Follow this link to view the full version of Steve Besley's popular policy round-up - including an overview of all the important stories, his top headlines of the week, tweets and posts of note, the most memorable quotes, not-to-be-missed statistics and what to look out for next week. As your starter for ten, we've chosen three items from each phase below ...
GENERAL: Levelling up. The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IfS) reported on the lack of progress in the key policy area of levelling up, acknowledging that it had been a difficult time with the pandemic and war but that progress generally had been slow and in some cases, such as average life satisfaction and completion rates for adult skills courses, things had actually got worse. Reform manifesto. Reform published its manifesto with a page of proposals for education that included tax relief on school fees, auditing curriculum aspects to ensure they’re ‘patriotic’, restricting undergraduate numbers, scrapping interest on student loans and over time opting for 2-year undergraduate courses. Lack of investment. The IPPR think tank called on the next government to tackle low levels of public and private investment in areas like health, education and renewable energy as it published a new report showing the UK with the lowest rates of investment of any G7 economy.
SCHOOLS: School funding. The IfS reflected on what the various party manifestos had had to say about school funding, pointing to the range of challenges that an incoming government would have to face and concluding that key questions remained around the future level of core funding and a risk of cuts, with a lack of detail making future projections difficult to determine. Manifesto analysis. The Education Policy Institute published a comprehensive assessment of the various manifesto commitments on education from early years through to higher education, concluding that while commitments addressed some of the challenges facing education they didn’t go far enough, particularly on issues like SEND and disadvantage, with uncertainty over future funding an obvious concern all round. Teacher recruitment. School Dash and Teacher Tapp published their latest Gatsby commissioned report into teacher recruitment and retention pointing to some return to normality around recruitment although with much depending on region, subject and school type and with continuing concerns about the numbers of trained staff at secondary level.
FE/SKILLS: LSIPs. The AoC reported some early wins but equally some early frustrations as it published a report on Local Skills Improvement Plans (LSIPs) one year on from their national roll-out, calling for more effective partnerships, sustained funding and clear accountability for the future. What do we want? The Association of Apprentices provided feedback from its Big Ask pre-election survey of apprentices with respondents calling among other things for more study time, increased financial support and better mentorship and guidance. Skills report. The OU and BCC reported that over 60% of UK businesses reported skills shortages as they published their latest Business Barometer with AI skills and green technologies topping the list of greatest skills weaknesses.
HE: Universities and the election. King’s College published new research showing that while universities are held in high esteem with many considered world-leading, they don’t feature highly as a priority in elections largely because the financial pressures they face are not well appreciated. International students. The HE Policy Institute (HEPI) and Kaplan highlighted the value of international students to parliamentary constituencies around the country using evidence produced by London Economics to show that for the top 20 such constituencies the combined benefits totalled over £8bn. Manifesto for teacher education. The Million Plus group published a manifesto for teacher education, urging an incoming government to make it a priority and calling among other things for a Fee Loan Forgiveness scheme for teaching, a comprehensive system of placements, and the creation of a taskforce to encourage more young people to train.
IfS event on ‘analysis of the main party manifestos’ (Monday 24 June). Education Policy Institute event on ‘Education Priorities in the Election’ (Tuesday 25 June).
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MONDAY 24 JUNE On this day in 1509 Henry VIII was crowned King of England at Westminster Abbey. On this day in 1717 four existing London Lodges came together and declared themselves the world's first Masonic Grand Lodge. On this day in 1901 Spanish artist Pablo Picasso opened his first exhibition in Ambroise Vollard's gallery in Paris.
TUESDAY 25 JUNE On this day in 1947 a young Jewish girl's account of her life in hiding from the Nazis, 'The Diary of Anne Frank', was first published. On this day in 1950 the Korean War broke out when armed forces from communist North Korea invaded South Korea. On this day in 1978 activists hoisted a vibrant rainbow flag, symbol of gay pride, made by Gilbert Baker at a march in San Francisco.
WEDNESDAY 26 JUNE On this day in 1284 a piper led 130 children from the city of Hamelin away according to the Lüneburg manuscript. On this day in 1857 the first 62 recipients of the Victoria Cross for valour in the Crimean war were awarded by Queen Victoria. On this day in 2016 Panama Canal's third set of locks opened for commercial traffic, doubling capacity at an estimated cost of $5.25 billion.
THURSDAY 27 JUNE On this day in 1880 Helen Keller, the first deaf-blind person to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree, was born in Alabama, USA. On this day in 1954 the world's first nuclear power plant opened near Moscow, Russia. On this day in 1967 the world's first ATM was installed in Enfield, London.
FRIDAY 28 JUNE On this day in 1846 the saxophone was patented by Antoine-Joseph 'Adolfe' Sax. On this day in 1914 Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie were assassinated. On this day in 1919 the Treaty of Versailles, ending World War I and establishing the League of Nations, was signed in France.
Awareness days from around the world
JUNE IS UK: National Age Without Apology Month, National Candy Month, National Smile Month. WORLDWIDE: Pride Month, National Portuguese Heritage Month, National Migraine And Headache Awareness Month, National Caribbean-American Heritage Month, National PTSD Awareness Month, National Homeownership Month, National Give A Bunch Of Balloons Month, National Pollinators Month, National DJ Month, National Safety Month, Men's Health Month, African-American Music Appreciation Month, National Soul Food Month, National Papaya Month, National Iced Tea Month, National Great Outdoors Month, National Dairy Month, National Country Cooking Month, National Camping Month, National Fresh Fruit And Vegetables Month, National Adopt A Cat Month, National Accordion Month, Turkey Lovers Month, National Rose Month, Aquarium Month.
THIS WEEK IS UK: Love Your Lungs Week, Rabbit Awareness Week, DeafBlind Awareness Week, Injury Awareness Week. WORLDWIDE: World Female Ranger Week, World Wellbeing Week, National Lightning Safety Awareness Week.
MONDAY 24 JUNE WORLDWIDE: National Patch Day, National Take Back the Lunch Break Day, National Pralines Day, St John’s Day, International Fairy Day, Swim a Lap Day, National Upcycling Day, Please Take My Children to Work Day.
TUESDAY 25 JUNE WORLDWIDE: National Catfish Day, National Leon Day, World Sand Dune Day, Day of the Seafarer, National Strawberry Parfait Day, Goat’s Cheese Day, Global Beatles Day, Color TV Day, World Vitiligo Day.
WEDNESDAY 26 JUNE UK: Reserves Day, National Writing Day. WORLDWIDE: International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking, United Nations International Day in Support of Victims of Torture, National Barcode Day, National Coconut Day, National Parchment Day, National Chocolate Pudding Day, National Beautician’s Day, World Drug Day, National Stitch Day, World Refrigeration Day, National Canoe Day.
THURSDAY 27 JUNE UK: National Bingo Day. WORLDWIDE: National PTSD Awareness Day, National HIV Testing Day, Helen Keller Day, International Sunglasses Day, National Onion Day, National Ice Cream Cake Day, National Handshake Day, National Orange Blossom Day, National Bomb Pop Day, Industrial Workers of The World Day, Pineapple Day, World Arak Day.
FRIDAY 28 JUNE UK: National Cream Tea Day. WORLDWIDE: National Logistics Day, National Alaska Day, National Insurance Awareness Day, National Paul Bunyan Day, Dream Big Day, Christopher Street Day, National Ceviche Day, International Body Piercing Day, Happy Heart Hugs Day.
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