Clare Marchant, chief executive of UCAS, has warned that competition for university places, particularly for popular courses such as medicine, will be much tougher this year. So far, offers have been made to 66 per cent of applicants, compared with 70 per cent last year. By Nicola Woolcock, The Times.

In a letter to The Times, William Goldsmith, head of St George’s School, welcomes the Times Education Commission’s 12-point plan for education reform. Mr Goldsmith said: "I have seen the transformational impact of a baccalaureate philosophy; now is the time for courage and bravery to create a real-world approach to education." The letter is the fourth featured on the page.

Baroness Barran, the academies minister, has said the Government intends to “clarify” its school reform plans following widespread criticism of its landmark Schools Bill. By Freddie Whittaker, Schools Week.

New data from the school infection survey, published by the Office for National Statistics, suggests that almost one in 20 secondary school pupils experienced symptoms of long COVID following their most recent infection. By Freddie Whittaker, Schools Week.

Tes takes a detailed look at how the pandemic has impacted school staff. By Claudine Bowyer-Crane, Sara Bonetti, Louise Tracey and Dea Nielson.

Research published today by the Education Endowment Foundation shows that surveying tutors and pupils involved in the National Tutoring Programme to find common interests, such as their favourite sporting events, could help boost attendance at tutoring sessions. By Callum Mason, Tes.

Michelle Donelan, the higher education minister, has said there is a “stubborn” minority of universities in England refusing to return to face-to-face teaching, adding: “What we expect as a Government, what I expect as the minister, is that every university is back to pre-pandemic of face to face teaching.” By Will Hazell, iNews.

In the latest ISC blog, Matilda Callaghan, head of cricket at New Hall School, explains how various initiatives at the school are encouraging girls to participate in and enjoy cricket. Ms Callaghan said: "It is my intention for the girls to see that cricket is not just for boys and to understand how much women’s cricket has grown and developed over the last few years."

If you are interested in writing a blog for us, either on an innovative programme or partnership project taking place at your school, we would love to hear from you. Please email emily.roberts@isc.co.uk for more details.

The Guardian reports that rising costs are putting the school food industry under “considerable strain”, prompting fears that some catering firms will be forced to pull out of contracts before the start of the next academic year. By Sally Weale.

Exam board Pearson Edexcel has been widely criticised after a GCSE geography paper wrongly named countries on a map of Africa. By Ross Kaniuk, The Times.

The Independent Schools Council (ISC) monitors the national and educational press in order to keep independent schools up-to-date with relevant education news. The DNS is a service primarily for schools in membership of ISC associations, although other interested parties can choose to sign-up. We endeavour to include relevant news and commentary and, wherever possible, notable public letters. Where capacity allows, we may include links to ISC blogs, press statements and information about school or association events. News stories are selected based on their relevance to the independent sector as a whole. Editorial control of the DNS remains solely with the ISC.

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