In a written question in the House of Commons, Conservative MP Blake Stephenson asked the education secretary to explain why the change in the VAT status of independent school fees was introduced during the school year. Responding, schools minister Stephen Morgan said: "As set out in the government response to the technical note on applying VAT to private school fees, the government believes it was right to introduce these changes as soon as possible in order to raise the funding needed to help deliver our education priorities." Mr Morgan added: "The January 2025 start date gave schools and parents five months to prepare from the date the policy was announced."

Mr Stephenson submitted a second question in which he asked what discussions the chancellor and education secretary have had on the potential disruption to the education sector of introducing the VAT levy on independent school fees in the middle of the academic year. Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury James Murray replied, saying: "The government carefully considered the timing of implementation of VAT on private school fees and decided to apply VAT from January 2025, in order to raise the funding needed to help deliver its education priorities. As a result of the January start date, the VAT policy is forecast to raise £460 million in 2024/25. Schools and parents had five months to prepare for these changes, and HMRC put in place measures to support schools, including bespoke guidance, updated registration systems, and additional resources to process applications." Hansard.

Bridget Phillipson, the education secretary, has announced significant reforms to the UK's special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) system, aiming to integrate more children with SEND into mainstream schools. The government’s white paper on SEND will follow the creation of an expert group on school inclusion earlier this year, which saw the appointment of a strategic adviser. The news comes as figures show the number of pupils with SEND has increased by 24.9 per cent since 2016, while those obtaining Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs) has risen by 83 per cent. By Nicola Woolcock and Georgia Lambert, The Times. 

Peers are seeking to modify the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill to soften proposed council admissions powers, revive paused free schools projects and restrict wide-ranging new direction powers for ministers. The bill is currently in its "committee stage" in the upper house, meaning the Lords are examining the bill line-by-line, while considering around 500 amendments tabled. Freddie Whittaker, deputy editor of Schools Week, writes: "Amendments generally only pass when they get government backing or if several parties team up to force them through – meaning most will fail. But they give an insight into the key issues Lords have with the bill."  

The Centre for Young Lives, in partnership with Lewis Hamilton’s foundation Mission 44, has called on ministers to make anti-racism a central focus in education. A report from the think tank, which highlights the "disproportionately negative experiences and outcomes" faced by ethnic minority children in UK schools, also recommends that training in diversity and inclusion should be a priority for teachers. By Rose Morelli, LBC. 

Writing in Tes, Baroness Longfield CBE, executive chair of the Centre for Young Lives, outlines plans to help the government build a more inclusive school system and explains why inclusion matters. On the importance of collective responsibility, she says: "Inclusion in education is not just an individual school issue, but one that is dependent on the wider community assets that any child, family or school has access to."

Heavy, prolonged periods and intense menstrual pain are connected to lower school attendance and poorer GCSE scores, according to findings drawn from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children. The England-based research revealed that more than a third of girls (36 per cent) who responded experienced heavy or prolonged menstrual bleeding, which was associated with missing an additional 1.7 days of school annually. These symptoms were linked with achieving roughly one grade lower at GCSE, and a 27 per cent reduced likelihood of achieving five standard GCSE passes, often required to enable a student to go on to the next stage of their education. By Sally Weale, The Guardian.

Bristol-based charity Papaya (Parents Against Phone Addiction in Young Adolescents) is hoping to make the city the first in the UK where smartphones are banned from all lessons. The organisation is working with more than 100 schools to urge parents to delay giving their children smartphones until at least the age of 14, arguing the move could significantly improve young people's mental health. The charity's founder, Dr Susie Davies, said: "It gives young people an extra two to three years of childhood. Time to play, to enjoy each other's company, and to concentrate on learning and social development without the distraction of constant notifications." BBC News.

At Cardiff West Community High School, fights arranged and shared via social media, along with pupils upset by online comments, were common problems. After banning mobile phones last summer as part of wider efforts to curb bad behaviour, headteacher Mike Tate reported that exclusions for violence dropped almost overnight. Speaking to BBC News, Mr Tate said it would be "naive" to claim fights had been eradicated completely, but that pupil exclusions for violence had fallen by 72 per cent since the ban was introduced. By Bethan Lewis.

In 2023, Florida became the first US state to pass a law regulating the use of mobile phones in schools. More than half of all states now have laws in place, with more likely to follow. The Independent reports that some states have provided money for districts to buy solutions such as lockable phone storage pouches, and that New York, for example, plans to spend $13.5 million. By Jeff Amy.

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