News story: Foreign Secretary expresses concern over UK national denied entry to Hong Kong

Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said:

I am very concerned that a UK national has been denied entry to Hong Kong. The British Government will be seeking an urgent explanation from the Hong Kong authorities and from the Chinese Government.

Hong Kong’s high degree of autonomy, and its rights and freedoms, are central to its way of life and should be fully respected.

Follow the Foreign Secretary on Twitter @BorisJohnson

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News story: Thirty-two academy leaders elected to help schools thrive

The names of 32 academy leaders elected to help shape the future of schools in their local areas, have been announced today (11 October) by the Department for Education.

The leaders – who were elected by their peers across the country – were chosen because they have the right experience and local knowledge to take on this important role. They will each join one of the eight regional Headteacher Boards across England. The boards provide support to the Regional Schools Commissioners in those areas as they work to provide effective oversight of local schools and advise the National Schools Commissioner, Sir David Carter and the government.

Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for the School System, Sir Theodore Agnew, said:

Headteacher Boards have already shown they can provide invaluable support in improving the education of pupils across England and I’d like to thank everyone who has played an important role so far.

The local expertise and wisdom of the newly elected members will be vital in helping schools continue to flourish and I look forward to working with them in my new role.

The newly elected members will build on the successes of the previous Headteacher Boards, which have been in place since July 2014 when the role of Regional Schools Commissioner was created. The Headteacher Boards have already helped a growing number of academies to share expertise with neighbouring schools and within multi-academy trusts, driving improvement for thousands of pupils.

Two additional board members will be appointed by each Regional Schools Commissioner, and the board will be able to appoint further members to fill skills or expertise gaps in the future. Those elected to Headteacher Boards do not have decision-making powers, but provide local expertise to inform the decisions of National and Regional Schools Commissioners and ministers.

National Schools Commissioner, Sir David Carter, said:

Over the last three years the expertise of Headteacher Boards has been so important in helping to create a self-managing and ever-improving education system.

I know from personal experience how much Headteacher Boards help inform decisions and I’m looking forward to working with the newly-elected members to help make our school system even better.

The academy leaders elected to the Headteacher Boards, assuming the position on 1 November 2017, are:

Regional Schools Commissioner (region) Elected member (school)
Janet Renou (north of England) Zoe Carr (WISE Academies), Chris Clarke (Lunesdale Learning Trust), Nick Hurn (Trinity Catholic Trust), Lesley Powell (North East Learning Trust)
Vicky Beer (Lancashire and west Yorkshire) Julie Bradley (Tauheedul Education Trust), Karen Bramwell (Forward As One Church of England Multi Academy Trust), Royston Halford (The Rowan Learning Trust), Duncan Jacques (Exceed Academies Trust)
John Edwards (East Midlands and the Humber) Peter Bell (Community Inclusive Trust), Anne Martin (QEGSMAT), Roisin Paul (Chorus Education Trust), Paul Stone (Discovery Schools Academy Trust)
Christine Quinn (west Midlands) Dame Mo Brennan (Matrix Academy Trust), Mike Donoghue (John Taylor MAT), Sinead Smith (Holy Spirit Catholic Multi Academy), Margaret Yates (All Saints Catholic Collegiate)
Lisa Mannall (south-west England) Sally Apps (Cabot Learning Federation), Suzanne Flack (The Redstart Learning Partnership), Paul Jones (Retired from First Federation Trust Academy), Steve Savory (Gloucestershire Learning Alliance)
Sue Baldwin (north-east London and east of England) Brian Conway (St. John the Baptist Catholic MAT), Caroline Derbyshire (Saffron Academy Trust), Karen Kerridge (Benflet Schools Trust), Nardeep Sharma (Thrive Partnership Academy Trust)
Martin Post (north-west London and south central England Sarah Bennett (Inspiring Futures Through Learning), Dame Sue Bourne (Retired from The Avenue School – Special Needs Academy Trust), Tom Rees (Northampton Primary Academy Trust), Claire Robins (Sir John Lawes Academies Trust)
Dominic Herrington (south London and south-east England) Sir Andrew Carter (South Farnham Educational Trust), Jon Chaloner (GLF Schools), Paula Farrow (Nexus Education Schools Trust), Justin Smith (The Primary First Trust)

Further information:

  1. The electorate was made up of all academies in England open on 1 June 2017. Each senior leader was only able to vote in the election for the Headteacher Board covering the region in which their academy is located.
  2. The elections used a first-past-the-post system with conditions to ensure that at least one primary head and one secondary head is represented and to ensure that no more than one head per single academy chain is elected onto each board.
  3. Candidates for the elected positions must either: • currently be serving as a headteacher of an academy rated by Ofsted as ‘outstanding’ overall with ‘outstanding’ leadership and management or • currently be serving as a headteacher of an academy rated by Ofsted as ‘good’ overall with ‘outstanding’ leadership and management or • have (within five years of 1 June 2017) served as a headteacher of an academy which met either of the first two criteria above at the time of your departure, and is now serving as a Senior Executive Leader* (SEL). [*A Senior Executive Leader (SEL) is defined in the Academies financial handbook 2016]



Press release: Drivers warned to look out for deer crossing roads this Autumn

For the second year running, Highways England and The Deer Initiative have joined forces to warn motorists about the heightened risk of deer-vehicle collisions during the autumn.

Across the UK it is estimated that there could be up to 74,000 deer-related motor vehicle accidents this year alone, resulting in 400 to 700 human injuries and 20 deaths.

October through to December is considered a high-risk period as deer will be on the move for the autumn mating season, also known as the rut. The highest risk of a deer-vehicle collision is between sunset and midnight, and the hours shortly before and after sunrise.

Senior principle environmental advisor at Highways England, Tony Sangwine said:

Safety is our top priority, which is why we care about people’s journeys. We are working with The Deer Initiative to warn motorists about the risks caused by deer, when they suddenly appear on the road, particularly at both dawn and dusk.

With most deer movement coinciding with key commuting hours, we are urging drivers to be more aware during this time of year so that they can complete their journeys safely and without incident.

With some 2 million deer living wild in the UK, newly qualified and city drivers are asked to take extra precaution when venturing onto unfamiliar roads, especially those in more rural areas.

Highways England’s advice on staying safe is:

  • when you see deer warning signs or are travelling through a heavily wooded or forested stretch of road, check your speed and stay alert
  • if your headlights are on, use full-beams when you can; but dip them if you see deer, as they may ‘freeze’
  • more deer may follow the first one you see
  • be prepared to stop – try not to suddenly swerve to avoid a deer. Hitting oncoming traffic or another obstacle could be even worse
  • if you have to stop, use your hazard warning lights
  • do not approach an injured deer – it could be dangerous

Deer Aware will be running a safety campaign on social media for drivers throughout October and into November. Drivers are encouraged to follow DeerAware on twitter or facebook, or [visit their website] (http://www.deeraware.com) for hotspot notifications during this period.

If you are involved in a deer vehicle collision and require assistance please contact the police. If you need to report a deer vehicle collision or to find out more on safety advice please [visit the deer aware website.] (http://www.deeraware.com. The website exists to offer basic advice on how to avoid a collision and to collect data on the number of accidents.

Our research is the only national effort to collect data that could be used to save lives – the information you submit is an essential part of this important effort.

Issued jointly by the Deer Initiative and Highways England

General enquiries

Members of the public should contact the Highways England customer contact centre on 0300 123 5000.

Media enquiries

Journalists should contact the Highways England press office on 0844 693 1448 and use the menu to speak to the most appropriate press officer.




News story: New return on investment tool on musculoskeletal conditions

Public Health England (PHE) today (11 October 2017) launched its latest return on investment (RoI) tool, this time helping local commissioners decide the best approach to preventing musculoskeletal conditions (MSK) within their populations.

RoI assessments can be made at local authority, clinical commissioning group, or sustainability and transformation partnerships level, helping commissioners make the economic case for prevention.

PHE commissioned the York Health Economics consortium to develop the tool. The different approaches to addressing MSK were chosen following a literature review and in consultation with an expert steering group.

Among the approaches are:

  • ESCAPE-pain, an exercise-based rehabilitation program for knee pain, which would return £5.20 in healthcare savings for every £1 spent
  • cognitive behavioural therapy including exercise for back pain, which would see £7.52 in both healthcare savings and quality of life year gains returned for every £1 spent
  • vocational advice from physiotherapists in primary care for all MSK conditions, which would return £11.14 in healthcare savings, quality of life year and productivity gains for every £1 spent

Duncan Selbie, PHE’s chief executive, said:

The main way in which the NHS operates – you get ill, it fixes you – is unsustainable. People will have to take more responsibility for their own health and the NHS should intervene much earlier to help people avoid the need for expensive care. Bad backs and joints cause the most sick leave at work and using this resource will both help to get people back into work, reduce pressure on the NHS and boost the local economy.

Low back and neck pain is the leading cause of morbidity, as laid out in our Health Profile for England. Its impact is 3 times bigger than the second place condition, skin diseases. In 2014 to 2015, 9.5 million sick days were claimed because of MSK conditions. This represents 40% of all days lost due to work-related ill health and 33% of long-term sickness absence in England is due to MSK conditions.

Reducing the burden of MSK on local populations is an important step to getting people back to work, boosting the local economy and also lowering the future demand on health and social care budgets.

It is the latest tool from PHE’s health economists underlining why investment in prevention is important to long term health of the population and long term sustainability of the NHS. At the end of August, PHE published an ROI tool for mental health interventions, including a school anti-bullying programme and social and emotional learning for children.

A suite of tools have already been published, with ones on falls prevention and Best Start in Life in the pipeline.




Press release: Nuclear Safeguards Bill introduced today

  • Equivalent high standards of Euratom to be maintained

The UK will establish a domestic nuclear safeguards regime under measures contained in the Nuclear Safeguards Bill, introduced to Parliament today (Wednesday 11 October).

As set out by Business Secretary Greg Clark on 14 September 2017, the government is committed to a domestic nuclear safeguards regime which will deliver to existing European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom) standards, exceeding those required by the wider international community.

The Bill, first announced in the Queen’s Speech, will bolster the roles and responsibilities of the UK’s existing nuclear regulator, the Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR), once the UK leaves Euratom.

The UK will continue to be a member of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and work is ongoing on new agreements with international parties to ensure it continues to meet relevant international standards.

Energy Minister Richard Harrington said:

The Nuclear Safeguards Bill will help secure the future of the UK’s nuclear industry and high standards of nuclear safety and safeguards once we leave Euratom.

We are bringing forward the UK’s first new nuclear power plants in a generation and it is in our mutual benefit to maintain the successful working relationship we have now with Europe, and the rest of the world, on nuclear matters. This is what we will be looking to secure in negotiations with our partners.

Nuclear safeguards are processes which allow countries to show to the international community that civil nuclear material is used for peaceful purposes.

The UK will withdraw from Euratom in 2019 as a result of the decision to leave the EU and the Nuclear Safeguards Bill will ensure that the UK has the right regime in place for the ONR to regulate nuclear safeguards.