What's New

The Department for Education (DfE) has invited comments and supporting evidence with regard to proposals which it has developed for a new international teaching qualification, International Qualified Teacher Status (iQTS).

The extent to which teachers and pupils are relying on remote learning during the pandemic has been underlined by the recently published Education (Coronavirus, Remote Education Information) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2021.

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has announced a drive to increase workplace testing in sectors open during lockdown in order to detect coronavirus in people who are not showing symptoms.

This week, 1 to 7 February, marks the seventh time that Children’s Mental Health Week has been organised but a survey by children’s mental health charity Place2Be reveals that there is still a great deal to work to do to move away from the stigma that has attached to mental health problems.

The governing body of Christ the King Catholic High School and Sixth Form Centre in Southport has been fined after an employee fell from height whilst performing routine maintenance duties.

Some pupils will begin a phased return to school in Scotland on 22 February, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has said, with a full-time return for pupils in primaries years 1–3.

From 2 February, in order to combat the spread of a new variant of the coronavirus, which looks to have originated in South Africa, the Government started implementing surge testing in the areas where the variant has been detected.

New research by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) has revealed that nearly half of employees do not have flexible working in their current role.

Last week, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said that it would be 8 March at the earliest before schools and colleges could consider re-opening (see “School return in March could be start of easing lockdown”).

Five years on from the implementation of new court guidelines for sentencing those who put workers at risk of accidents, injuries and ill health, the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) has praised their positive impact.