Support for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities in England
Published on:This report assesses how well pupils with special educational needs and disabilities are being supported.
This report assesses how well pupils with special educational needs and disabilities are being supported.
This is the first year in which the Department for Education (the Department) has produced Academy Sector Accounts which consolidate the results of the 3,013 academy trusts that were open during the year ended 31 August 2016.
Schools, especially secondary schools, face real challenges in retaining and developing their teachers. National data suggest progress but mask significant local variation.
Head of the National Audit Office Sir John Bourn today reported to Parliament that fraudulent and other irregular payments made under the Individual Learning Accounts (ILA) scheme had been estimated as likely to total some £97 million. As a result he has qualified his audit opinion on the Department for Education and Skill’s Resource Account […]
When measuring the performance of maintained schools in improving the academic achievements of their pupils, the Department for Education and Skills should take account of newly available data on the academic achievements of the pupils in earlier stages of their education and on aspects of their economic, social and cultural backgrounds. This recommendation appears in […]
Sir John Bourn, the Head of the NAO, reported to Parliament today that there has been progress in capturing for the nation more of the economic and social benefits of scientific research funded by the taxpayer. Commercialisation can range from making research outputs available to all, free of charge, to forming companies to develop innovative […]
Young people are making complex choices about higher education without much effective help and advice, and the institutions concerned are under very little competitive pressure to provide best value.
Student achievement rates in English higher education institutions have remained high during a period of considerable expansion of student numbers, although rates vary widely between institutions. The higher education sector will have to recruit and retain more students from hitherto poorly represented social groups and help them to succeed if the government’s learning targets are […]
The innovative Individual Learning Accounts (ILA) scheme was aimed at widening participation in learning and helping to overcome financial barriers faced by learners, particularly amongst those who lack skills and qualifications. The scheme, which subsidised the costs of appropriate courses, was implemented too quickly and inadequately planned. The Department for Education and Skills had no […]
Head of the National Audit Office Sir John Bourn today reported that he had qualified his audit opinion on the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority accounts for the second year running. Legal restrictions had again prevented him from being able to verify the amount of licence fee income due from clinics but not invoiced by […]
Sir John Bourn, head of the National Audit Office, reported today that the Local Improvement Finance Trust (LIFT) initiative, launched in 2001, is an effective means of improving primary health and social care. The LIFT model has a number of strengths: it takes a long term strategic approach to local health provision which combines the […]
The Department for Education and Employment took reasonable steps to mitigate the financial risks that were inherent in the new Education Action Zones programme, according to a National Audit Office report today. The report warns, however, that the DfEE and the zones must remain vigilant to avoid financial irregularities or improprieties which could detract from […]
This is our second report on the progress Defra has made in preparing for EU Exit.
The Department for Trade and Industry successfully transferred risk in the PFI contract to build and manage new facilities for the National Physical Laboratory and protected the taxpayer from bearing the majority of the costs of the project’s problems. Delays during the construction of the new facilities meant that the DTI did not secure the […]
Sir John Bourn, the Comptroller and Auditor General, reported to Parliament today that the financial health of the further education sector in England is improving but that 13% of colleges are still in poor financial health. He identified a number of key management practices, which are typical of colleges in good financial health and which […]
The head of the National Audit Office Sir John Bourn reported today on the Cambridge-MIT Institute (CMI). His report acknowledges the considerable potential and early success of CMI and identifies important lessons for departments on setting up and managing innovative ventures in the future. CMI, a company jointly owned by Cambridge University and the Massachusetts […]
Sir John Bourn, head of the National Audit Office, reported today that the Department for Education and Skills has made a good start to its long-term strategy to improve the levels of adult literacy and numeracy in England, but there are more challenges ahead. While the Skills for Life Strategy has met its 2004 target, […]
This report considers the value for money of the sale of student loans that entered repayment between 2002 & 2006.
The Department is exerting stronger oversight and sanctioning under-performing providers but there remain issues to resolve, such as more timely identification of underperformance and ineligible payments.