Education sector: news in brief - July 2026

Teachers to receive pay rise under new multi-year deal

The government has accepted the School Teachers’ Review Body’s recommendations in full, paving the way for a 6.5% pay increase for school teachers and leaders over the next two years. Teachers will receive a 3.5% rise from September 2026, followed by a further 3% increase from September 2027. 

The deal forms part of a cumulative 17% increase in teacher pay since the general election and is backed by an additional £1.8 billion in funding for schools over two years. The government has also announced £485 million for colleges and further education providers to help recruit and retain teaching staff. 

Alongside the pay settlement, new controls on academy trust executive pay will take effect from September. Trusts will need government approval before advertising roles with salaries above £174,000, and executive pay increases will be aligned with those awarded to the wider school workforce.

£132.5 million programme to expand enrichment opportunities for children

The government has announced plans to give every child access to ‘enriching activities’ designed to build their skills, confidence and social connections. New benchmarks for schools and colleges will support opportunities across sport, arts and culture, outdoor learning, civic engagement and life skills. 

Backed by £132.5 million through the new Every Child Can programme, the initiative will fund activities both in schools and in local communities, including weekend and holiday provision. The government aims to reduce inequalities and help young people develop skills that support their wellbeing, education and future employment prospects. 

Ofsted will consider schools’ enrichment provision when assessing personal development, while parents will be able to view information about activities through new school profiles.

New guidance aims to improve inclusion for children with SEND

The government has published new - non statutory - guidance designed to help schools, early years settings and colleges provide more inclusive support for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). It is designed to be read alongside standards and guidance on school and college design construction.

Government considers overhaul of early years teacher training

The Department for Education has launched a consultation on reforms that could replace Early Years Teacher Status (EYTS) with Qualified Teacher Status (QTS), giving early years teachers the same qualification as other teachers. The proposals aim to improve training quality, strengthen professional status and create a more consistent career pathway across the sector. 

Under the plans, the government would develop a new evidence-based framework setting out the core knowledge and skills expected of early years teachers. The framework would mirror existing teacher training and early career development programmes used in schools. 

The consultation outlines two possible approaches, both of which would phase out EYTS and introduce routes leading to QTS. Ministers say the reforms would help ensure children receive high-quality teaching in all early years settings while providing practitioners with clearer professional development opportunities. Views from the early years and schools sectors will be gathered before any decisions are made.

Disadvantaged schools struggle to recruit strong teacher candidates

Schools serving the most disadvantaged communities are less likely to recruit high-quality teaching candidates than more affluent schools, according to new analysis by SchoolDash and Teacher Tapp. The report found that 49% of the least disadvantaged state schools successfully appointed a strong candidate, compared with 36% of the most disadvantaged schools. Among independent schools, the figure rose to 61%.

The research suggests that teacher recruitment has generally improved over the past two years, with fewer schools reporting weak applicant pools or difficulties filling vacancies. However, significant inequalities remain. Schools with higher levels of disadvantage were more likely to make appointments despite having reservations about candidates and were also more likely to leave posts unfilled. 

9% of the most disadvantaged schools reported being unable to appoint a teacher and instead covered the role internally, compared with just 3% of the least disadvantaged schools. The findings are based on responses from more than 2,400 teachers who were involved in recruiting for teaching vacancies during the current academic year. 

More than a quarter of EHCP requests rejected by councils

More than a quarter of requests for Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) needs assessments were rejected by councils in 2025, according to newly published government data. Key figures include:

• Councils declined to proceed with 43,289 of the 162,702 requests received, representing 26.6% of all applications
• The rejection rate was slightly higher than in 2024, when 25.2% of requests were refused
• Requests made by schools were more likely to progress to assessment, with around 76% proceeding, compared with 44% of requests made by parents or young people
• The number of children and young people with an EHCP reached a record 718,800 in January 2026, up 12.5% on the previous year
• Councils carried out 118,800 needs assessments during 2025
• More than 93% of completed assessments resulted in an EHCP being issued; and
• Only 46.1% of new EHCPs were issued within the statutory 20-week timeframe, the lowest proportion since EHCPs were introduced.

School attendance falls as heatwave drives closures

School attendance dropped sharply during UK heatwave, with data from around 12,000 schools showing that only 82% of pupils attended lessons on Wednesday 24 June. The figures suggest that almost one in five children missed school as temperatures reached up to 36.1°C in parts of England. 

The south west had the lowest attendance rate (75%), while the north east (where it was cooler) had the highest rate (89%). Data also showed that 966 schools closed during the afternoon on 24 June and a further 271 partially closed. The south west was the worst-affected region.

Temperatures continued to climb over the following two days. 

The government published guidance on hot weather and heatwaves on 22 June. It referred schools and colleges to updated guidance published by the UK Health Security Agency. It also recommended that schools should remain open ‘when it was safe to do so’ and take measures to manage heat such as: 

• increasing hydration breaks
• using different areas of the school for lessons
• making greater use of shaded and cooler spaces
• adapting PE and outdoor activities
• relaxing uniform requirements
• moving activities to cooler parts of the day
• prioritising vulnerable children and children of critical workers where attendance had to be limited; and
• adjusting timetables while maintaining teaching time.  

Nearly half of GCSE disadvantage gap established by age 11

Almost half of the attainment gap between disadvantaged pupils and their peers is already in place by the end of primary school, according to new research from the Education Policy Institute (EPI) and the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF). The study found that 44% of the GCSE disadvantage gap can be traced to differences in attainment by age 11. 

Researchers reported that disadvantaged pupils are, on average, 17.9 months behind their peers by the time they sit GCSEs. Lower attainment at Key Stage 2 was identified as the single largest contributor to this gap, highlighting the importance of early intervention. 

The report also found that school absence plays an increasingly significant role as pupils progress through education. Absence accounts for around one-fifth of the attainment gap at Key Stage 2, rising to around one-third by Key Stage 4. 

Researchers concluded that improving outcomes for disadvantaged pupils will require both strong early support and action to address wider factors, including attendance, SEND, health, housing and family circumstance.

Reading enjoyment rises for first time in five years

Children and young people’s enjoyment of reading has increased for the first time in five years, according to new research from the National Literacy Trust. However, reading engagement remains well below levels seen a decade ago. 

The survey of more than 125,000 children and young people aged 5 to 18 found that 36.1% of those aged 8 to 18 said they enjoyed reading in their free time, up from 32.7% in 2025. Daily reading also increased, with 20.3% reporting that they read every day for pleasure, compared with 18.7% the previous year.

Despite these improvements, the research highlighted widening inequalities. The gap in reading enjoyment between pupils receiving free school meals and their peers more than doubled over the past year, while the gap in daily reading habits also grew. Children aged five to eight were the only age group to report a decline in reading enjoyment.

DfE looking for school leaders to support improvement missions

The Department for Education is recruiting three senior school leaders to help drive school improvement in its new ‘mission’ areas, including parts of the north east, Hastings and Scarborough. The initiative forms part of the government’s plans to improve outcomes in areas that have historically performed below the national average. 

The successful applicants will take up part-time, two-year secondments as ‘place missions lead educationalists’, receiving £600 per day. They will work with schools, trusts, councils and dioceses to identify shared challenges, strengthen leadership and teaching, and support sustainable improvement across local education systems.

The roles will focus on key areas including leadership, curriculum quality, behaviour, attendance, inclusion and enrichment. The appointees will also work alongside regional directors and DfE teams to support wider school improvement activity and contribute to the department’s new policy testing programme. 

Applications are open to current school leaders with a proven record of delivering rapid and lasting school improvement, particularly in disadvantaged communities. The application deadline is 14 JulyOur newsletters

Our newsletters

We publish monthly employment and education newsletters. If you'd like to be added to the mailing list, please let me know.