Every Child Achieving and Thriving — What the New Education White Paper 2026 Means for Parents and Educators

The government's landmark education white paper sets out the biggest reforms in a generation. Here's what matters most, broken down by age group.

More Curricular · February 2026

In February 2026 the Department for Education published Every Child Achieving and Thriving, a white paper that resets the direction of English education from the early years right through to age 19. The ambition is to move from a system that was "narrow" and left too many children "sidelined" or "withdrawn," to one that is broad, inclusive and engaging.

Below we unpack the key commitments — first for families, then for educators — organised by

age and phase.

What the Education White Paper 2026 Means for Parents

A recurring theme of the white paper is that education does not begin and end at the school gates. The government wants to rebuild a genuine partnership between families and schools — with clear expectations on both sides, better information, and practical support for learning at home.

Early Years (Birth to 5)

• Best Start Family Hubs will replace and build on Sure Start Children's Centres, providing a single front door for healthcare, parenting advice, stay-and-play sessions, and guidance on supporting learning at home.

• Every Family Hub will have a dedicated SEND practitioner so parents can understand their child's development and get needs spotted early.

• A new Inclusive Early Years Fund will mean nurseries and childminders can no longer say they aren't equipped to support children with additional needs.

• Screen-use guidance for under-fives will be published by April 2026, with separate guidance coming for ages 5–16.

• A Childcare and Early Education Review aims to simplify the system and improve access — alongside the expansion of 30 hours funded childcare.

Primary (Ages 5–11)

• Free breakfast clubs in every primary school, designed to improve attendance, behaviour and readiness to learn regardless of family income.

• Ambitious targets: 75% of five-year-olds reaching a good level of development and 90% meeting the Year 1 phonics standard.

• A one-stop-shop of age-appropriate online support for parents covering learning at home, managing behaviour, sleep, screen time and online safety.

• Minimum expectations for home-to-school partnerships spelling out what schools must communicate to parents (attendance, progress, behaviour, events) and what's expected of families in return.

• An overhauled school complaints system with a new digital process, clearer timeframes, a published Parent's Guide to School Complaints, and stronger independence on complaints panels.

Secondary (Ages 11–16)

• A refreshed, broader National Curriculum from 2028 with stronger emphasis on oracy, critical thinking, media literacy, digital literacy and financial literacy alongside core academic subjects.

• A new enrichment entitlement so every child — not just those who can pay — gets access to arts and culture, sport, civic engagement, nature and outdoor activities, and wider life skills.

• Every young person should get two weeks of work experience during secondary education.

• New School Profiles will bring Ofsted report cards, attainment data, attendance figures and enrichment offers together in one accessible place for parents.

• A Pupil Engagement Framework will require schools to systematically measure children's sense of belonging, safety and motivation — with every school expected to do so by 2029.

• Individual Support Plans (ISPs) will become a statutory duty, replacing the current inconsistent approach to recording and monitoring SEND in mainstream schools.

Post-16 (Ages 16–19)

• New Level 1 "preparation for GCSE" qualifications in English and maths for students with grade 2 or below, plus 100 hours of teaching for those without a grade 4.

• Better careers guidance and pathways, with a target of two-thirds of young people in higher-level learning by age 25.

What the Education White Paper 2026 Means for Educators

The white paper positions teachers, leaders and support staff as the engine of change — and backs that with significant investment in recruitment, training, pay and the specialist support that wraps around schools.

Early Years Practitioners

• New funded partnerships between early years settings and schools to improve transitions, share pedagogy and jointly identify SEND.

• Additional funding through the Inclusive Early Years Fund to build confidence in meeting additional needs across all settings.

• Stronger links with health visitors and SEND teams through Best Start Family Hubs.

Primary Teachers & Leaders

• RISE (Regional Improvement for Standards and Excellence) universal support networks, including new Reception Networks and deepened partnerships with English Hubs and Maths Hubs.

• A new oracy framework for primary, plus a writing framework already published — embedding speaking, listening and writing as equal foundations alongside reading and numeracy.

• Over £200 million over three years for SEND CPD to ensure all teachers can confidently support children with additional needs in mainstream classrooms.

• A new Teacher Training Entitlement guaranteeing access to high-quality professional development throughout a career.

Secondary Teachers & Leaders

• A new RISE Key Stage 3 Alliance to give Years 7–9 proper priority rather than treating them as mere GCSE preparation.

• Improved Progress 8 requiring genuine breadth: English, maths, two science slots, at least two from languages/creative/humanities, plus wider choice — giving parity to creative subjects.

• New statutory Year 8 reading assessment and expectations around writing and oracy assessment.

• Behaviour and attendance hubs to spread best practice, with a target of 20 million more school days attended per year by 2028/29.

All Educators (Cross-Phase)

• 6,500 more expert teachers targeted at secondary schools, special schools and FE colleges.

• Improved maternity pay — full pay doubled to 8 weeks for teachers and leaders, with similar improvements sought for support staff.

• New mentoring and coaching offer for headteachers and a place-based Headteacher Retention Incentive.

• £1.6 billion Inclusive Mainstream Fund over three years plus £1.8 billion Experts at Hand — speech and language therapists, educational psychologists and other professionals working directly in mainstream schools.

• A statutory duty to record SEND in Individual Support Plans, backed by nationally defined Specialist Provision Packages for the most complex needs.

• All schools moving into school trusts with stronger collaboration expectations.

• Implementation in three phases: aligning to best practice from 2025/26, preparing for SEND and curriculum reforms from 2026/27, full implementation from 2028/29.

Our Perspective at More Curricular

As a skills and heritage education organisation working with schools across London and beyond, we welcome the emphasis on a broad, enriching curriculum, the new enrichment entitlement, and the recognition that education is about equipping young people with knowledge, skills and a sense of belonging.

These reforms open exciting doors for heritage walks, community storytelling, and the kind of culturally rich programming that helps every child see themselves in the curriculum. We look forward to being part of delivering this vision.

The full white paper is available on GOV.UK. If you'd like to discuss how More Curricular's heritage education programmes can support your school in meeting these new expectations — from enrichment planning to culturally inclusive curriculum content — get in touch.