Wakefield Independent School has announced its plans to close later this year, citing financial challenges such as the VAT on fees policy, rising business rates, and increases in employer National Insurance contributions. In a 2023 Ofsted report, inspectors praised the school's approach to supporting children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). Speaking to The Telegraph, an anonymous parent said: "There are a lot of kids with special educational needs because the school is fantastic and the small class ratios are really beneficial." Describing the impact of Labour's tax policy, particularly on children with additional needs, the school's headmistress, Kate Caryl, added: "Many of the children who come to our school have special needs, some fostered, some are school phobic...  It’s simply not fair that the government hasn’t taken this into account." The paper lists 12 independent schools that have cited the government's VAT on fees policy as a reason for their closure. Several schools in membership of the ISC's constituent associations are mentioned. By Fran Ivens. 

One in four pupils now have poor mental health, which is driving the school absence crisis, according to new government data. Shared exclusively with iNews, an official longitudinal study based on more than 7,000 children is the first to confirm the link between poor mental health and attendance. It suggests that students with mental health problems are seven times more likely to miss more than 15 days of school than their peers. The findings come as education secretary Bridget Phillipson prepares to unveil plans to give every child access to mental health support in school. By Connie Dimsdale.

Bridget Phillipson has called for compulsory Holocaust education in schools, describing rising antisemitism among pupils as "a national emergency". While the Holocaust has been a mandatory topic in the Key Stage 3 history curriculum since 1991, academies—which make up 82 per cent of state-funded secondary schools—are not required to follow the national curriculum. The education secretary is aiming to address this gap through the proposed Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill, which would mandate Holocaust education across all schools. She said: "Through education we can build children’s resilience not just to antisemitic hate, but all other forms of hate too. The promise of ‘Never Again’ is meaningless if we fail to teach the next generation about what happened and why." By Louise Eccles, The Sunday Times.

Figures suggest GCSE performance is increasing among pupils at special schools. Tes has analysed attainment data and spoken to experts to explore whether this indicates more children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) should be taught in mainstream settings. The paper notes that there were around 75 per cent more Year 11 students in state-funded special schools than in independent special schools last year, but those in the independent sector were significantly more likely to take GCSEs. Grades, too, were higher in the independent sector, with 20.5 per cent of entrants to maths and English achieving grades four or above, compared with 11.3 per cent in state special schools. By Ramsay Hodgson. 

A-level results at Excelsior Academy in Hackney have improved from an average grade C to a B within a year, official figures have revealed. Headteacher Omar Deria has attributed the progress to his school's decision to prohibit mobile phone use among students. Mr Deria said the policy, which sees phones confiscated for up to a week if used during lessons, has had a "miraculous" impact. The success of the measure contradicts a recent University of Birmingham study that found mobile phone bans do not improve children's marks or mental health. By Tim Sigsworth, The Telegraph.

The Royal Hospital School in Suffolk is offering "healthy masculinity" workshops for parents to help address the issue of toxic online influencers such as Andrew Tate. The workshops include 90-minute sessions designed to help parents have open communication with their sons and challenge harmful ideas. Commenting on the initiative, headteacher Irfan Latif said: "The workshops are about equipping our pupils, and their parents, to navigate the pressures of modern masculinity before problems arise." In an article for Independent School Management Plus, Mr Latif said: "Independent schools have a unique opportunity and a responsibility to counter these narratives by fostering positive masculinity." He added that characters such as Atticus Finch, the lawyer from Harper Lee’s 1960 novel To Kill a Mockingbird, can offer an "alternative perspective on male strength". By Eleanor Harding, Daily Mail.

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