It could take a decade for the attainment gap between disadvantaged pupils and their wealthier peers to return to pre-pandemic levels in England without faster and more effective intervention, MPs have warned.
The estimate was made during evidence given to parliament’s influential public accounts committee (PAC) as part of its inquiry into education recovery after the disruption of Covid.
The growing attainment gap has become a source of concern among headteachers and ministers who are monitoring the impact of the pandemic on education, described as a “slow motion catastrophe” by the PAC chair.
Read the full article in the Guardian here.
Hundreds of English schools still at risk from crumbling concrete
Hundreds of schools in England are still at risk of collapse from crumbling concrete, according to previously unpublished figures. Official data, which the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO)
Thousands of young people placed in council care more than 20 miles away from home, analysis shows
A third of children in council care in 2023 lived over 20 miles away from their local area, school and family – around 4,600 people in total.
£600m boost for social care next year announced in Budget
Councils’ available spending to grow by an estimated 3.2% in real terms in 2025-26, with authorities also given £250m to test new approaches in children’s
