for there to be no white paper for the Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill.

Thank you @lewisgoodall.com for sharing your reflections at #ASCL2025 on your own education through its 'golden age', and the work you continue to do to highlight the need for investment in children and young people.

Please to launch @inclusioninpractice.org.uk today at #ASCL2025. www.tes.com/magazine/new...

Great to hear from Alistair Campbell at #ASCL2025 on the importance of not just having a strategy but the importance of articulating and narrating your clear strategy.

I love Carolyn Roberts saying 'a moral compass is great if you're holding it the right way' #ascl2025

"Every 2 years, we take a whole-school photo. As headteacher, I’m the last piece of the puzzle, standing at the back, looking out across the entire school. And in that moment, it really hits you – the sheer diversity of young lives we serve." ASCL President @mannybotwe.bsky.social #ASCL2025

First time I’ve heard @MannyBotwe speak. Impressive stuff. Insightful, aspirational for the profession and prepared to (rightfully) challenge the great and the good when they deserve it. #ASCL2025.

Really welcome recognition from the Secretary of State that many of the challenges schools are currently facing can't be fixed within schools themselves, but need wider system reform. #ASCL2025

Excellent interview with @pepediiasio.bsky.social as we head into #ASCL2025 . EHCPs being used “as a weapon against schools” is a stark and accurate description of where we are, with proposed Ofsted changes only making this worse. @ascl-uk.bsky.social @ofstednews.bsky.social

Happy International Women’s Day.

"Ofsted has shown an institutional disinterest in why some schools welcome the most vulnerable children or children with SEND, while others push them away". Strong criticism of Ofsted on inclusion from @annelongfield.bsky.social and @jonnyuttley.bsky.social www.tes.com/magazine/ana...

🔍 Ofsted increasing the number of areas in which it will make inspection judgements will lead to more inconsistency and drive school leaders out of the profession, says @headsroundtable.bsky.social

🌶️ 'Nando's memes aside, there’s a genuine risk it could annihilate not just the current generation of school leaders but the next one too'

I'm doing a free giveaway to celebrate the publication of my latest book! Like and repost to enter (UK only). Winner announced on Sunday. See the link below to find out more about the book. #freebie #giveaway

Probably the ‘hot topic’ of the moment….

Agree with @pepediiasio.bsky.social on the timeline for school report cards. There is no way to fully design and test report cards AND give schools and colleges sufficient time to understand them and prepare for them by September 2025. Completely unrealistic and, I would argue, counterproductive.

It is headteachers who take Ofsted phone calls, run inspections and have their names on reports but their input into how the process should work has been lost in a policy landscape dominated by MAT CEOs, @andrewoneill.bsky.social has told a policy forum today. www.tes.com/magazine/new...