Media enquiries

Contact information for the Department for Education’s media team.

DfE media team

Journalists should call our central newsdesk, on 020 7783 8300. This media-only line operates from Monday to Friday, 8am to 7pm. Outside of these hours, the number will divert to the duty media officer.

Members of the public should call our general enquiries line, on 0370 000 2288.

Read our Education in the media blog.

Deputy Director of News and Social Media

Andrew Darby

Deputy Head of News

Caroline Rae

Press Secretary to the Secretary of State for Education

Sam Glanz

Corporate and cross-cutting communications team

Government policy on:

  • supporting settings to deal with major incidents, events and crises
  • counter-extremism and integration in  settings
  • use of science in education policy-making
  • use of technology in education, including artificial intelligence
  • asylum-seeking children in education
  • climate change and sustainability strategy
  • Department for Education corporate issues, including estates, staff and structures

Chief Media Officer

Ellie Agnew

Senior Media Officer

Hollie Borland

Media Officer

Sorcha Mondon

Schools desk

Government policy on:

  • schools, including free schools, university technical colleges and studio schools, academies and multi-academy trusts, faith and independent schools
  • education recovery, including tutoring and summer schools
  • pupil premium
  • the recruitment and retention of teachers and school leaders
  • Teaching Regulation Agency (TRA)
  • school funding
  • behaviour
  • period products
  • curriculum and qualifications (including links with Ofqual)
  • the Standards and Testing Agency (STA) and primary assessment
  • school accountability and inspection (including links with Ofsted)
  • careers education, information and guidance, including the Careers and Enterprise Company
  • home education and supplementary schools
  • school sport

Chief Media Officer

Eva Perkins

Senior Media Officer

Emine Tarim

Media Officers

Holly Bullen

Alana Christian

Molly Holt

Kristie O’Connor

Children and families desk

Government policy on:

  • free school meals, the holiday activities and food programme, and breakfast clubs
  • children’s social services
  • social care, child protection and social work
  • early years education and childcare
  • special educational needs and disability (SEND)
  • exclusions and alternative provision
  • mental health, wellbeing and bullying
  • vulnerable and disadvantaged children
  • relationships, sex and health education
  • personal, social, health and economic education

Chief Media Officer

Josh Kaye

Senior Media Officers

Charlotte Callear

Georgia Cronin

Media Officers

Celia Cox

Tara Lee

Post-16 and skills desk

Government policy on:

  • technical education and skills, including T Levels and qualifications review
  • apprenticeships, including traineeships
  • further education workforce
  • strategy for post-16 education
  • further education provider market, including quality and improvement, and further education efficiency
  • adult education, including the national retraining scheme and basic skills
  • Institutes of Technology and National Colleges
  • reducing the number of young people who are not in education, employment or training
  • higher education student finance
  • widening participation in higher education
  • quality of higher education
  • international education

Chief Media Officer

Alan Selby

Senior Media Officer

Lewis Evans

Media Officers

Astrid Quinn

George Neophytou

Sophie Burke

Strategy and planning desk

Strategy and Planning Lead

Russell Neilson

Strategic Communications Planning Manager

Sima Parmar

Executive agencies

DfE’s media team handles media enquiries on behalf of our executive agencies:

Non-departmental public bodies

If you have a specific enquiry about a policy that is managed by a non-departmental public body, contact that body’s press office.

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