Sector leaders have criticised the 鈥渓imited breadth and diversity鈥 of experts recruited to help write the new national curriculum. The Department for Education has chosen 46 鈥渃urriculum drafters鈥 following a public tender. The government said they were chosen 鈥渂ased on the best fit for the role, taking into account expertise in subject knowledge and in school leadership鈥. But 鈥檚 release has prompted questions about diversity and the way the experts are unevenly split across 13 subject areas. For example, there are 10 experts helping to draft the PE curriculum, compared with just one for languages and two for English. The two experts chosen to help with English are Matt Carnaby, the director of curriculum and assessment at Astrea Academy Trust, and Dr Timothy Mills, a RISE adviser and former executive director of primary education at the STEP Academy Trust. Critics point out they are both white men either attached or previously attached to multi-academy trusts. Both were approached for comment. Diversity concerns Ian Cushing, a reader in critical applied linguistics at Manchester Metropolitan University and a fellow of the English Association (EA), described the selection as 鈥渄isappointing but perhaps not surprising鈥. 鈥淣o subject should have its content designed by such a small number of individuals, and certainly no subject should have its content designed by exclusively white men.鈥 He said it was 鈥渋nsulting鈥 to a teaching workforce made up primarily of women. He added that English helps pupils to explore social issues including 鈥渞ace, class, gender, disability, linguistic diversity, colonialism鈥. 鈥淲e need a curriculum designed by people who have lived experience and expertise in those things鈥and] allows people from diverse backgrounds to see, feel, and hear themselves represented in it.鈥 Dr Rebecca Fisher, the chief executive of the EA, said it 鈥渞egrets that the DfE did not appoint a larger and more diverse group鈥 to take in the discipline鈥檚 鈥渄eep expertise and experience鈥. But Fisher said the association looked 鈥渇orward to supporting Matt Carnaby鈥ho brings extensive knowledge of curriculum design and of the subject, and phonics expert Dr Tim Mills鈥. Professor Becky Francis鈥檚 said the national curriculum 鈥渋s for all our children and young people, and they should feel both included in it and represented by it鈥. Allana Gay, a co-founder of BAMEed, a black, Asian, and minority ethnic educators鈥 network, said actions since the CAR 鈥渋ndicate that once again truly inclusive practice is going to the fringe rather than being embedded into the curriculum鈥. Allana Gay The Francis review made clear the drafting process 鈥渕ust involve teachers, as well as be informed by subject specialists鈥 knowledge of the discipline鈥. Shehlha Zafir, a curriculum director for English at a multi-academy trust, and BAMEed co-lead for the West Midlands, said she was 鈥済enuinely disappointed at the lack of diversity and representation鈥 in the list. She is worried that the next iteration of the national curriculum would continue to have 鈥渦nconscious biases built in because of the make-up of this group. 鈥淭his group reinforces the whiteness of the curriculum,鈥 she said. 鈥淒iverse voices may be invited to join the discussion, but they do not have a seat at the table.鈥 ‘Lack of practising teachers’ Shehlha Zafir Daniel Kebede, the general secretary of the National Education Union, criticised the 鈥渓imited breadth and diversity鈥 of drafters, as well as 鈥渢he absence of practising teachers鈥. The government is due to start publishing draft programmes of study for consultation from this spring. The final versions will come in spring 2027, and the new curriculum will be taught in schools from September 2028. Kebede said the government 鈥渕ust trust and empower the profession as curriculum-makers and ensure drafting teams reflect fully the experiences and expertise of teachers and the societies they serve鈥. Stuart Tiffany, a primary school teacher, said the eight expert drafters recruited for history had 鈥渋mmense knowledge, experience and talent鈥.聽 But he questioned whether they had enough experience in key stages 1 and 2, and said he hoped they would 鈥減roactively seek out the specialist understanding required to effectively plan for the youngest learners鈥. A DfE spokesperson said the contracts were with a range of suppliers, both organisations and sole traders 鈥 鈥渉ence why numbers of drafters per subject may vary鈥. 鈥淲ork for each subject has been allocated based on a set number of days, rather than the number of people. Each supplier has been allocated a set number of days based on the scale of work required to respond to the review recommendations.鈥 Full list of curriculum drafters Art and Design – William Grant, Paula Briggs (AccessArt); Michele Gregson (NSEAD); Katyie Holdstock (University of Worcester) Citizenship – Elizabeth Moorse, Naomi Kennedy (Association for Citizenship Teaching) PE – Kate Thornton-Bousfield, Jo Harris, Catherine Fitzpatrick 鈥 Magee, Shaun Dowling, Lucy Supperstone, Victoria Randall, Laura Nicholson, Will Swaithes, Liz Durden-Myers, Jordan Wintle (Association for Physical Education) English – Matt Carnaby (Astrea Academy Trust); Timothy Mills Computing – Julia Adamson, Becci Peters, Benjamin Rhys Davies, Niel McLean (BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT) Languages – Bernardette Holmes Food and Nutrition – Frances Meek (British Nutrition Foundation) Music – Carolyn Baxendale, Simon Toyne Mathematics – David Thomas; Catherine Lynne McClure; Charlie Stripp (Mathematics in Education and Industry); Prof Jeremy Hogden; Dr Helen Drury Design and Technology – Alison Hardy, Matt McLain (Nottingham Consultants Ltd) Science – Lauren McLeod (Royal Society of Biology); Laura Daly (Royal Society of Chemistry); Marianne Cutler (The Association for Science Education; Charles Tracy (The Institute of Physics); Alex Parry (Raspberry Pi Foundation) Geography – Steve Brace (The Geographical Association) History – Christine Counsell, Catherine Priggs, Claire Holliss, Jim Carroll, Michael Fordham, Michael Maddison, Mike Hill, Rachel Foster (The Historical Association)