Learning Lessons
Teaching is a fantastic vocation, which offers the opportunity to change lives. However, the education system is currently experiencing a retention crisis, with the number of teachers leaving the state school sector having increased in recent years.
The Labour government has made some progress in tackling the drivers of teacher attrition, particularly through real terms pay rises, reforms to inspections, and making teachers feel more valued. Yet there remain real issues around workload and stress, while pupil behaviour and the lack of flexible working opportunities are increasingly driving teachers to leave the state sector.
In this report, Joe Dromey and Marcus Johns analyse the drivers of the teacher workforce crisis and the impact that it has on pupils and public finances. The report calls for a teacher recruitment and retention strategy that tackles the drivers of attrition.
Accountability Gap
8 July 2026
Accountability to the UK government dominates all other forms of accountability, consuming local capacity, and creating a chilling effect on local agency. The focus on financial accountability has been too strong, leading to wider considerations like democratic legitimacy and agency being overlooked. In this report, senior researcher Marcus Johns sets out how to create a more balanced system of accountability.
Accountability Gap Devolution
On the Ladder
6 July 2026
In this report, Ben Cooper and Palma Oxley analyse the scale of the decline in homeownership among young people, its causes, and its impact on new-build housing supply. They set out a series of recommendations to help more people afford their first home, reduce the costs of homeownership, and improve consumer outcomes for those buying a new-build property.
On the ladder HousingLatest from the Fabian Society
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Common People
13 July 2026
SAM FRIEDMAN & AARON REEVES: British elites may appear more ordinary and meritocratic than ever – but class privilege continues to shape who reaches the top
Continue reading Class
Minor majors
10 July 2026
JIM PATRICK WYKE: Recruiting under-16s into the armed forces is costly, inefficient and outdated – if Britain wants a modern, professional military, it should end the enlistment of children
Continue reading Defence
New Deal
9 July 2026
JOVAN OWUSU-NEPAUL: Labour must set out a hopeful vision to overcome its current woes
Continue reading Communities / Economy
Dodgers vs Giants
7 July 2026
STELLA TSANTEKIDOU: The British public want authenticity from Labour
Continue reading Populism
Key Stage
1 July 2026
Bridget Phillipson’s brief concerns inequality in all its forms. She talks to IGGY WOOD about her vision for a fairer Britain
Continue reading Education / LGBTQ+
A New Hope
28 June 2026
MIATTA FAHNBULLEH: Rethinking our economic model can address the concerns of a dissatisfied public
Continue reading Communities / EconomyOur publications
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Building skills
This report examines the workforce and skills crisis facing the sector, with a particular focus on both the construction industry and engineering and building services trades. It sets out key policy recommendations to address the crisis and outlines ...
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Common Endeavour
In this series of essays, Labour MPs from across the ‘broad centre’ of the party set out how Labour can apply its values to the problems we face in the second quarter of the 21st century. The collection centres around four generational challenges: af...
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Uneven ground
In this pamphlet, drawing on British Election Study data, James Prentice examines why Labour has struggled to hold together its 2024 coalition and sets out how a new progressive coalition can be built.
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Pressing Reset
Rejoining the EU is not an immediate prospect. But in an increasingly uncertain world – and with public opinion in favour of greater cooperation – now is the time to revisit our relationship with our European allies. This collection brings together e...
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Care to Share
In this pamphlet, which features a foreword by the former secretary of state for health and social care, Wes Streeting MP, experts and policymakers identify the decisions the government will need to get right to build a National Health Service.
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Housing the future
This report sets out how the next Scottish government should use its powers to deliver a significant increase in housebuilding rates and tackle high housing costs. It analyses the main impacts of the housing emergency, and examines why Scotland hasn’...
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Adopt, innovate, transform
Drawing on survey data and insights from three focus groups, this report examines the challenges civil servants face in shaping the government’s AI agenda. It sets out five priorities to help address these challenges and unlock the full potential of ...
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Anatomy of success
This paper draws on previous lessons from past health service modernisation initiatives. It identifies key decisions the government must get right, if it wants to achieve its health goals over the next decade and deliver world-class care to all.
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Testing Times
The aim of this collection of short essays, edited by Ed Turner, Luke Raikes and Iggy Wood, is to dive into debates about devolution across Europe, often triggered by experiences of the Covid-19 pandemic, to inform the UK as it considers reform in th...
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Beyond numbers
For many years, England has been in the grip of a disastrous housing crisis. Chronically low rates of building have made both renting and buying a home extraordinarily expensive, and millions are suffering as a result.
Quantity, however, is not th...
The people's pools
Published in June 2026, amid record-breaking temperatures, this pamphlet aims to create tangible community assets, strengthen local democracy and “pride in place,” and give Labour a modern equivalent of one of its most iconic historical achievements.
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Nye's lost legacy
Against the backdrop of Sir Charlie Mayfield’s independent investigation into healthy and inclusive work, Sasjkia Otto sets out an ambitious vision for a universal and integrated occupational health system, matched by rights and responsibilities. In ...
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Forward Planning
This report sets out how the government can ensure that owner-occupiers are able to age well in their own home. It identifies the scale of the challenge faced by older owner-occupiers, the barriers to improving housing, and the case for action. The r...
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Pressing issues
In this pamphlet, journalists and experts set out the problems that characterise the media landscape, propose a range of changes to improve standards, and set out how the government can uphold the rights of journalists both at home and around the wor...
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Standard Issue
The US-Israeli war on Iran has prompted yet another shock to the budgets of British households, with potentially dire consequences for living standards. This is the second such shock in five years; but the cost-of-living crisis has been decades in th...
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