The Know Daily - Monday 10 February 2025

_{Read in 4m 41s ∙ Listening to Lady Gaga ∙}

Restoration efforts are helping raptors thrive in the Scottish Highlands, according to a recent report. A tagging and monitoring programme by conservation organisation WildLand Cairngorm has led to better protection and increased numbers of 3 native species.

🏫 Making the grade

Education inspectors Ofsted are planning to overhaul the scoring system of schools and other learning centres.

Hold up. What’s Ofsted?
The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (Ofsted) inspect education and social care providers – like nurseries, schools, colleges and childminders –  throughout the UK to ensure they meet required standards. Parents and guardians may be familiar with the current 4-grade rating system of “outstanding” through to “inadequate”.

What are the new plans?
After a consultation with parents, carers and professionals over the coming months, the Ofsted grading system may be replaced by report cards later this year, with £6.2m support from the government. The proposed 5-point colour coded system will give better praise and more detailed guidance for improvement, rather than a single overall grade. It will assess multiple factors – like curriculum, leadership, attendance and inclusion – and be tailored to the phase of education. Learning providers with identified weakness will then receive more support to raise standards. In particular, there will be a focus on support for learners with additional needs. Ofsted’s chief inspector said the new system will be “far better balanced, more realistic and fairer”.

What’s the response been?
The general secretaries of multiple education unions have said that this will still “hold on to a model of inspection that is long past its sell-by date” and more still needs to be done to safeguard the wellbeing of teachers and headteachers receiving the scores.

However, trials of the report cards have already taken place and been met with an “overwhelmingly positive” response, according to Ofsted’s director for education. Plus, the new detailed guidance on improving standards has been welcomed by parents and carers as they are better able to engage with what this means for their families.

💰 Money Monday: The Bank of England cut interest rates from 4.75% to 4.5% last week – here’s what it means for mortgages and savings.

🐸 Animal crossing: Charlcombe Lane, near Bath, will shut for 6 weeks to allow thousands of toads, frogs, and newts to safely reach their breeding grounds.

🗣️ Talking tech: Government and tech leaders are in Paris for a “highly anticipated” 2-day artificial intelligence summit – here’s everything you need to know.

🎥 Film’s best: The Critics Choice Awards took place this weekend – these are the films that had big wins.

🚜 Tractor rally: British farmers are holding another protest at Whitehall against inheritance tax changes today.

☕ Long blacks: Move aside nitro cold brews, there’s a new coffee trend in town.

🔗 Last week’s most clicked: The fastest growing jobs of 2025, hygge desks and our new fave female-founded brand.

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Trivia answer: A) Black Sabbath received the award.

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