The role secondary schools play in raising student aspirations for, and encouraging progression into, Higher Education through supported outreach is important but often overlooked by both colleges and universities alike. This article reports on our work within Uni Connect's 'Raising Higher Education Aspirations' programme in Lincolnshire which…

This research examines the impact of recent and anticipated changes in free school meal eligibility on state-funded mainstream schools in England. In particular, our research focuses on the extent to which both the pandemic and transitional arrangements introduced to smooth the roll out of Universal Credit are affecting free school meal…

The COVID-19 pandemic has had profound effects on education in both mainstream and special schools. Education in England was considerably disrupted during the 2020/1 and 2021/22 school years. There were two periods of partial school closure when most pupils stayed at home (March-May 2020 and January-March 2021). Schools were asked to prioritise…

The COVID-19 pandemic confronted practitioners with many challenges. For those of us working in early years and key stage 1, it also provided opportunities to sustain child-centred and play-based approaches to learning for longer than is usually the case. This reflective article draws on direct experience to argue for the importance of such…

While there has been considerable interest in the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and school closures on children, with so-called "learning loss" a particularly salient concern (Kuhfeld & Tarasawa, 2020; DfE, 2021; Weidmann et al., 2021, p.9), rather less attention has focused on the wellbeing of teachers and school leaders.…

This article reflects the viewpoint of two teachers from two different schools during the pandemic of 2020/21. It outlines the difficulties and differences faced by individual settings and also the achievements. Teaching in this time involved a considerable amount of uncertainty and also the need to adapt quickly to the changing environment whilst…

This article analyses the strategies of the four United Kingdom (UK) nations to mitigate the impacts of primary school closures and the shift to remote learning due to the outbreak of the Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. A theoretical framework based on a combination of the field literature of strategy and public value was developed to…

A small-scale study investigated the role of SENCos in England immediately prior to, during and following the first closure of schools nationally in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. A mixed-methods research strategy comprising semi-structured interviews and a national online survey generated data related to SENCos' involvement in strategic…

This paper explores the way in which the Modern Languages team at the Oxford University Language Centre (OULC) sought to embrace the challenges of switching to a remote mode of teaching in the third term of 2019-20 as an opportunity to develop new ways of designing and delivering language courses for a flexible and hybrid future. It seeks to make…

Given the recruitment and retention crisis within the teaching profession, it is essential that the factors contributing to this are examined. Studies suggest that there has been a general decline in teacher wellbeing since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, and student conduct problems are known to be a key negative contributor to poor teacher…

This study examines how distance learning, which took place during COVID-19 restrictions, influenced the attitudes of primary education trainee teachers in Türkiye and England towards inclusive education for students with special educational needs and disabilities. In total, 136 Turkish, and 25 English primary trainee teachers completed the TAIS…

The COVID-19 pandemic has created unprecedented challenges for social research. However, little is known about the impact of social distancing measures on research with hard-to-reach populations. This paper provides methodological reflections on the efficacy of socially distanced recruitment and interviewing methods for research with disabled…

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in school closures worldwide and unexcused absences have increased since schools reopened. Aims: Drawing on multiple stakeholders' perspectives, we aimed to (i) develop a detailed understanding of how school attendance problems (SAPs) have manifested for primary school-aged children in the context of…

The COVID-19 pandemic brought seismic changes to children and families, with schools at the forefront of the daily battle to maintain learning. We report on our reflexive thematic analysis of data collected with 28 participants in 14 schools in England during the summer of 2021, following two extensive national lockdowns, and two transition points…

The closure of school buildings due to COVID-19 created a challenge for parents and teachers supporting children's remote learning. This paper presents findings of a study that explored whether parents of children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) experienced an unusually challenging period and what obstacles they faced. An…