News, research & insights
w/c 14 July 2025
Early Years teachers incentivised to serve areas of disadvantage
Early years teachers in England will receive tax-free payments of £4,500 to work in nurseries in disadvantaged areas.
Family Hubs to open in every council across England
The government plans to roll out family hubs across England with £500 million to support 500,000 children in areas of disadvantage.
Rising school meal costs mean smaller portions, caterers say
School children get smaller portions and less access to vital ingredients as caterers struggle with rising costs, according to the new chair of a school food organisation.
Ministers refuse to rule out changes to EHCPs
Campaigners warn children with SEND may not cope in mainstream schools without Education Health and Care Plans, as ministers say they cannot rule out changes to the system.
Call for ban to ‘forever chemicals’ found in school uniforms
Experts call for amendments to the children’s wellbeing and schools bill that would ban harmful PFAS "forever chemicals" and some synthetic fibres in school uniforms.
Research & Insights
Growing up in a low-income family:
Children’s experiences
[Children’s Commissioner; 2025]
This latest report from the Children’s Commissioner presents findings from direct conversations with children growing up in low-income families across England.
It is helpful for conveying voices on key challenges and how poverty affects every part of their lives.
Children highlighted how having a lack of money shapes major aspects of their lives. Amongst other themes, notable headlines include:
Food insecurity: Many children face talked food insecurity and lack of access to clothing, and poor housing conditions. Going without essentials appears to be normalised.
Housing insecurity: Frequent moves, overcrowding, damp or unsafe homes, and temporary accommodation disrupt education, friendships, and wellbeing. Children express stress over rent, eviction risk, and feeling unsafe at home.
Housing instability is a key concern raised in the report. Children link frequent moves and poor conditions with disrupted routines, education, and a constant sense of insecurity.
Over 159,000 children live in temporary accommodation, and poor housing quality (e.g., mould, rats, shared rooms) affects health and daily life.
(Source: Children’s Commissioner, 2025)
Cost of learning: Poverty limits access to school trips, digital devices, and quiet spaces to study. Children sometimes feel embarrassed or excluded. Uniforms and transport costs can be unaffordable.
Wellbeing and health: Children spoke of anxiety, shame, and emotional strain. Some go without sleep, hygiene facilities, or regular meals. Waiting lists for support are long.
Accessing support: While many praised teachers and community workers, some children felt professionals didn’t always understand poverty or listen well.
Through the report, the Commissioner is calling for:
Better housing and benefits to support families.
More inclusive schools, where poverty is understood and tackled.
Stronger voices for children in policy shaping and implementation.
English and Maths Resits
Drivers of success
[Maris & Robinson; Education Policy Institute, 2025]
For thousands of young people across England, the GCSE resit process can be defining moment in their post-16 education.
I read this with interest as I too was a Maths ‘resit’ student once upon a time, and understand the value of it as a second chance to secure a pass!
According to the research, disadvantaged students are, on average, one-fifth of a grade behind in English and one-eighth of a grade behind in maths when resitting GCSEs.
(Source: EPI, 2025)
There is a cluster of top-performing institutions in the North West of England.
The English and maths resit results of students in the North West are 0.1 grades higher than the average for students with similar Key Stage 4 results students across England.
There are significant attainment gaps by disadvantaged status, gender and ethnicity. Disadvantaged students fall behind by a fifth of a grade in English and one eighth of a grade in maths compared with their non-disadvantaged peers.
Motivation, engagement, and attendance are critical for resit outcomes.
Unauthorised absences in Year 11 strongly predict poorer resit attainment, indicating that the factors driving absences before age 16 persist post-16 and continue to affect academic performance.
Resitting too soon can harm attainment, if not well targeted.
While November resits can be beneficial for individual students, providers that enter more students for November achieve lower progress on average. This likely reflects a drop in motivation for those who don’t pass the November exams.
There’s a host of clear recommendations in the report for both policy makers and also schools. Examples include:
Introduce a 16–19 Student Premium to close the disadvantage gap through targeted funding.
Prioritise strong student-staff relationships at the start of term, particularly for resit students who may have previously struggled with English or maths.
Refine institution performance metrics by accounting for students’ overall Key Stage 4 (GCSE) attainment when measuring 16–19 English and maths progress, providing a fairer assessment of how effectively institutions deliver resits.
More men in care:
Why it matters at home and across the Early Years
[Young; 2025]
Over the last year, I’ve had the privilege of working alongside Charly Young as part of our Innovation Award journey with the Fair Education Alliance.
(Picture of Charly with her bundle of joy!)
Her leadership, insight, and deep commitment to reimagining early childhood care is infectious and you can get a glimpse of it in this FEA blog!
Charly, founder of The Early Years Movement, shares her thoughts on why we need more men across the Early Years (and other phases)
If you’ve ever heard her speak, you’ll know that she gives a compelling case for why more men should be involved in caregiving, both in homes and in the early years workforce.
With fewer than 3% of early years educators in the UK identifying as male, children are largely exposed to caring as a gendered, female-coded role.
Charly’s blog is well worth reading, not just because it’s well written and rooted in lived experience, but because it challenges us to reconsider how we value care, who we expect to provide it, and how we might reimagine its place in both our homes and wider society.
I’d also add that this is vital for children and families facing poverty and inequality.
Thanks to the FEA for another fantastic member blog!
Childhood Maternal Warmth, Social Safety Schemas, and Adolescent Mental and Physical Health
[Alley et al; University of California, 2025]
This recent study from UCLA Health caught my eye and I think it’s useful for anyone interested in tackling educational disadvantage and getting across the importance of early help too.
Drawing on data from over 8,500 children in the UK’s Millennium Cohort Study, researchers tracked children from age 3 to 17.
At age 3, mothers’ warmth was assessed based on positive behaviours such as praise, affectionate tone, and caring interactions.
Later, at age 14, the children’s perceptions of ‘social safety’ were measured (e.g. how safe, supported, and accepted they felt by family and friends)
At age 17, the study examined their physical health, psychiatric problems, and psychological distress.
Children who experienced higher maternal warmth at age 3 developed stronger social safety schemas by age 14.
Positive social safety perceptions at 14 predicted better health outcomes at 17: fewer physical health issues, lower psychological distress, and fewer psychiatric problems.
The study found that social safety schemas explained links between maternal warmth and adolescent mental health, highlighting the importance of children’s internal sense of social security.
This study provides more evidence that nurturing, warm caregiving early in life helps build resilience by shaping young people’s beliefs about social inclusion and safety.
For educators and practitioners working to reduce inequality, I think it also highlights the critical importance of positive, supportive relationships; not only in families but also within schools and communities.
Education leader, Laura McPhee, has written an excellent chapter on developing this early on for families and children through early help. You can find it in our co-authored book Tackling Poverty and Disadvantage in Schools.
Open or closed?
The classroom door debate
[Tait; SecEd, 2025]
Jon is not only a good pal but an excellent communicator.
He regularly helps me reflect on the pedagogical implications of the work I do on inequality. His writing often sharpens my thinking, and this latest piece in SecEd is another good example.
This one will be of interest to classroom based practitioners especially.
Jon explores a simple but symbolic and practical question: should teachers keep their classroom doors open or closed?
Photo by Zulian Firmansyah on Unsplash He traces how closed doors have sometimes provided teachers with privacy, autonomy, and a space for uninterrupted innovation; shielding practice from scrutiny but also unintentionally isolating teachers from peer learning.
But shifts toward open-door teaching can promote transparency, professional dialogue, and collaboration.
On the topic of understanding and developing shared ideas around inequality, I also think it can be helpful for teachers and support staff to adopt this practice.
Whether your door stands open as a beacon of inclusive education or closed as a protective shield against distraction, the key lies in being intentional with your decision.
Jon Tait
Opportunities
🛏️ Pleazzzzzzzze help us to tackle sleep poverty!
Regular readers will know that Tees Valley Education has partnered with Zarach and The Sleep Charity, working to address sleep inequalities across Teesside.
Thanks to generous support from the National Lottery Community Fund, our collaboration is growing in both reach and impact.
This summer, our partners at Zarach are launching a vital campaign to boost resources and help us collectively support more children and households through the school holidays.
Every child deserves to start the school year rested, confident, and ready to learn.
But for too many families, a bed is a luxury they simply can’t afford, leaving children facing six long weeks without proper sleep, support, or space to recover.
That’s why our friends at Zarach are urgently raising funds to provide beds to children before September.
With match funding in place, every £4,000 raised will be boosted by an additional £1,000.
The video below explains more about the campaign
Find out more about the campaign and how you can support here.
♀️💷 Smash the gap with us!
The gender pay gap remains a shocking and growing issue in education and many other sectors.
Join WomenEd, The BAMEed Network, Heads Roundtable, and the Confederation of School Trusts for a free online webinar on 29 September to explore further.
Guests will get an opportunity to hear from an expert panel, including Helena Marsh, Heather Daulphin, Christalla Jamil, and Vivienne Porritt OBE, who will share insights and strategies to drive meaningful change.
This is a valuable opportunity for anyone committed to equality and fairness in the workplace.
As part of the #HeForShe movement, I highly recommend it!
🎙️Be my guest
Don’t just read my Substack, be a part of it too!
Recently I’ve featured some guests on my Subtack. I’ve noticed these seem to get plenty of hits. in case you missed it, David Cameron did a great post last week!
So, if you fancy being a guest and adding some wisdom please do let me know.
I’m keen to schedule some for the next academic year.
Just drop me an email with your pitch or ideas