Prime minister Boris Johnson has confirmed that face masks will no longer be required in secondary school classrooms in England from 17 May. By Sean Coughlan, BBC News.

Geoff Barton, general secretary of the Association of School and College leaders, has said it is "very worrying" that the Government's decision to relax face mask rules in schools appears to contradict advice published by the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies last week. By John Roberts and Catherine Lough, Tes.

According to iNews, education recovery plans are set to focus on extending the school day, providing more tutoring and improving teacher quality through extra training. By Will Hazell.

A study by the Schools Active Movement has revealed the "horrific" impact of the third national lockdown on pupils, with 84 per cent of schools identifying a decline in children's physical fitness and 60 per cent reporting that the general wellbeing of pupils has deteriorated. By Jeremy Wilson, The Telegraph.

Schools Week reports the Department for Education is seeking primary schools and nurseries to take part in a two-week COVID-19 testing "quality assurance exercise". By James Carr.

Speaking at yesterday's Downing Street press briefing, Boris Johnson said that schools will be allowed to organise trips with overnight stays from next Monday. By Amy Gibbons, Tes.

All university students in England will be able to return to campus for in-person teaching next week as lockdown restrictions ease. By Zoe Tidman, The Independent.

Vicky Bingham, headteacher of South Hampstead High School, writes in Tes arguing Ofqual is 'telling school leaders off for interpreting its guidance correctly' by setting assessment tasks for pupils to help calculate grades.

According to guidance from the Scottish Qualifications Authority, pupils caught sharing test papers on social media could have their marks deducted or face an automatic fail. By Mark McLaughlin, The Times.

Figures from the Independent Schools Council's 2021 Census show that independent school fees increased on average by 1.1 per cent, down from 4.1 per cent in the previous year. By Bethan Staton, Financial Times. The article quotes Barnaby Lenon, chairman of the ISC.

Tes reports on the launch of the Education Staff Wellbeing Charter, which includes 11 actions schools can pledge to take to improve and support the mental health of staff members. By Ruth Emery.

Wes Streeting, the former shadow schools minister who has been promoted to shadow child poverty secretary, has said that "coming up with a plan to end child poverty has got to be a central mission for the next Labour government". By Freddie Whittaker, Schools Week.

Oxford University's annual admissions report shows it has almost doubled the proportion of students from disadvantaged backgrounds over the last five years. The findings also reveal record numbers of state-educated students, black, Asian and minority ethnic students, and students with disabilities accepted into the institution. By Rachel Hall, The Guardian. An article in The Telegraph also reports on the figures, stating Oxford University intends to take measures to address the under-representation of northern students in its cohort.

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