PM names head of school pandemic catch-up plan
- Published
The prime minister has announced an "education recovery commissioner" to oversee how England's schools can catch up from the disruption of the pandemic.
This will be Sir Kevan Collins, until recently head of the Education Endowment Foundation, which examines evidence for what works in education.
He will have to develop a "a long-term plan" for helping pupils make up for lost learning.
Boris Johnson said "no child will be left behind" because of the pandemic.
The announcement says getting education back on track and fully opening schools is a "national priority".
Sir Kevan has had a long career in education, a former teacher who went on to be the director of children's services and chief executive of Tower Hamlets, east London.
As Education Endowment Foundation chief executive, he ran an organisation that tested ideas for raising achievement, with the aim of breaking the link between deprivation and poor outcomes in school.
He will now oversee efforts to help schools recover from the disruption of the pandemic and lockdowns, which has seen pupils studying from home and exams cancelled over two academic years.
'Top priority'
"School closures have had a huge impact on children's learning," says the announcement from Downing Street and the Department for Education.
Sir Kevan will lead an effort to help children "make up their learning over the course of this Parliament".
"Our top priority is to get schools open again," Mr Johnson said.
"Once they are, we will make sure that teachers and students are equipped with the resources and the time they need to make up for lost learning."
Tutoring services
England's Education Secretary, Gavin Williamson, said Sir Kevan would be a "tremendous asset to those young people, their families, and everyone working in education, who have my lasting gratitude for their efforts to support young people throughout the pandemic".
Catch-up funding of 拢1bn has been announced, including subsidies for tutoring services.
Ofsted, England's education watchdog, has warned of a "significant" loss of learning during the pandemic, particularly affecting the disadvantaged.
A study from the National Foundation for Educational Research found primary-school reading and maths levels were below where they had been three years ago.