Tony Perry, a parent whose child attends an independent school and receives SEND support, writes in the Daily Mail urging the Labour Party to reconsider imposing VAT on school fees. He says "the sacrifices are constant, but nothing is more important than our son's future," adding: "My son and thousands like him have done nothing wrong. School has been an endless struggle, and private education is the best chance they have. Now Keir Starmer wants to rob them of that chance." Mr Perry set up a petition on the change.org website - which now has over 60,000 signatures - calling on the Labour Party to drop the proposal to add VAT to fees, highlighting how the policy would negatively impact families if it came into effect.

Childcare minister David Johnston has said "no parent should worry they will lose out" on an expanded free childcare system, despite challenges with the rollout. The Department for Education (DfE) confirmed it has fixed an IT problem that left some parents unable to access codes needed to secure a childcare place, with all affected families expected to receive a code. By Sam Francis, BBC News.

The government’s free childcare scheme will face further issues unless there is a boost to staffing, ministers have been cautioned, after Rishi Sunak insisted the scheme would proceed as planned despite technical problems. The Women’s Budget Group suggests the second stage of the rollout, in September 2025, would need “at least 40,000 additional new early years’ staff” in order to “cope”. By Chloe Chaplain, iNews.

iNews reports Jo Callaghan, who co-owns six nurseries, has said parents are being misled by the description of the 15-hour childcare scheme as "free". Ms Callaghan explained: "The idea that it is ‘free’ childcare creates big problems in trying to explain the situation to parents... Our staffing bills have gone through the roof and the business can’t absorb that cost, we simply have to pass some of that on. We have had to explain to parents that it’s effectively a voucher towards childcare costs.” By Cahal Milmo.

Labour is reportedly planning to use an opposition day debate motion to bring forward legislation for a new council-maintained register of children who are not in school, as part of efforts to tackle persistent absenteeism. Shadow education secretary Bridget Phillipson said: “There is no time to waste if we are to tackle the biggest challenge currently facing our schools.” According to new Labour analysis, “one in three children currently sitting their GCSEs have missed nearly three months of secondary school since the pandemic”. By Sally Weale, The Guardian.

Thangam Debbonaire, the shadow culture secretary, has expressed support for proposals to teach students about white privilege, saying it is "a good idea". She said children need "the opportunity to ask difficult questions sometimes of our nation's history", insisting it would not be "undermining" Britain. By Archie Mitchell, The Independent. 

More than half of parents in England and Wales (51 per cent) from a lower socioeconomic background said they believed their children were unlikely to go on to a career in STEM, according to a survey by Teach First. When asked about the barriers their children faced, parents quoted a lack of confidence and few role models in the STEM field. Russell Hobby, the chief executive of Teach First, said: “I think people look at some of these jobs, and look at who gets them and who doesn’t, and they start to rule out whether those are meant for them and people like them." By Sally Weale, The Guardian.

Education secretary Gillian Keegan has given the green light for Sir James Dyson to donate a controversial £6 million to Malmesbury Primary School in Wiltshire, despite concerns it could have a “severe impact” on the viability of neighbouring schools. The money will fund “a first-class science, technology, engineering, art and maths (STEAM) centre”. By Freddie Whittaker, Schools Week.

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