In a letter to The Telegraph, the leaders of all the constituent associations of the Independent Schools Council (ISC) condemn the Labour Party's plan to add VAT to school fees. Signatories of the letter, which include Julie Robinson, the ISC's chief executive, say: “We want to see a well-funded state education system. But the path the Labour Party is mapping out would fail to raise the money our colleagues in the state sector need and deserve, while disrupting the lives and education of thousands of children whose parents work hard to fund the education they have chosen.” The letter appears below halfway.

The prime minister, Rishi Sunak, has pledged to improve the nation’s skills and boost the economy. In a speech to NHS leaders yesterday, he said: “I believe in the very core of my being that education is the closest thing we have to a silver bullet in public policy." By Chris Smyth, The Times.

Susan Acland-Hood, the Department for Education's (DfE) permanent secretary, has said she expects additional funding to be provided to schools to help with rising costs when the support scheme ends in March. It is the first time the Government has confirmed that such funding will have to cover rising energy costs in addition to other financial pressures. By Freddie Whittaker, Schools Week.

Research by Nesta has found that early years children eligible for free school meals have poorer educational outcomes in wealthier areas than those in deprived ones. According to Nesta, possible reasons could include more affluent areas having “less experience” in dealing with disadvantage. By Callum Mason, Tes.

Two researchers from Nesta explore the findings in Tes and explain that the data shows some regions are working hard to close the disadvantage gap. By Rachel Wilcock and Louise Bazalgette from Nesta's Fairer Start team.

A report by Ofsted has revealed that hundreds of outstanding schools exempt from reinspection between 2012 and 2020 have been downgraded. According to the report, 80 per cent of those that have been reinspected fell below outstanding. By Emma Yeomans, The Times.

Research by the National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER) and funded by the Nuffield Foundation has suggested that nearly half of secondary schools have used non-specialists to deliver 'at least some' maths lessons. A lack of available, qualified applicants and budget pressures are some of the recruitment obstacles cited by the schools surveyed. By Matilda Martin, Tes.

Schools Week reports that the Government is looking to diversify its free teacher jobs board to include other school staff such as business leaders and catering personnel. By Freddie Whittaker.

An analysis of Department for Education (DfE) figures by Youth Sport Trust has revealed that secondary school students in Year 10 and above have seen a 20 per cent decline in timetabled PE lessons over the last 10 years. COVID recovery and accountability measures such as Progress 8 are likely reasons for the decline, according to experts. By Rhodri Morgan, Tes.

The Scottish Secondary Teachers' Association (SSTA) has announced two days of strike action after members rejected a pay offer of five per cent. Members in 17 local authorities will walk out on 7 December and 15 local authorities on 8 December. BBC News.

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