November 2008 news

Welcome to Dean Associates’ run-down of the top education stories over the past month.

End of SATs for 14 year olds

The government’s decision to scrap official testing of 14-year-olds in England - the Key Stage 3 SATs - has been generally welcomed by the education community. It has also increased calls to scrap the tests that 11-year-olds take in the final year of primary school – one of the key statistics parents can use to evaluate school performance. Read more:

Scottish independent schools charity status questioned

Four Scottish independent schools have been told that they must implement changes to maintain their charitable status. The majority of private schools across the UK have charitable status, giving them significant tax advantages – but in return they must provide a wider public benefit. The decision will generate new calls to make private schools across the UK work harder to hold onto their charitable position. Read more:

Recession threatens prep schools

A leading conference of prep (junior, private) school headmasters has discussed the likelihood that a number of smaller schools will be forced to close or merge during the up-coming recession as parents face a financial squeeze. Read more:

"Chaos" in schools admissions

Over half of primary schools have been accused of not following the new schools admissions code that the government introduced last year. Some of the “mistakes” have included not giving priority to children in social care, interviewing parents, asking for a financial contribution and not defining “distance from school to home” precisely. It could mean much closer inspection of this year's admissions process. Read more:

Big changes planned for universities

The government are suggesting a series of major reforms for the higher education sector – including changing the traditional academic year, reforming degree classification and allowing more flexibility in studies. An initial report has been released to encourage debate prior to a review of “top up” fees due next year.
Read more:

Schools now offering the Cambridge Pre-U

The first wave of schools has begun teaching the new Cambridge Pre-U qualification. There are now fifty schools – independent and state – offering the qualification. The Pre U can be taken as individual subjects or as a diploma – three subjects, independent research and a series of seminars of practical problems facing the world. It has been developed in response to universities’ doubts over the rigour of the English A Level system.

Dean Associates news

Dean Associates has been recognised by BP for the value of its education support to their relocating families.

We are preparing a new “parents newsletter” to keep the families up-to-date with key education news and deadlines, as well as top stories from their home countries that could impact on future relocations.

We are pleased to announce the arrival of Sarah Heaton at Dean Associates. Sarah is an expert on nurseries and state schooling.

For more information, contact Nathaniel Price at nathaniel@deanassociates.co.uk or +44 1646 661 646.