A group of MPs has recommended that governments should develop five-year spending plans to allow Whitehall departments to develop more long-term budget planning. The political and constitutional reform committee said moving to five-year budgeting, rather than the current three-year spending reviews, would dovetail with the cycle of fixed-term parliaments and general elections and counter the tendency to short termism in policy setting.
More than 100 schools in England that were previously rated "outstanding" by Ofsted have lost their top rankings since changes to the system. The BBC reports that the schools lost their rating after being reinspected since September. Out of 155 schools inspected since last September which had previously been rated outstanding overall, only 44 schools kept the ranking.
Numbers of children being permanently excluded from primary schools have risen, latest Department for Education figures show. The BBC reports that across England during 2011/12, a total of 690 pupils were excluded, 80 up on the previous year. Of the 690, a third were excluded for persistent disruptive behaviour, 200 for assaults on adults and 120 for attacking pupils. At secondary schools, 4,390 pupils were expelled, up 20 on the previous year.
Labour has developed a plan to improve school and community sport in light of the government “squandering” the Olympics legacy. It is calling for the creation of a 10-year national sports strategy that includes school sport; the reinstatement of the target for two hours of physical education per week for pupils; and a review of teacher training to ensure sport is a high priority, particularly at primary level.
The number of children smoking, drinking alcohol and trying drugs has fallen in the past decade, research has found. A survey of more than 7,500 pupils aged from 11 to 15 by the Health and Social Care Information Centre found 43 per cent had tried alcohol compared to 61 per cent in 2002. Those who had tried smoking dropped from 42 to 23 per cent over the decade, while 17 per cent had experimented with drugs compared to 27 per cent in 2002.
And finally, more than 80 per cent of children lie about their age when using social media such as Facebook, research has found. A survey by the Advertising Standards Authority found 83 per cent of 11- to 15-year-olds whose internet usage was monitored registered on a social media site with a false age. The Guardian reports that the advertising watchdog plans to raise the issue with social media companies.
