Schools bill will not go ahead in current form

The education secretary Gillian Keegan, who faced questions by the education committee for the first time, has said that the schools bill will not progress in its current form. Instead, certain parts of it would be prioritised.

These priorities include the bill’s proposal for a register of children not in school, and a law change needed to make it easier for faith schools to keep their status when joining academy trusts.

The schools Bill, which was launched in May, covered a range of areas including school attendance, safeguarding and new powers over multi-academy trusts.

Keegan said: "We do remain committed to the objectives and we will be prioritising some aspects of the bill to see what we can do.”