A day of unexpected appointments in government involved familiar faces coming and going at the Department for Education yesterday.
As prime minister Rishi Sunak’s reshuffle was underway on Monday, we had the big news that Nick Gibb was standing down as schools minister ahead of leaving Parliament altogether next year.
And the day ended with another surprise - former education secretary Damian Hinds is returning to Sanctuary Buildings to replace him.
Although Gibb has been seen as an ever-present in this role since 2010, the post of schools minister has now actually changed hands five times in a little over two years - mostly as a result of political turmoil for the government.
Hinds was appointed education secretary in January 2018 under then prime minister Theresa May, and was replaced by Gavin Williamson in July 2019 in Boris Johnson’s first cabinet.
In Gibb’s absence, and following various changes to the ministerial team, the return of Hinds provides the government with experience not only of the department but also of key policy issues that remain pressing today.
So what can the schools sector expect from Hinds in his new ministerial role?
Key challenges for Damian Hinds
Teacher recruitment and retention
The government’s 2019 teacher recruitment and retention strategy was launched by Hinds - and sector leaders hope this will allow him to get to grips with the issue quickly at a time when the department is planning to relaunch the strategy.
“The original work on teacher workload formed part of [Hinds’] regime,” says Emma Knights, joint chief executive of the National Governance Association.
She adds: “The fact that there is currently the taskforce on this is really fortuitous because he has some understanding of this issue.
“It’s a big plus to have someone back in the department who cares about this issue and knows about the background. For him to pick that back up again will be really important - I imagine that will be one of the things he will be thinking about.”
Sir Dan Moynihan, chief executive of the Harris Federation, says Hinds deserves credit for his focus on recruitment and retention during his time as education secretary in 2018 and 2019.
“It’s hard to say ‘good work’ on recruitment or retention, given how things are [now], but he wasn’t there for long. And I think what he did was well received,” he says.
An interview that Hinds gave with Public First director Ed Dorrell last year suggests he also sees reducing teacher workload as unfinished business.
He is quoted in the Public First report as saying: “It was gratifying to see that after years of seeing in the workforce survey that reported [hours were] going up and up and up, they have finally come down in quite a dramatic fashion....It was frustrating that that data only came out after I had left office. There’s always work to be done on workload.”
Early career teacher support
Jon Andrews, head of analysis for the Education Policy Institute think tank, highlights how Hinds launched the Early Career Framework with an entitlement to a funded two-year support package for new teachers.
Progress in achieving the goals of this strategy was hampered by cuts to many of these financial incentives during the pandemic, says Andrews, who also warns that more still needs to be done to address the recruitment and retention challenges facing schools.
For Geoff Barton, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL), Hinds was the second education secretary he worked with following Justine Greening.
Barton says: “When he came in, the idea for the Early Career Framework had already been started by Justine Greening, but he did not have any ego about this.
“You might expect some politicians not to carry on with something if it is not their policy baby, but he recognised it was important and was the education secretary who launched it.”
Barton adds: “He was a politician who listened and who was persuadable.”
Hopes for Hinds to deliver ‘a change of tone’
The ASCL leader also points to changes that Hinds made to the accountability system in an attempt to reduce the burden on schools. Hinds stopped DfE visits to schools and changed the system so that only an “inadequate” judgement from Ofsted could trigger academisation.
“I hope that he recognises, when he comes in, that the profession needs a different tone from government and needs to be congratulated and thanked for the job they are doing in difficult circumstances,” Mr Barton says.
One criticism of Hinds’ time as education secretary was that he did not have a major policy reform agenda.
As one ex-DfE official tells Tes: “The thing about Damian Hinds as education secretary is no one can remember anything he did. There’s not such thing as Hinds-ism - there’s no lasting legacy.
“Critics will say he gets on with things far too quietly, whereas others will say it is refreshing to have peace and stability in the role.”
Barton points to Hinds’ work on the recruitment and retention strategy, the rollout of the ECF, and accountability changes.
Hinds showed “boldness behind the scenes” in not opposing the Ofsted Education Inspection Framework introduced during his time in office, in light of concerns from advisers about Ofsted’s decision to focus more on curriculum and less on exam and test scores, Barton adds.
Hinds and Keegan ‘will work together fine’
Ex-DfE insiders and sector leaders think the department will benefit from a minister who knows how it works.
Sir Dan says: “My experience of Damian Hinds is he has views, but he does listen carefully to what people say. And I found he was interested in what people had to say.
“It must be good that someone who has run the department and has knowledge of it is back in it, rather than somebody who has to learn.”
And one DfE former adviser says he expects Hinds to be able to work well alongside current education secretary Gillian Keegan.
The former official says: “I think they will work together fine, as I don’t think Gillian will see Damian as any challenge…One thing Gillian will probably be quite pleased about is that Damian Hinds has been a secretary of state and therefore the appetite, the ambition isn’t there to take over from her.
“The danger is that, once you were a secretary of state, you’re sitting there going, ‘Well this isn’t how I would be doing it.’”
T levels and the Advanced British Standard
Experts say one particularly challenging policy area will be the government’s plan to replace A levels and T levels with the Advanced British Standard.
Andrews recalls how Hinds had “placed great emphasis on the role of technical education and oversaw the development of T levels”.
He adds: “But he returns to a department now working on the development of the Advanced British Standard and another overhaul of post-16 qualifications that could cause further uncertainty and disruption for a sector only just adapting to the introduction of T levels, now set to be largely mothballed not long after they have been fully rolled out.”
Hinds urged to focus on funding and accountability
Leora Cruddas, chief executive of the Confederation of School Trusts, says that Hinds has a long-held interest in education from both his time on the Commons Education Select Committee and as secretary of state.
“We look forward to working with him again, alongside the whole ministerial team at the Department for Education, to ensure that school trusts have the support they need to deliver high-quality education for our children. This includes pressing issues around workforce, funding, accountability and how schools work with wider public services,” she adds.
Critics of Hinds may say that he was not a force for policy reform during his time as education secretary. “Entirely unremarkable” is how one former official sums it up.
And, with a general election due next year, scope for major reform may be limited.
However, Sir Dan says he would be “surprised” if Hinds “just bides time”. He adds: “I think he’s got some strong views...I’d be surprised if he doesn’t make some stuff happen.”
For now, it appears that some sector leaders are cautiously welcoming the return of a politician who arrives on day one with a knowledge of some of the challenges and issues facing the department and schools.
