This one day seminar will consider the future shape of England’s school system - and priorities for raising pupil attainment and improving social mobility through education.

It will be an opportunity for policymakers and stakeholders, in education and more widely, to discuss key themes emerging from the Schools that Work for Everyone consultation which included proposals to potentially expand the role and support provided by universities and the independent sector in the state school system.

Delegates will examine key issues for the future shape of the school system and for delivering school improvement, including:
• The changing role of local education authorities in the system
• Accountability and effectiveness of multi-academy trusts amid concern of fragmentation in the school system
• The potential expansion of the role of universities and independent schools in the state sector through sponsorship of academies and support for disadvantaged students.

The seminar also comes after the publication of the DfE’s Social Mobility Action Plan, which outlined the DfE’s plans to improve social mobility through education and included proposals for the next phase of the Free Schools Programme to target areas of disadvantage - and follows recent emphasis from the DfE on raising educational standards in disadvantaged areas through initiatives such as the Multi-Academy Trust Development and Improvement Fund and the Opportunity Areas programme.

Sessions will assess priorities for raising pupil attainment and increasing social mobility across the system identifying best practice examples of external support systems and school partnerships in addition to considering the wider transferability across the system of the Free Schools and Opportunity Area’s programme.