- SEND changes 'most high stakes' since welfare reform, says Labour MP
- School smartphone ban: Educators, parents and pupils share their views
- Letter: Choir school closures
- Can changes to Oxford's admissions policy widen access?
- Hip-Hop Healing: How music is helping students through trauma
SEND changes 'most high stakes' since welfare reform, says Labour MP
SENDMinisters are lobbying Labour MPs to support changes to special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) provision, having learned from previous welfare reform failures, Labour MPs have said. The proposals under consideration would raise the threshold for children in England to qualify for an education, health and care plan (EHCP), limiting support to those with the most severe and complex needs. Parents, campaigners, and MPs have warned that reducing legal rights could have serious consequences for children and families. The Guardian reports that one Labour MP said "everyone knows this is the most high-stakes political reform they’ve taken on since welfare". By Alexandra Topping and Kiran Stacey.
School smartphone ban: Educators, parents and pupils share their views
Mobile phonesTomorrow, the House of Lords will debate an amendment to the Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill, which would introduce a legal ban on smartphones in schools. At present, nearly all schools have some sort of phone ban in place, although policies vary from school to school. In a lengthy BBC News article, Donna Corker, whose daughters are 12 and 16, says phones aren’t needed at school except for medical or special needs. She believes parents should teach safe use and set household rules, taking the phone away if necessary. A number of other parents, pupils and educators also share their views on a potential ban, with all agreeing that something needs to be done. By Vanessa Clarke.
Writing in Tes, Thomas Keaney, founder and CEO of The Complete Education Solution (TCES), a provider of special schools, says discussions about phone bans often miss the point regarding the longer-term benefits that come from teaching pupils to survive free from constant distractions. On why TCES became a phone-free organisation 15 years ago, he explains: "Phone-free schools are not about nostalgia or control. They are about future readiness. They are about helping young people to develop the habits that adult life quietly assumes: attention, patience, presence and self-management."
Letter: Choir school closures
LettersIn a letter to The Telegraph, Jeremy Walker, headmaster of St Peter's School, York, reflects on his career leading two historic cathedral choir schools and on the transformative impact of intensive choral training on young singers. Mr Walker describes the closure of Exeter Cathedral School, driven by new financial pressures, as "a sad moment in the long heritage of the Anglican choral tradition", and says he fully supports the Cathedral Music Trust’s campaign to secure world heritage status for it. The letter appears above halfway.
Can changes to Oxford's admissions policy widen access?
Higher educationIn an opinion piece in The Sunday Telegraph, Tom Lawson, headmaster of Eastbourne College, criticises Oxford University’s changing admissions policies, "aimed at aiding Oxford’s push for inclusivity", in light of the news that its bespoke admissions tests are to be scrapped from next year. Expressing respect for Oxford and its academics, he concludes "it is impossible to optimise the admissions process to ensure equal access to oversubscribed places".
Hip-Hop Healing: How music is helping students through trauma
MusicPupils at Holy Trinity Catholic School in Birmingham are turning pain into poetry through a new music project aimed at helping young people process trauma. The programme, called Hip-Hop Healing, gives students the chance to write and record original music on issues affecting their lives in a studio. Speaking to BBC News, participant Sam, 14, said he had written a song about losing his mum. "This programme's helped me open up more and express myself through music," he said. The Hip-Hop Healing programme is expected to continue, with further recordings planned as part of a wider mental health-focused album project. By Fosiya Ismail.