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Curriculum and Assessment Review: school action plan

Good practiceEnglandPrimary, Secondary, All-throughFor: Headteachers, Senior leaders, Subject leads, Governors and trustees

An action plan for getting ready for the revised national curriculum and the assessment changes that follow the Curriculum and Assessment Review (final report and government response, November 2025). It sets out what the government has said will change, phase by phase and subject by subject, with the stated timelines, and gives a structure for owners, staff training (CPD) and communication with governors and parents.

iFairy working template — not official guidance. Built by reading the official documents listed under "Based on"; each requirement cites the document and section it comes from. Check the current official wording before you adopt it, and adapt it to your setting and your local authority or trust procedures.

Do you need one?Good practice. No law or statutory guidance requires a school to have this plan. Some of the changes it plans for will be statutory once made, such as the revised programmes of study from September 2028, a statutory Year 8 reading test and statutory citizenship at key stages 1 and 2. At the date of these documents (November 2025) those changes were commitments, not law.
Why this templateThe Review's final report runs to nearly 200 pages and the government response to more than 50. Both mix firm decisions, dated commitments, 'we will consider' statements and the Review's own recommendations, which the government did not always adopt in the same form. Schools need a single plan that separates what has been decided, and when, from what is still to come, and that turns this into actions with owners.
ReviewReview each term until September 2028. Review straight away when DfE publishes the draft or final programmes of study, consultation outcomes, or new assessment and accountability arrangements.
Last checked by iFairy
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1. The national timeline

Fix the dates the plan works back from. Use only dates the documents state, and check them against GOV.UK because they may have moved.

Must include

Starter wording (edit the highlighted parts)

| Date (as stated by DfE, Nov 2025) | National milestone | What we will have done by then | Owner | |---|---|---|---| | 2026 | Statutory consultation on draft programmes of study | [Leads read drafts and respond] | [ ] | | Spring 2027 | Final revised national curriculum published | [Gap analysis started within 4 weeks] | [ ] | | Summer–autumn 2027 | Four terms to prepare | [New long-term plans drafted] | [ ] | | September 2028 | First teaching, all subjects | [Plans, resources, CPD complete] | [ ] | | September 2029 / 2030 | First teaching of revised GCSEs (two phases) | [KS4 options and plans updated] | [ ] |

2. What the government has accepted

Keep the decisions apart from the Review's proposals, so staff plan for what will actually happen.

Must include

Decide and write down

  • If we are an academy, has the academy requirement become law yet? What does that mean for parts of our curriculum that depart from the current national curriculum?
  • Where the government response and the Review differ (for example on Progress 8), are our staff working from the government's position?

3. What changes for us: primary (EYFS to Year 6)

Pull out the changes that affect primary schools and turn each one into a local action.

Must include

Decide and write down

  • Who will lead citizenship? Where does it overlap with our RSHE and PSHE programme?
  • Which year groups' grammar teaching might change? Should we avoid buying new grammar resources until the drafts are published?
  • What is our current phonics screening check pass rate, and what is our plan for pupils who do not meet the standard?

4. What changes for us: secondary (Years 7–11)

Pull out the key stage 3 and 4 changes, including new assessments and accountability.

Must include

Decide and write down

  • Which current Year 7–9 cohorts will sit revised GCSEs first? Do our options process and key stage 4 plans need to change?
  • Do we offer triple science to every pupil who could benefit? If not, what are the barriers?
  • How will we use the Year 8 reading test results? Who owns reading intervention at key stage 3?

5. Subject-by-subject gap analysis

Give each subject lead a single row to fill in now and to update when the draft and final programmes of study are published.

Must include

Starter wording (edit the highlighted parts)

| Subject | Change stated by DfE (Nov 2025) | Size of change for us (low/med/high) | Current scheme / resources affected | Action and date | Lead | |---|---|---|---|---|---| | [Subject] | [ ] | [ ] | [ ] | [ ] | [ ] |

6. Enrichment and the school week

Plan for the new enrichment offer and the expectations on the school week. These sit outside the national curriculum but come from the same response.

Must include

Decide and write down

  • Map our current clubs and trips against the five categories. Where are the gaps, and which pupils (for example those eligible for free school meals, or with SEND) do not take part?
  • Do we meet 32.5 hours a week? If not, what is our plan?

7. CPD, time and resources

Plan the staff time and training needed to rewrite plans before September 2028, using the support DfE says it will provide.

Must include

Decide and write down

  • How many INSET and directed hours will we give subject leads between spring 2027 and summer 2028?
  • Which subjects have the biggest changes and the fewest specialists, and so need external support first?
  • Will we adopt or adapt Oak materials, keep our current schemes, or buy new ones, and when will we decide?

Starter wording (edit the highlighted parts)

| Term | CPD focus | Who | Time allocated | Source of support | |---|---|---|---|---| | [Summer 2027] | [Reading the final programmes of study; gap analysis] | [All subject leads] | [ ] | [DfE outline of changes, Oak] |

8. Communicating with governors, staff and parents

Keep governors informed so they can hold leaders to account, and tell parents what will change and when, in plain language.

Must include

  • Plain-language wording is available from DfE's Easy Read version of the response: the new curriculum is to be shared in spring 2027, and schools will be asked to teach it from autumn 2028.Source: CAR gov response Easy Read, 11. What next
  • The Review's own Easy Read summary gives families a reassuring message: a lot works well, including the Year 1 reading (phonics) check, the Year 4 times tables check, GCSEs and A levels. Some things need to change, for example to help pupils from homes with less money and pupils with SEND.Source: CAR final report Easy Read, Summary; 3. What works well

Decide and write down

  • Which governor committee owns this plan, and how often will it receive updates?
  • When will parents hear about changes to the key stage 4 options their children will choose?

Starter wording (edit the highlighted parts)

Governors: termly update to [committee], covering timeline status, subject gap analysis (RAG), CPD completed and risks. Parents: [newsletter/web page] in [term] explaining that the national curriculum is being updated, that the new version is due to be published in spring 2027 and taught from September 2028, and what this means for [year groups]. We will update families again when [GCSE / options] changes are confirmed.

Checklist

Watch out

  • Everything here is as stated in November 2025. By 4 October 2026 the statutory consultation on draft programmes of study may have happened and dates may have moved. Check GOV.UK for the latest position before committing resources.
  • Keep the Review's recommendations apart from the government's decisions. For example, the Review recommended keeping Progress 8's structure unchanged (Annex 3), but the government proposes a new model with science and breadth slots, subject to consultation. The Easy Read summary of the Progress 8 proposal simplifies it heavily, so plan from the full response.
  • Statutory citizenship at key stages 1 and 2, the statutory Year 8 reading test and the academy requirement all need legislation or regulations. Treat them as planned until they are made law.
  • Existing statutory assessments (phonics screening check, multiplication tables check, key stage 2 tests, current GCSE specifications) continue until changed. Key stage 2 assessment changes are being phased so pupils have time to learn the new curriculum first.
  • Avoid buying expensive new schemes before the final programmes of study are published. DfE says Oak materials will be updated for the refreshed curriculum.
  • RE is not yet part of the national curriculum, and no date has been set. The government will act only if the sector reaches consensus.

Based on these official documents

Main source

Government response to CAR (Nov 2025)

What the government accepted, the implementation timeline (Figure 3), subject-by-subject changes, assessment and accountability changes, enrichment and support offers.

Main source

Curriculum and Assessment Review Final Report (Nov 2025)

The Review's curriculum principles and full list of recommendations (Annex 3), and the drafting and consultation process (Next steps).

Supporting source

CAR gov response Easy Read

Plain-language wording for parents and pupils, including the spring 2027 and autumn 2028 dates.

Supporting source

CAR final report Easy Read

Plain-language summary of the Review's findings for parent and pupil communication.