Youth-led shadow review sets the stage for reimagining England’s education system

In response to the government’s Curriculum and Assessment Review, a shadow review has been launched, supported by leading youth organisations including The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, I have a voice, NUS, The Scouts Association, SOS-UK, UK Youth, Young Citizens, and National Youth Agency.

These organisations are coming together to amplify the voices of the thousands of young people they represent. Chaired by NUS President Amira Campbell, this youth-led review will involve twelve young panellists nominated by key youth organisations.

The government’s review, launched in July 2024, aims to create a ‘broader, richer, cutting-edge curriculum that […] sets all young people up for life and work’. Students have a significant stake in helping the government to fulfil this aim and are keen to ensure that their concerns and perspectives are represented in the review.

According to the organisations, while the Department for Education (DfE) roadshow is a useful tool for engaging different regions, many have been held in difficult-to-reach locations or during school hours. This, coupled with the technical nature of the government’s ‘call for evidence’, has so far made it harder for young people to engage.

The Shadow Review started immediately with the nomination of youth panellists, before mirroring the official review’s key milestones including a roadshow and call for evidence. 

The shadow panellists are optimistic that Professor Becky Francis, chair of the official review, may consider their recommendations as part of the formal review and are keen to work with the DfE to ensure youth voice is sufficiently represented.

Amira Campbell, president of the NUS and chair of the Shadow Curriculum and Assessment Review, said: “I am proud to lead the Shadow Curriculum and Assessment Review.

“Students know first-hand what does and doesn’t work in the current curriculum, having been taught it so recently.

“We know that meaningful inclusion of youth voice is essential to the quality and legitimacy of the government’s review and this Shadow Review is the perfect avenue to lay out students’ and young people’s visions of what a truly liberated, inclusive and innovative curriculum could and should look like.”

Enfys, 17, student volunteer in the shadow organising team, added: “It is crucial that young people’s voices are included in the Curriculum and Assessment Review, as its outcomes will directly impact students like me.

“Our Shadow Review will demonstrate the range of issues that young people care about and how this could be better reflected in the curriculum and in how we are assessed. 

“I don’t feel that the curriculum reflects the fact that young people are growing up in a world shaped by the climate emergency and ecological crisis. This is an exciting opportunity to change our education, and we are ready to share our views with the DfE.”

In response to the government’s review, Paul Whiteman, general secretary at school leaders’ union NAHT, commented: “This is a golden opportunity to update a 10-year-old curriculum so that it is relevant, fully reflects the diversity of our society and prepares children and young people for their lives in the modern world.

“The national curriculum and qualification specifications are overcrowded and unmanageable. Reducing the overall burden of content could have a range of positive impacts – improving the quality of teaching and learning, enhancing pupils’ experiences of learning, increasing engagement, creating the flexibility needed to ensure learning is relevant to pupils in every school community and better meeting individual needs.”