ISC Daily News Summary

On the anniversary of the invasion of Ukraine, David Cole - headteacher at the British International School, Ukraine (BISU) - talks to Tes about what the last year has been like for schools in the war zone and the importance of maintaining education amid the terror. Mr Cole says: "We see education as part of the resistance, as one of the ways that will help this community get through this war.” The article references the variety of help that has come to BISU and its sister school in Dnipro from the Council of British International Schools (COBIS) and City of London Freemen's School. By Kester Brewin, a teacher and author.

According to official statistics, the number of pupils regularly absent from school in England has not returned to pre-COVID pandemic levels. 25.1 per cent of school children were 'persistently absent' last term as opposed to 13.1 per cent in the autumn term of 2019, with the Government citing illness as driving the absence rate. By Hazel Shearing, BBC News.

In a submission to the Education Select Committee’s inquiry into persistent absence, the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL) has warned that guidance from the Department for Education (DfE) is removing the ability of schools to make exceptional decisions over pupils’ leave of absence. By Callum Mason, Tes.

In a written submission to the School Teachers’ Review Body, school leaders have warned that a 3.5 per cent pay rise for teachers recommended by the DfE will be “unsustainable” and could lead to staff cuts without additional funding. By Callum Mason, Tes.

Analysis by the Labour Party has revealed that a teacher who qualified in 2010 is 15 per cent more likely to have left teaching within a decade than one who qualified in 2000, prompting the party to accuse the Government of creating “a perfect storm” in England’s teaching workforce. By Sally Weale, The Guardian.

According to the latest school and college panel research report published by the DfE, 91 per cent of schools took at least one measure to reduce spending between November 2021 and 2022, with the costs of learning resources or building and maintenance cited as the most common areas to have been cut. By Amy Walker, Schools Week.

The mayor of London's 2023/24 budget has been approved by the London Assembly, which will see free school meals funded for primary school children for a year. Sadiq Khan said his budget would create a "fairer, safer and more prosperous [London] for all". By Jess Warren, BBC News.

Figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) suggest the number of young people not in education, employment or training has increased, reporting 788,000 so-called NEETs in the last three months of 2022, up from 724,000 in the quarter to September. By Alan Jones, The Independent.

Statistics from the Government’s Office for Health Improvement and Disparities have revealed more than 25,000 children had decaying teeth removed in hospital last year and that 42,180 operations for tooth extraction took place in NHS hospitals in England in 2021/22 for youngsters aged 19 and under. By Jane Kirby, The Independent.