In an extensive article on the cost of transporting children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) to school, The Telegraph reports that rising taxi costs reflect a broader increase in the number of pupils receiving education, health and care plans (EHCPs), which entitle them to support from local councils. A recent investigation by the paper found that some local authorities have been using ambulances to transport pupils with SEND to school amid increasing demand. Plans to reform the current SEND system are expected to be published by ministers this autumn. An accompanying graph, based on data from a Freedom of Information request, illustrates England's most expensive journeys for children with SEND. Buckinghamshire is placed top, spending as much as £950 a day in one case. By Poppy Wood.

In an interview with Tes, psychiatrist Sami Timimi says diagnostic labels are turning ordinary childhood behaviours into medical conditions and adding to schools’ workload crisis. Mr Timimi, who has worked for over 30 years in child and adolescent mental health, expresses concern regarding "systemic problems, which these diagnoses aren’t going to help". By Helen Amass.

Cheryl Giovannoni, chief executive of the Girls’ Day School Trust (GDST), speaks to Independent School Management Plus about her career path and why she believes girls' education is more important than ever. While some UK independent schools are moving towards more co-educational settings, Ms Giovannoni advocates for single-sex education. "The argument that you have to be co-ed to prepare girls to go out into a co-gender workforce just doesn’t hold water; they will probably graduate to be in a co-ed world with greater confidence and better agency as a result of their girls-only education," she says. By Zoe MacDougall.

Former education secretary Sir Gavin Williamson has told the Covid inquiry he believes ministers were "not putting children first" when making the "unnecessary" decision to close schools in January 2021. He said then-prime minister Boris Johnson "chose the NHS over children" at the time, adding that he felt "the consequences for children weren't properly taken into account". The inquiry is currently looking at how the Covid pandemic impacted children and young people. Giving evidence yesterday, Sir Gavin said he thought he had "won the argument" over getting pupils back to school in January 2021, "but events overtook". His testimony also touched on the government's U-turn on its model for awarding grades after exams were cancelled in the summer of 2020, with Sir Gavin admitting he knew in advance "there were some students who wouldn't get the grades they would deserve". By Vanessa Clarke, BBC News. 

Sir Gavin, who was education secretary from July 2019 to September 2021, told the inquiry he "readily accepts" errors of judgement were made in both the pre- and early stages of the pandemic, adding: "I was secretary of state and it was my responsibility." The inquiry continues. Sky News.

Pupils worry that using artificial intelligence (AI) is eroding their ability to study, with many complaining it makes schoolwork "too easy" and others saying it limits their creativity and prevents them from learning new skills, according to new research commissioned by Oxford University Press. The report found that just two per cent of teenagers said they did not use AI for their schoolwork, while 80 per cent said they frequently used it. Many added that they wanted more help from teachers regarding the appropriate use of AI and in judging whether its output was reliable. By Richard Adams, The Guardian. 

More than three quarters of teachers view misogyny as a major problem in UK schools, according to a YouGov survey, with 54 per cent warning that it has worsened in recent years. Of the 1,016 teachers polled, 24 per cent said they were aware of misogynistic comments being made towards female staff on at least a weekly basis, while the proportion increased to 39 per cent for secondary school teachers. Commenting on the findings, Paul Whiteman, general secretary of the NAHT school leaders’ union, said: "There remains a pressing need for more support and guidance to be made available to teachers to talk to pupils about this issue and on how to address instances when they arise." Tes.

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