UK exam boards have set up dedicated teams to monitor social media as part of moves to clamp down on cheating. A “huge amount” of time and effort is spent looking for signs and indications of malpractice in exams online, the heads of exam boards have said. The comments came as the Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ) – which represents ...

Millions of “just about managing” families are no better off today than those in 2003, new research from the Resolution Foundation indicates. The remarkable income stagnation for so many reveals that the economy has been failing to generate income for people over many years despite record levels of people in work. In 2003, households on the lower half of incomes ...

Religious education is more vital than ever in an increasingly diverse society and needs a higher status, says former home secretary Charles Clarke. Mr Clarke is co-author of a report calling for better religious education in school and a widening of the subject to include “beliefs and values”. The report argues that assemblies should no longer be expected to have ...

Living in the countryside preserves people’s cognitive powers as they get older, a new study has found. A ten-year analysis of more 6,500 people living in the UK showed mental decline was slower among those who lived in villages and rural neighbourhoods. Scientists believe an absence of pollution, a more active lifestyle and reduced noise and stress all contribute to ...

A “small cabal” in Downing Street holds Brexiteers in “contempt”, a senior Eurosceptic has warned amid a mass Eurosceptic rebellion over the Prime Minister’s Chequers compromise. Writing for the Telegraph, Maria Caulfield, who quit as a Conservative vice-chairman earlier this week, says that the Prime Minister’s Brexit plan is “catastrophically bad” and will be a “disaster for the Conservative Party”. ...

Students from wealthier backgrounds do not receive enough financial support from their parents, while those from low-income families enjoy higher contributions than the Government recommends. The National Student Money Survey found that those attending university from households with an annual income of £25,000 received £54 a month from their parents. Unlike higher earners, these families are not typically expected to contribute ...

Roads have begun to melt, train tracks have reached temperatures of 49C and a hosepipe ban is set to come into force as the UK basks in the ongoing heatwave. The hot weather has led to the unusual sight of gritters being used in the summer. They are normally deployed during cold snaps to stop road surfaces from freezing, but ...

Canada’s countermeasures against the Trump administration’s steel and aluminium levies have come into effect. On Sunday, the day the country celebrates its national holiday, Canada imposed a 25% tariff on assorted US metals products. Tariffs of 10% have also been imposed on over 250 other US goods like beer kegs, whiskey and orange juice. Canada-US trade tensions are high amidst ...

Sitting staff down to have a conversation about their performance may be considered a waste of time for businesses with small teams and few resources, but they can be vital in understanding how a company is performing, argues Steve Lipscombe, director of marketing agency, RONIN. “Employees need to know what’s expected of them and how well they’re doing,” he says. ...

Major dictionaries are to stop defining bullies as strong and their targets as weak after a campaign. Anti-bullying activists persuaded the Oxford, Cambridge and Collins Dictionaries, and online dictionaries, to change their definitions Previously, a bully was defined as a person who uses strength or influence to harm or intimidate weaker people. Now the victim of bullying is described as ...