Shaunagh Roberts

New: Secondary school lost one in six of its year seven to nine pupils, after introducing hardline behaviour policy educationuncovered.co.uk/news/secondary… DfE census data show big change in cohort numbers at Ark Alexandra Academy, in Hastings, East Sussex.

🔍 Investigation: The government is concerned that 64 academy trusts are stockpiling cash by sitting on reserves of up to 140 per cent of their annual income buff.ly/tO1XmWm

But there are lots of other figures in this piece, including one I thought was particularly striking: Harris had more people paid at £200k+ (6) than did the other seven largest academy trusts combined.

If Harris were to reduce its spending on six-figure salaries, per pupil, only to that of the largest MAT, United Learning, it would cut its spending by more than £4m – which appears to be at least as much as the savings it will make by cutting 45 school-level jobs.

New: The Harris Federation would achieve all of the likely savings from a redundancy process it is currently putting frontline teachers through, if it could reduce its payments on senior staff to the level seen at its largest rival, Ed Uncovered reveals. educationuncovered.co.uk/news/harris-co…

Please read and share my new article to help raise awareness and improve care for underserved #eatingdisorder sufferers and their loved ones. jeatdisord.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.11…

Wow: Harris Federation, England's 2nd-largest academy chain "trying to make 45 teachers redundant despite reserves of £21m" and highest-paid CEO on more than £500k, NASUWT says in press release. Got wind of a little of this last week.

This is obviously v poor in terms of transparency. Nolan points in seem well-made: schoolsweek.co.uk/academy-scanda…

Today we have launched legal action against Ofsted. We must not forget that the catalyst for these changes was the tragic death of Ruth Perry. The focus on school leader mental health and well-being has got lost along the way during Ofsted’s consultation process. bbc.in/3YrW13w

New: Headteacher joins union picket line in dispute involving multi-academy trust for whom she works educationuncovered.co.uk/news/headteach… Head laments “lack of transparency” over budgeting, in case which shines light on debate over local vs centralised control of schools.

@Elainebks @warwickmansell Sometimes there is even a GAG charge to each school for 'central services '... When I asked questions about this..many moons ago, my FOIs were rejected. #incoming-1291757" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">whatdotheyknow.com/request/5_6_ga…

@warwickmansell An academy near us used the bulk of the money for the high school and the primary sometimes had TAs teaching a class for a whole term,

"Gag pooling" - whereby school budgets go into one big pot to be used as a multi-academy trust sees fit - does seem to me v controversial. It goes to heart of debate over whether decision-making over schools should be centralised via MAT HQ, or more local.

We believe the proposed new system will continue to have a detrimental impact on the well-being of education staff and hence on students’ school experience. bit.ly/3ED6x14

Two more London primaries to shut this summer as school closure crisis deepens... standard.co.uk/news/london/is…

Anyone who opposes the elevation of Amanda Spielman to the House of Lords should contact the Prime Minister at: contact.no10.gov.uk and/or Kemi Badenoch MP at: kemi.badenoch.mp@parliament.uk.

Absolutely disgraceful that ex Ofsted chief, Amanda Speilman whose response to the enquiry of Ruth Perry’s Perry's death was described as "defensive and complacent" is being offered a place in the House of Lords. Nomination by Kemi Badenoch shows her true colours.

I've been saying this for years..there is PLenty of Money..where it's going, is the pRoblem. Corporate greed at the expense of children and the teachers in the classrooms that are overworked and underpaid. It's rotten to the core. Including Ofsted. theguardian.com/education/2025…

New: National pupil wellbeing survey needed to help schools understand causes of persistent absence and exclusion, conference hears educationuncovered.co.uk/news/national-… Write-up of “More than Grades: Why Children’s Wellbeing Matters” conference held this morning.

DfE documents also show £3m was given over four years in extra payments for three former Steiner free schools in the West Country, £2.4m in extra cash to the academy trust which took them over, and more than £600k in writing off debts before takeover.

New: Government still footing the bill for failed Bright Tribe chain and sister trust, four years after closure, DfE report reveals educationuncovered.co.uk/news/governmen…