Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson has promised it will prepare kids for a world that is “changing more rapidly than ever”.

06:46, 07 Nov 2025

England’s school curriculum overhaul is set to teach pupils mortgages, budgeting and spotting fake news . Labour Party Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson has promised it will prepare kids for a world that is “changing more rapidly than ever”.

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She told MPs pupils will learn how to deal with “dark forces” online. And she told MPs “the arts should be for all, not just the lucky few”. She said all her plans would sit alongside a “strong academic core”.

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The government said: “We’re developing the new curriculum with teachers, curriculum experts, pupils and parents. The final curriculum will be published in spring 2027, and schools will start teaching it from September 2028.”

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Ms Phillipson said the goal is to “revitalise” what children learn in school, ensuring they leave education ready for both work and life.

“These reforms strengthen, not replace, core subjects,” she said.

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“We’re making the curriculum more efficient by cutting duplication and focusing on what really matters, literacy, numeracy and the skills young people need for modern life.”

Online safety

Ms Phillipson said she wants children to learn how material is “exploited by dark forces online to spread lies and sow division”. She said media literacy will prepare kids “not to consume passively, but engage critically, to recognise and reject disinformation”.

Financial skills

From primary school, kids will be taught how to deal with money. Ms Phillipson said financial literacy will be taught “to empower young people to make informed choices about money, saving and investing”.

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Martin Lewis, MoneySavingExpert.com founder, who has campaigned for compulsory financial education in school since 2012, welcomed the move. “Our children are sent out into a world of scams, dodgy deals and debt, without the tools to cope,” he said.

The 52-year-old added: “Yet right now, after all these years, I’ll settle for cheering a big intention to improve things.

Citizenship lessons

The DfE said: “Citizenship education, reinforced across the curriculum, can play a vital role in making sure young people feel the democratic process is relevant to them, and that they understand how constitutional principles such as the rule of law protect them and benefit their lives.”

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“Equipping children and young people to thrive in a rapidly changing world therefore means enabling them to understand and meet the global challenge that climate change presents,” it said.

Ebacc system scrapped

The government has confirmed it will scrap the English baccalaureate (Ebacc), introduced by former Tory Education Secretary Michael Gove and which judges schools on how many kids take GCSEs in English, maths, science and a humanities and language subject.

Diversity and local history

The DfE said: “In reforming the curriculum, we will ensure that teachers can reflect the innate diversity of British history, including British Black and Asian history. We will continue to include the Holocaust as a compulsory topic within key stage 3, as confirmed by the Prime Minister last year.”

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Enrichment entitlement

The DfE said: “We will set out a new core enrichment offer that every school and college should provide for every one of their pupils, which delivers access to civic engagement; arts and culture; nature, outdoor and adventure; sport and physical activities; and developing wider life skills.”

Cut exam times

In secondary schools, teenagers will spend less time being tested under plans to reduce the average time spent in GCSE exams by up to three hours.

Triple science

Schools will be expected to work towards offering triple science GCSEs - separate qualifications in physics, chemistry and biology - as standard, as not all schools currently offer it.

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Year eight reading test

National Education Union’s (NEU) general secretary Daniel Kebede has warned that “more mandatory tests are not the answer”. “Pigs don’t get fatter the more you weigh them - and children don’t learn to love reading by being tested repeatedly,” he added.

Ms Phillipson defended the plan, saying: “If you can’t read well, you can’t do anything else.”

V-Levels

Young people will be able to take new qualifications called V-levels. The DfE said: “We will make ‘V Levels’ the only pathway of vocational qualifications at level 3 for young people. These will sit alongside A levels and T Levels, providing simplicity and clarity as well as quality.

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“We want V-Levels to be clearly distinct from A levels and T Levels, with nationally set content linked to occupational standards. We expect these qualifications will be small enough (similar in size to an A level) to be effectively combined with other qualifications to allow students the flexibility to study different areas.”

Speaking skills

The DfE said: “A new oracy framework will support primary teachers to ensure their pupils become confident, fluent speakers and listeners by the end of key stage 2, and our new secondary oracy, reading and writing framework will enable secondary teachers to connect and embed all three of those vital skills in each of their subjects as part of a whole school strategy.”