Department for Education

The Department for Education (DfE) is a ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom. It is responsible for child protection, child services, education (compulsory, further, and higher education), apprenticeships, and wider skills in England. A Department for Education previously existed between 1992, when the Department of Education and Science was renamed, and 1995, when it was merged with the Department for Employment to become the Department for Education and Employment. The current holder of Secretary of State for Education is the Bridget Phillipson MP and Susan Acland-Hood is the permanent secretary. Its responsibilities are devolved policies, therefore it does not have responsibility in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland, with the Scottish Government, Welsh Government, and Northern Ireland Executive each having their own departments responsible for education in their respective jurisdictions. The expenditure, administration, and policy of the Department of Education are scrutinised by the Education Select Committee. History The DfE was formed on 12 May 2010 by the incoming Coalition Government, taking on the responsibilities and resources of the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF). In June 2012 the Department for Education committed a breach of the UK's Data Protection Act due to a security flaw on its website which made email addresses, passwords and comments of people responding to consultation documents available for download. In July 2016, the department took over responsibilities for higher and further education and for apprenticeship from the dissolved Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. Predecessor bodies Committee of the Privy Council on Education, 1839–1899 Education Department, 1856–1899 Board of Education, 1899–1944 Ministry of Education, 1944–1964 Department of Education and Science, 1964–1992 Department for Education, 1992–1995 Department for Education and Employment (DfEE), 1995–2001 Department for Education and Skills (DfES), 2001–2007 Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF), 2007–2010 Responsibilities The department is led by the secretary of state for education. The permanent secretary from December 2020 is Susan Acland-Hood. DfE is responsible for education, children's services, higher and further education policy, apprenticeships, and wider skills in England, and equalities. The predecessor department employed the equivalent of 2,695 staff as of April 2008 and as at June 2016, DfE had reduced its workforce to the equivalent of 2,301 staff. In 2015–16, the DfE has a budget of £58.2bn, which includes £53.6bn resource spending and £4.6bn of capital investments. Ministers The Department for Education's ministers are as follows, with cabinet members in bold: Board The management board is made up of: Permanent secretary – Susan Acland-Hood Director-General, Families – Justin Russell Director-General, Regions – John Edwards Director-General, Skills – Julia Kinniburgh Director-General, Schools – Juliet Chua Director-General, Strategy – Tony Foot Chief operating officer – Jane Cunliffe Chief executive, Education & Skills Funding Agency – David Withey Non-executive board members: Marion Plant; CEO of the Midland Academies Trust and principal Ruby McGregor-Smith, Baroness McGregor-Smith; former chief executive of Mitie Group Ian Ferguson; businessman Locations As at 2 August 2016, the DfE has five main sites: Sanctuary Buildings, Great Smith Street, London Piccadilly Gate, Manchester 2 St Paul's Place, Sheffield Bishopsgate House, Darlington Cheylesmore House, Coventry Executive agencies and public bodies Executive agencies Education and Skills Funding Agency The Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) was formed on 1 April 2017 following the merger of the Education Funding Agency (EFA) and the Skills Funding Agency (SFA). Previously the EFA was responsible for distributing funding for state education in England for 3- to 19-year-olds, as well as managing the estates of schools, and colleges and the SFA was responsible for funding skills training for further education in England and running the National Apprenticeship Service and the National Careers Service. The EFA was formed on 1 April 2012 by bringing together the functions of two non-departmental public bodies, the Young People's Learning Agency and Partnerships for Schools. The SFA was formed on 1 April 2010, following the closure of the Learning and Skills Council. David Withey was the agency's chief executive. The ESFA closed on 31 March 2025 and was integrated into the core department. Skills England Skills England replaced the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (IfATE) from June 2025. In September 2025, Skills England transferred to the Department for Work and Pensions, along with responsibility for apprenticeships, adult further education, skills, training and careers. Standards and Testing Agency The Standards and Testing Agency (STA) is responsible for developing and delivering all statutory assessments for school pupils in England. It was formed on 1 October 2011 and took over the functions of the Qualifications and Curriculum Development Agency. The STA is regulated by the examinations regulator, Ofqual. Teaching Regulation Agency The Teaching Regulation Agency (TRA) is responsible for regulation of the teaching profession, including misconduct hearings. Its predecessors include the National College for Teaching and Leadership (to 2018), the Teaching Agency (to 2013) and the Training and Development Agency for Schools (from 1994). Public bodies The DfE is also supported by 10 public bodies: Devolution Education, youth and children's policy is devolved elsewhere in the United Kingdom. The department's main devolved counterparts are as follows: Scottish Government Education and Justice Directorates Welsh Government Department for Education and Skills Northern Ireland Executive Executive Office (children and young people) Department of Education National Curriculum 2014 The Department for Education released a new National Curriculum for schools in England for September 2014, which included 'Computing'. Following Michael Gove's speech in 2012, the subject of Information Communication Technology (ICT) has been disapplied and replaced by Computing. With the new curriculum, materials have been written by commercial companies, to support non-specialist teachers, for example, '100 Computing Lessons' by Scholastic. The Computing at Schools organisation has created a 'Network of Teaching Excellence'to support schools with the new curriculum. Post-16 area reviews In 2015, the department announced a major restructuring of the further education sector, through 37 area reviews of post-16 provision. The proposals were criticised by NUS Vice President for Further Education Shakira Martin for not sufficiently taking into account the impact on learners; the Sixth Form Colleges' Association similarly criticised the reviews for not directly including providers of post-16 education other than colleges, such as school and academy sixth forms and independent training providers. Funding and grants In 2018, The Department for Education confirmed their commitment to forming positive relationships with the voluntary and community sector. In 2020 the department began funding the National Tutoring Programme which employed private companies to deliver the tuition including at least one which uses children as tutors, paying them £1.57 per hour. Tutors received up to £25 of the between £72 and £84 per hour the government paid the companies. In 2020, the Department for Education started funding the Support for Care Leavers at Risk of Homelessness and Rough Sleeping programme, which directs money to local councils allowing them to employ specialist personal advisors to support care leavers at risk of homelessness. This initiative is currently undergoing independent evaluation with results expected in Spring 2026. See also Education in England References Further reading Alexiadou, Nafsika; Lange, Bettina (January 2013). "Deflecting European Union influence on national education policy-making: the case of the United Kingdom". Journal of European Integration. 35 (1): 37–52. doi:10.1080/07036337.2012.661423. S2CID 154982097. External links Official website Official department YouTube channel