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Platform 3 pilot evaluation
The Communication Trust support everyone who works with children and young people in England to support their speech, language and communication. Their work focuses on supporting children and young people who struggle to communicate because they have speech, language and communication needs (SLCN) as well as supporting all children and young people to communicate to…
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A history of baccalaureates and diplomas
Although their history stretches back more than two centuries in some European countries, baccalaureates are a relatively recent innovation within the English education system. Our attempts to move away from separate ‘academic’ and ‘vocational’ routes to a single, broad-based curriculum can be traced back at least thirty years. Yet three substantial reviews of post-16 qualifications…
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The inner city success story: how diverse urban schools lead the pack
This is an extended version of an article I wrote for the New Statesman, based on analysis I conducted for LKMco. New analysis of data from the ONS and the Department for Education reveals that educational outcomes vary considerably between different types of area. Pupils attending schools in ethnically mixed, often deprived inner city locations…
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The alternative should not be inferior: What now for ‘pushed out’ learners?
The latest Department for Education statistics reveal that only 1% of pupils in ‘alternative provision’ and PRUs (pupil referral units) achieved five good GCSEs in 2013-14. Furthermore, of those entered for a GCSE in Maths or English, only one in ten achieved a C or above. This report, co-authored for Inclusion Trust with my colleague…
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The history of league tables
School performance tables have become such a central part of the education system it is hard to imagine a world without them. However, league tables did not materialise until the early 1990s. Well into the 80s the school system was seen by many as a ‘secret garden’ in which outcomes were neither measured nor communicated. Fast-forward…
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Wythenshawe: the story of a garden city
My first film Wythenshawe: The story of a garden city revisits the neighbourhood where I spent two years researching young people’s aspirations. The film explores the garden cities movement, Wythenshawe’s development over the last 100 years, and what life is like for young people there today.
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How young people’s occupational aspirations are shaped by the areas they live in
During the course of the last decade successive governments in the UK have placed young people’s aspirations at the core of their attempts to address poor outcomes within the education system and the labour market. An area-based approach to policy has come to the fore which links ‘low aspirations’ with particular community- and neighbourhood-level factors,…
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Sustainable transitions from education to employment
Sandwell Council recently announced the Sandwell Guarantee, which aims to help up to 4000 young people aged 16-24 who are currently on benefits or NEET to find paid jobs, apprenticeships, internships or work experience with local businesses. Sandwell’s scheme demonstrates the central role local authorities can play in supporting young people’s transitions from education to…
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Lessons from London schools: investigating the success
Informed commentators both in the UK and internationally increasingly reference the remarkable improvement journey of London’s schools since the turn of the century. If the claims made for educational improvement in London are true they represent an important case study in urban school reform. This report, co-authored with Centre for London, CfBT and colleagues at…
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The levers of local economic development
In May 2014 I published a report on the levers of local economic development, as part of the Need to Know series commissioned by the Local Government Knowledge Navigator. I also discussed my main findings in an article for the Guardian. The report explores the existing knowledge base on the levers of local economic development by assessing the…