Schools Bill in current form is scrapped

The Education Secretary, Gillian Keegan has announced that the Schools Bill will not progress in its current form.

The minister did indicate that elements of the bill would be prioritised when formulating the legislative agenda in the future and told MPs at the Education Sub Committee that the Department for Education remained committed to the objectives that underpinned the bill.

The Education Secretary told the Select Committee that a proposal in the bill to create a register to identify and account for children not in schools was “definitely a priority”. MPs were also told that helping more faith schools to join multi-academy trusts will be another “priority area” for the department as it considers new legislation.

In terms of the aims within the Schools Bill for MATS, a review is now considering what the DfE can achieve in introducing MAT standards through the use of both legislative and non-legislative routes and is expected to produce recommendations in the new year.

Tes reports that Leora Cruddas, the chief executive of the Confederation of School Trusts, who is on the review group, had said: ”The prize in our view is to work towards a single regulatory approach underpinned by a regulatory strategy. The DfE’s regulatory and commissioning review is turning its attention now to how we define a strong trust. It is very important that this work does not pin down the definition so that trusts have no room to give creative and innovative expression to what it means to be a strong trust so they can provide the very best education to children and young people.”

In terms of the 2030 target for all schools to be in, or moving to, a MAT there is recognition that this target would be very hard to achieve and there are now calls for clarity about what the government’s thinking is.