Recorded 18th July 2024In this episode of Requires Improvement we are discussing the recent general election, how mock elections are done in schools, a review of the likely direction of travel for education policy under the new government, and ending with a righteous trashing of the Cass Report and some celebrations of recent local union fights. Ho…

Requires Improvement are back with a round-up of this year's NEU annual conference, the highlights (and low-lights) concerning democratic motions for industrial action on pay, support staff, international solidarity with Palestine and "New Professionals and Young Workers" - and more! Hosted by Nik alongside co-hosts Charlie and Anu, with a debut ap…

Requires Improvement return with a discussion on how to get Palestine on the agenda in schools, with additional topics including the DfE's latest school attendance campaign, and how things appear to be going from bad to worse for the government's favoured entry route into teaching "Teach First". Hosted by Nik alongside co-hosts Anu, Daisy and Lee.C…

As the 2022-2023 teacher's pay dispute against the UK government is concluded, the Requires Improvement team offer our reflections on what has been achieved through industrial action, what we need to do better for next time and what the future opportunities could be. We also take a look at Labour's plans for promoting "oracy" in schools alongside c…

Requires Improvement talk you through their recent experiences on the picket lines and what's been voted on at the 2023 NEU Annual Conference. We talk through the pay campaign strike escalation in response to the government's risible pay deal, the urgent motion on OFSTED, the new motion on support staff members: what this all means for trade union …

Requires Improvement return from their temporary ballot-hiatus to celebrate the huge recent ballot result of the premier education union in England and Wales, how everyone played their part in achieving it- and what we're thinking about as strikes are now planned in order to win the education funding dispute. Your co-hosts Lee, Nik, Charlie and Lau…

So it's back to school for all educators in September 2022 but all eyes are on the National Education Union and our forthcoming ballots of teaching staff and support staff - will the hot strike summer morph into a cool strike autumn? We certainly think so! Join your hosts Nik, Charlie, Lauren and Lee as they talk through how we're going to organize…

In this episode the Requires Improvement team are honoured to be joined by Dr. Ashok Kumar, senior lecturer in political economy at Birkbeck University. We use the recent UCU strikes as a jumping off point for a wide ranging discussion about privatization and neoliberal forces within the education sector, the importance of strategy in taking effect…

Despite the hectic times of late, your hosts Nik, Charlie, Lee and Tom found some spare minutes to kick off this episode with a swift round-up of everything we've been up to recently, before introducing our esteemed interview guest Vik Chechi-Ribeiro (@VikCR_) who is a Teacher of Science, union rep and organizer based in Manchester. We get into fin…

In this term 3 roundup your Requires Improvement hosts Nik, Anu, Lauren, Charlie and Lee offer you their thoughts on their recent experiences in state and prison education, how to take on your bullying bosses, why you should check out the Trojan Horse Affair Podcast and why "horseshoe theory" is not OK for children, or anyone else. Recorded on 18th…

In this seasonal episode of Requires Improvement, your hosts Lee, Nik, Lauren and Charlie reflect on how the ongoing pandemic is continuing to impact the education sector, discussing our experiences at work and the impact of illness, inadequate resourcing and mitigations on staff and students. We analyze the recent government proposals to invite ex…

We are honoured to be joined by journalist and ex-soldier Joe Glenton, as we consider the role of militarism in Britain and the UK education system. We draw upon themes in Joe's new book out this month entitled "Veteranhood: Rage and Hope in British Ex-Military Life", in a wide ranging discussion around how the military is presented in schools, the…

The Requires Improvement crew are BACK after a brief hiatus, and in our September-October episode we discuss the return to school, the latest shenanigans going on at Pimlico Academy, practical approaches to organising and self-care, sexism in schools and trying to fight for hope in the Prison Education system. Hosted by Anu, she is joined by co-hos…

In this July 2021 episode of Requires Improvement, we are joined by author and journalist Sarah Jaffe, as we discuss and explore the wider impact of work in our lives in response to Sarah's recent publication "Work Won't Love You Back", a book which comprehensively analyses and challenges the insidious ways in which workers are convinced that our j…

If you're already wondering what this episode is about: CAGs are centre-assessed-grades and TAGs are teacher-assessed grades, both of which constitute all the free labour teachers have just had to complete in order to rescue some qualification outcomes for the student cohort class of covid-19 (2021 edition). It's not been a great time in education …

We are thrilled to welcome lecturer, podcaster and thinker Jeremy Gilbert onto our show in order to talk about why exactly it is the government seems to hate educators. In a wide ranging discussion we seek to place UK education in its wider political context and history, what factors explain the atavism of the right against a truly equitable state …

It's been a while since we've been able to report in, and this has resulted in a bumper April episode where hosts Charlie, Nik, Anu, Lauren and Lee all take a look back over lockdown #3, going on to discuss the "big bang" re-opening of schools, behaviour hubs, student radicalisation, Kill the Bill protests, and ending with a focus on recent events …

In this episode of Requires Improvement, Co-hosts Tom and Lauren interview Andy Byrne, one of the committee members of Hammers United, a football fan club for West Ham. Andy speaks about the similar challenges fans face to educators and trade unionists when confronted with market forces, structural change and the need for ordinary people to have co…

After the chaos of another week being educators and union organizers on "Rainy Plague Island" in January 2021, the Requires Improvement team come together to reflect on school closures, remote learning, the failures of certain apparent allies in various political parties and unions to stand alongside us, and finally Gavin Williamson and OFSTED's fl…

As we draw 2020 to a close, Requires Improvement co-hosts Tom and Lee interview Muhammed Tamimi from the Hebron International Resource Network, as we discuss what conditions are like in the Occupied Territory of the West Bank, in particular HIRN's activities around school building and providing material support to the Palestinian people. We discuss…

In this episode of Requires Improvement hosts Charlie and Anu are joined by Lana Crosbie, who is a National Education Union rep and branch officer, and a member of No More Exclusions who are a campaigning network of educators and activists pushing for urgent reform to the UK education system. NME work with schools, students and communities in order…

In this November episode of Requires Improvement we offer some personal insights into what conditions are like in schools right now and how this is affecting staff, students and the wider community. We discuss Lee's story about catching COVID and ending up in hospital, whether schools can continue to be fully open, the apparently still-happening ex…

In this October edition of RI, co-hosts Charlie, Lauren and Lee take a broad situation report of the current state of the education system during the pandemic - what it's been like in the classroom, the problems that need urgently fixing. We are then joined for a guest interview with @tetrapod from twitter who joins us for a discussion about the la…

On this special livestream episode which is available on Youtube for a limited time at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3eVWedrC5gI&t=3256s Requires Improvement were honoured contributors to The World Transformed Online 2020 #twt20 for a classic round of consideration about what is happening and in need of reform in the current education system, wit…

In this simultaneously reflective and forward looking 1 year anniversary episode of Requires Improvement, we consider the current state of the education sector given the tumultuous events of the last six months both in UK politics and society at large. We start with a focus on the Labour Party and the sacking of shadow education secretary Rebecca L…

Following on from our last episode which looked at the history of the Society of Merchant Venturers and their role in promoting the legacy of slave trader Edward Colston, we bring our focus into the present by looking at how the Society of Merchant Venturers has expanded their influence into Bristol's State Education Sector. We discuss their manage…

In this episode of Requires Improvement we react to the recent historic events in Bristol involving the Black Lives Matter protest which saw the removal of a statue of Edward Colston in June 2020. These events have been of international significance and should prompt a deeper discussion and investigation of the slave trade's historical roots in Bri…

In this episode of Requires Improvement we have a full slate of RI co-hosts on board, with Lee as host he is joined by Anu, Charlie, Nick, Lauren and Tom. We discuss on the government's most recent decision to attempt a re-opening of Primary Schools from 1st June, the response from the National Education Union along with the health and safety impli…

In this 2nd quarantine episode of Requires Improvement your hosts Tom, Nick, Charlie, Lauren and Lee come together in a zoom call to discuss the recent media speculation as to when schools should re-open, the past and future of education policy in the Labour party, and what you can be doing to help build union power under lockdown.…

In the latest installment of Requires Improvement, Nick hosts our first episode under quarantine. What does the corona crisis mean for education? We discuss the weeks that led the UK government to announce school closures as well as the implications for teachers, parents, children and beyond. In addition, we'll be hearing what it's like to be an ed…

In this bumper episode of Requires Improvement we are treating you to a stacked lineup of guest interviews from March 2020's edition of Bristol Transformed. Just to briefly explain what Bristol Transformed is, it’s a three-day festival of politics and culture featuring guests from all over the UK and abroad, who gather in Bristol to discuss and deb…

Requires Improvement has returned for 2020 with hosts Lauren, Nick, Charlie and Lee as they take stock of the situation following the UK General Election of 2019. Some personal reflections on this important event are followed by requires improvement insights into school funding, sexism in vintage BBC history clips, the poor showing from the NASUWT …

In this special election episode of Requires Improvement hosts Tom, Charlie, Nick, Lauren and Lee delve into the newly released election manifestos of the Liberal Democrats, the Conservative Party and the Labour party. Evaluating the merits of various proposals and considering what they might mean for teachers, students and wider society is the nam…

004// Why be a school governor? Faith Schools, Election, Play as Pedagogy feat. VivianIn this episode the Requires Improvement hosts welcome our 2nd guest - Vivian talks to us about his experiences of being a Primary Governor and we expand the conversation to consider some of the debates around faith schools in the UK. In our inimitable fashion we …

003// Teaching in the Refugee Crisis, Green New Deal, Diversity, Experiences of an NQTIn this third episode of RI, with lead-host Lee, we are joined by our first guest Dr. Alex Collins for an interview about his experiences as a teacher and voluntary worker on the front lines of the refugee crisis in Athens, Greece. Hosts Lee, Charlie, Nick and Lau…

002 Requires Improvement - Conferences, 4 Day Week, OFSTED And Headteachers, Testing, Decolonising The CurriculumIn our sophomore episode of RI, with lead-host Charlie, we are joined by a new co-host Tom, along with Anu, Lauren, Lee and Nick from our first episode, to cast a critical eye over the hot current topics in education news, with an unasha…

In this debut episode of "Requires Improvement", a friendly bunch of classroom teachers, trade unionists and education activists based in Bristol cast a critical eye over the hot current topics in education news, with an unashamedly radical political outlook. In this week's episode, lead by Nick and joined by Charlie, Anu, Lauren and Lee, we cover …