Derren Hayes

Figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show there were 739,000 young people aged 16-24 out of work in the October to December 2025 three-month period, up by 10,000 on the September to November three-month period. The current number of unemp... See more

In its response to the provisional local government finance settlement for 2026/27, the government confirmed 90% of councils’ high needs budget deficits accumulated up to the 2025/26 financial year would be written off. The move, it said, would protect co... See more

NASUWT – The Teachers’ Union says it should be a statutory requirement for pupils to lock away mobile phones and all other portable electronic devices for the whole school day in response to growing evidence on the harmful effects on classroom behaviour a... See more

When the children’s minister Josh MacAlister unveiled the government’s long‑awaited fostering reforms, foster carers across England were gathered in London for CoramBaaf’s Foster Carer Advisory Committee meeting. The timing was pure serendipity: a room fi... See more

The government is right to focus on the urgent shortage of foster carers in its package of reforms published last week. Children do best when they can grow up in stable family homes, ideally close to the people and communities that matter to them, and any... See more