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Scottish Minimum Digital Living Standard: interim report

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This interim report explores the use of a Minimum Digital Living Standard (MDLS) for Scotland and builds upon earlier UK-wide and Welsh MDLS studies, which delved into what households with children require to fully participate in today’s digital world.

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Supporting young women from minority backgrounds in secondary school

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Supporting young women from minority backgrounds in secondary school

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The Action for Children Heritage and Inclusion Project is helping to reduce levels of isolation felt by young ethnic women in Edinburgh. The project supports young women from Black, Minority, Ethnicity (BME) backgrounds to spend time researching and developing heritage learning using oral histories, archives and art collections, allowing them to become more aware of their own heritage and increase their participation within their own communities.

Explore this resource

Over 50 BME young people in Edinburgh have been supported by the Heritage and Inclusion project to participate in the Duke of Edinburgh award and they have produced two videos which highlight issues related to equality and inclusion.

'My Heritage' is a six minute video featuring young women from different cultural backgrounds and focusses on equality issues relating to gender, race, culture and religion. The young women explore the importance of their culture and heritage and of challenging the assumptions and misconceptions of others. 'Everyone has a choice' is a central message of the video.

'Cultural Inclusion' is a three minute video where members of the project highlight the importance of understanding other people's culture and religion. The young women focus on the need to challenge preconceptions and show that understanding different cultures is the first step to inclusion.

How to use this resource

The videos can be used to support open, honest conversations about gender, race, culture and religion and to counter some of the misinformation that has spread in recent years, particularly in some sections of the media. They should be used in the context of a broader anti-racist education programme, and may assist establishments to meet their legal obligations to promote equality and tackle discrimination based on gender, race and religion.

The resource also focuses on participation and empowering young to people to have their voices heard.

Improvement questions

To what extent do we celebrate diversity of race, religion and cultures?

How do we, as an establishment, support all of our young people to feel listened to, valued and included?

As practitioners, do we support young people to question media content and potential bias?

To what extent do we use whole setting approaches or class settings to explore issues related to racial equality?

Further information

The Heritage and Inclusion Project provides an example of good practice in widening participation. Research conducted by Action for Children found that many young women from Sikh and Muslim families have limited opportunities to take part in extra curriculum activities and further education due to cultural barriers.

In the past, the Duke of Edinburgh award has not been accessible to all groups due to cultural restrictions. Levels of participation in this award programme were negotiated and adapted to be inclusive for all young people, raising the statistics in Scotland considerably for participation by diverse groups. Due to the innovation and dedication of the project leader there are now more ethnically and culturally diverse girls participating in the award in Edinburgh than in the rest of Scotland.

The inclusive activities increase self-esteem, confidence, and cultural awareness. The project:

Delivers cultural awareness through art and film;

Supports positive destinations;

Delivers awareness of services available to young women focusing on young women's rights;

Supports refugee and asylum seekers.

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Heritage and Inclusion Project - Supporting young women from Black, Minority, Ethnicity (BME) backgrounds in secondary school

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Education Scotland is a Scottish Government executive agency responsible for supporting quality and improvement in Scottish education.

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Find advice, info and an interactive anti-bullying tool for parents and carers

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Find advice, info and an interactive anti-bullying tool for parents and carers

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Sources of information, advice and support

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Bullying tends to be a group behaviour, with several different roles that can be involved. This page will explore those roles and how they can change.

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Anti-racism in Scotland progress review 2023

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Anti-racism in Scotland progress review 2023

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This collection of wakelets signposts educators to a range of websites and resources which promote race equality education and ensure that all learners can flourish in an inclusive environment which actively promotes equality and tackles racism.

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Anti-Bullying Policy Guidance for Schools and Children &Young People’s Services

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Anti-Bullying Policy Guidance for Schools and Children &Young People’s Services

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Recording and monitoring of bullying incidents in schools: supplementary guidance

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This Scottish Government guidance sets out a consistent and uniform approach to recording and monitoring of bullying incidents.

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All learners have a right to learn in an equitable environment where all cultures, identities and languages are recognised and valued and where the curriculum responds to the diverse needs of individual learners, reflecting the uniqueness of their communities.

This overview of race equality and anti-racist education will explore what is meant by race equality and anti-racist education, why they are important for all our learners and how they might be embedded in education settings.

Why are race equality and anti-racist education important?

Learners are empowered to develop an understanding of their own values, beliefs and cultures and those of others.

Anti-racist education helps children to understand and realise their own rights and the rights of others within the school, within the community and globally.

Anti-racist education helps learners to understand the harmful consequences of racism and encourages them to actively challenge it wherever it occurs.

It helps to ensure that the learning environment is an inclusive one, without racial inequality or racism.

It nurtures a historical literacy in learners which helps them to understand all of Scotland's history, including our historical role in empire, colonialism and transatlantic slavery, and the diversity of Scottish society in the past. It helps learners understand how Scotland's colonial past plays a role in their current everyday lives, acknowledging the successes and impact of Minority Ethnic historical figures, in relation to Scottish and global history.

Race equality education provides a vehicle for all educators to demonstrate their professional values.

The above means that race equality and anti-racism considerations in education are the responsibility of all and essential in all establishments across Scotland, regardless of geographical location.

An overview of race equality and anti-racist education
PDF file: Promoting and developing race equality and anti-racist education: an overview (895 KB) PDF file: Promoting race equality and anti-racist education: an overview (Gaelic version)(1.3 MB)
This material is now available on Glow Scotland with accompanying curriculum ideas and resources. Case studies will be added over time.

Further resources for practitioners are available in a collection of Race Equality Wakelets and are also referenced throughout the overview document.
Improvement questions

To what extent do all staff have the opportunity to explore and discuss racial equality and bias with colleagues?

To what extent is diversity 'normalised' and embedded in the curriculum?

To what extent do the resources in your setting normalise diversity and portray members of all ethnic and cultural groups in positive and non-stereotypical ways?

Do all learners see their culture, ethnicity, faith and experience reflected in the curriculum?

How do we ensure that the voices of all children and young people are heard and used to shape race equality education?

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Promoting race equality and anti-racist education

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Education Scotland is a Scottish Government executive agency responsible for supporting quality and improvement in Scottish education.

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Young people reflect on the UNCRC and discrimination in education

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Young people reflect on the UNCRC and discrimination in education

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Children and young people's rights and education - STEP

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All children have rights under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). Below you can find the rights that relate to your child's human right to an education (Article 28). For more information watch the video on children rights and view or download the UNCRC poster here.

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Young people from travelling communities share the positive and negative experiences of education

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An animated story by Gypsy Traveller pupils

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An animated story by Gypsy Traveller pupils

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The bully and the loons: An animated story of racism and discrimination - STEP

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Education and change for mobile cultures

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Equality Act 2010 - protected characteristics

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Equality Act 2010 - protected characteristics

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Children's rights are now embedded in Scottish legislation with the Children and Young People (Scotland) Act 2014 (legislation.gov.uk) introducing a duty on Scottish Ministers to 'keep under consideration whether there are any steps which they could take which would or might secure better or further effect in Scotland of the UNCRC requirements' and if they consider it appropriate to do so, take any steps identified by that consideration.

Respect for All requires that all partners who work with children and young people are supported to promote and protect the rights of children and young people in Scotland.

Equality Act 2010

The Equality Act 2010 (section 149) places a duty on public authorities to:

eliminate discrimination, harassment and victimisation;

advance equality of opportunity;

and to foster good relations between persons who share a protected characteristic (and those who do not).

This is known as the Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED). The protected characteristics are:

Age

Disability

Gender reassignment

Marriage and civil partnership

Pregnancy and maternity

Race

Religion or belief

Sex

Sexual orientation

Age and marriage and civil partnership are not protected characteristics within school education.

In essence, organisations have to ensure that policies aimed at preventing bullying or responding to bullying where it occurs do not directly or indirectly discriminate anyone who shares a protected characteristic. For those bodies covered by the public sector equality duty (see below) that would normally be done by carrying out an Equality Impact Assessment (EQIA) of those policies against the needs of anyone who shares one or more protected characteristics and publishing the conclusions of that assessment.

As well as placing duties on service providers and public sector bodies the Act provides for ways in which individuals can seek remedies for discrimination by organisations, including mediation or making a claim to a court or tribunal. The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) provides more information on the rights of individuals, or advice can be sought from the Equality Advisory Support Service. Everyone has several of the protected characteristics in the Act. The Equality Act 2010 does not just protect people from discrimination because they have these characteristics. It also protects a person from discrimination because they are perceived to have one or more of the protected characteristics, or that they are associated with someone who does have a protected characteristic.

The public sector equality duty in the Equality Act 2010 requires an organisation exercising public functions to have due regard to the need to eliminate unlawful discrimination, advance equality of opportunity and foster good relations in the exercise of those functions. To help them to do this, most Scottish public authorities are subject to the requirements of a set of specific duties. These duties include equality impact assessment of new or revised policies.

The Equality and Human Rights Commission published Technical Guidance for all schools in Scotland (including publicly funded, grant-aided, independent, special and preschool and nursery schools) which outlines the requirements of the Equality Act 2010 for schools in relation to the provision of education and access to benefits, facilities or services, both educational and non-educational. It provides an authoritative, comprehensive and technical guide to the detail of the law.
Assessing impact and the equality duty: an eight step guide | Equality and Human Rights Commission (equalityhumanrights.com)

Children and Young People (Scotland) Act 2014

The Children and Young People (Scotland) Act 2014 (legislation.gov.uk) makes clear that Getting it Right for Every Child (GIRFEC) is the national approach to improving the wellbeing of children and young people in Scotland and puts their best interests at the heart of decision making. It recognises that children and young people will have different experiences in their lives, but every child and young person has the right to expect appropriate support from adults to allow them to grow and develop and reach their full potential.

Schools (Health Promotion and Nutrition) Act (Scotland) 2007

The Schools (Health Promotion and Nutrition) Act (Scotland) 2007 amended the Education (Scotland) Act 1980 and the Standards in Scotland's Schools etc. Act 2000 to place a number of duties on education authorities including ensuring that schools are health promoting. This includes promoting physical, social, mental and emotional wellbeing by supporting pupils to make positive lifestyle choices in relation to their health and wellbeing.Bullying, whether linked to prejudicial attitudes or not, can sometimes create additional support needs for children and young people. There is specific legislation in this area in the Education (Additional Support for Learning) (Scotland) Act 2004 (as amended) which provides a comprehensive legal framework for the provision of additional, targeted support for children and young people who face barriers to learning.

Carers (Scotland) Act 2016

The Carers (Scotland) Act took effect in April 2018. It puts in place a system of carers rights designed to listen to carers; improve consistency of support; and prevent problems. With the overall aim of the Act to help to sustain caring relationships while protecting carers health and wellbeing.

Under the Act, a young carer is a child aged under 18 (or 18 and still at school) who provides (or intends to provide) care for someone with a disability, long term health condition or addiction issue. An individual can be caring for someone for any number of hours, and does NOT need to provide substantial care on a regular basis to fit the definition of a young carer.

Every young carer is entitled to a Young Carer Statement from the local authority or an organisation acting on its behalf, normally a carer centre, young carer service or school. The Statement is created from an outcomes based conversation with the young carer and must include:

the nature and extent of the care provided and the impact on their wellbeing and day-to-day life;

the extent to which they are able and willing to provide care;

whether the responsible authority thinks that it is appropriate for the individual, as a child or young person, to be a carer for the person you care for;

emergency and future care planning, including any arrangements that are in place;

what 'personal outcomes' matter to the young carer in order continue to provide care, where that is appropriate, to have a life alongside caring, and to improve your own health and wellbeing;

support available if they live in a different local authority are from the person they care for;

whether support should be provided as a break from caring;

support available to locally;

any support which the responsible authority intends to provide; and

the circumstances in which the young carer statement is to be reviewed.

In addition to this, if any of the young carer's identified needs meet local eligibility criteria then the young carer has a right to support to meet those needs. The Act also includes duties to involve carers in individual and strategic decision making, as well as a duty for health boards to involve carers in decisions about the hospital discharge of the person they are caring for.
Am I a carer? - Carers' charter - gov.scot

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Children’s rights are now embedded in Scottish legislation with the Children and Young People (Scotland) Act 2014 (legislation.gov.uk) introducing a duty on Scottish Ministers to ‘keep under consideration whether there are any steps which they could take which would or might secure better or further effect in Scotland of the UNCRC requirements’ and if they consider it appropriate to do so, take any steps identified by that consideration.

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Respect for All - The National Approach to Anti-Bullying for Scotland's Children and Young People - was introduced by the Scottish Government in 2010, refreshed in 2017, and updated in November 2024.
The National Approach communicates and promotes a common vision and aims, to ensure that work across all agencies and communities, locally and nationally, is consistently and coherently contributing to a holistic approach to anti-bullying in Scotland, including prejudice-based bullying.

The policy landscape and legal framework relevant and supportive to anti-bullying work in Scotland is considerable, with both legal and policy aspects to be aware of.

Subscribe to our newsletter

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Respect for All – The National Approach to Anti-Bullying for Scotland’s Children and Young People – was introduced by the Scottish Government in 2010, refreshed in 2017, and updated in November 2024.

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Respect Me: Exploring racism and sterotypes

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Respect Me: Exploring racism and sterotypes

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Respect Me Video: Bullying - what can I do?

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Respect Me Video: Bullying - what can I do?

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SAMH is a company limited by guarantee registered in Scotland, no SC082340

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Ofsted Framework on Behaviour and Attitudes

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Ofsted Framework on Behaviour and Attitudes

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Understanding how Ofsted evaluates schools' approaches to bullying and discrimination is crucial. Their framework provides clear criteria for what constitutes effective anti-bullying measures.

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This guidance came into force on 1 September 2023.

Introduction

1. This handbook describes the main activities carried out during graded, ungraded and urgent inspections of maintained schools and academies in England under sections 5 and 8 of the Education Act 2005, respectively. It sets out the grade descriptors that inspectors use to make their judgements and on which they report. It applies to school inspections under the education inspection framework (EIF).

2. Graded inspections are carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. They were previously known as section 5 inspections. In graded inspections, we use Ofsted's full framework and grade the school for each of our key judgements (quality of education; behaviour and attitudes; personal development; and leadership and management), for any relevant provision judgement (early years and/or sixth form provision) and for its overall effectiveness, against our grade descriptors.

3. Ungraded inspections are carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. They were previously known as section 8 inspections of good and outstanding schools. An ungraded inspection differs from a graded inspection because it does not result in individual graded judgements. Instead, it focuses on determining whether the school remains the same grade as it was at its previous graded inspection.

4. Urgent inspections are also carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. They were previously known as inspections with no formal designation and unannounced behaviour inspections.

5. Ofsted may also carry out inspections under section 8 of the Education Act 2005 in order to comply with a request from the Secretary of State under section 118(2) of the Education and Inspections Act 2006 for information or advice about maintained schools and academies. We may also carry out research during inspections.

6. This handbook is primarily a guide for inspectors on how to carry out school inspections. However, we make it available to schools and other organisations to ensure that they are informed about the processes and procedures of inspection. It seeks to balance the need for consistency in inspections with the flexibility required to respond to the individual circumstances of each school. This handbook should be regarded not as a set of inflexible rules, but as an account of the procedures of inspection. Inspectors will use their professional judgement when they apply the guidance in this handbook.

7. The handbook has 4 parts:

Conduct during inspections

8. Ofsted's code of conduct outlines our expectations of the conduct of our inspectors and our expectations of providers during inspection.

9. Inspectors will uphold the highest professional standards in their work. They will treat everyone they meet during inspections fairly and with respect and sensitivity.

10. Providers should approach their inspection with integrity and be open, transparent and honest. This includes providing evidence - or access to evidence - that will enable inspectors to report honestly, fairly and reliably. It means not withholding or concealing evidence, or providing false, misleading, inaccurate or incomplete information.

Schools raising concerns

11. If a school has any concerns about an inspection, including about inspectors' conduct or any potential or perceived conflicts of interest, they should be raised at the earliest opportunity with the lead inspector. Concerns can be raised at any point during the inspection, including (but not limited to):

12. Any concerns will be taken seriously, and the act of raising the concern will not impact inspection findings or how a school is considered by Ofsted.

Gathering personal information on inspection

13. Inspectors will gather any personal information necessary to assist them in inspecting a school. Our privacy policy sets out what personal information we collect, what we do with it, how long we keep it and individuals' rights under data protection legislation.

14. Individuals and organisations are legally required to provide inspectors with access to information. Section 10 of The Education Act 2005 gives inspectors powers of entry to any premises on which a school provides education to pupils and a right to inspect, and take copies of, any records kept by the school, and any other documents containing information relating to the school, that His Majesty's Chief Inspector ( HMCI) considers relevant to the discharge of her functions. These powers enable inspectors to look at computers and other devices that may hold relevant information. Regulations enable the Department for Education ( DfE) to provide Ofsted with information on individual pupils where it relates to school inspections.

15. Inspectors gather evidence on inspection and record this on Ofsted's systems. They may also see evidence on site that contains personal information about staff and young people, such as registers and lesson plans. Inspectors may take notes from, or copies of, this type of evidence before handing it back to an appropriate staff member at the end of the inspection. Any notes or copies will be stored as evidence securely and not retained by inspectors personally. Inspectors may take photographs of pupils' work. These photographs will be stored securely as evidence, but will not be retained by the inspector personally.

16. In most schools, inspectors will gather evidence electronically using a range of devices, including laptops, mobile phones and tablets. Inspectors should transfer evidence securely in line with our security policies.

Research on inspection

17. We may carry out research during our inspections. Where this happens, the research activity will have no impact on inspection judgements. In addition to this research approach, as our research work is based on our national priorities, we may invite providers to participate in research visits (separate to inspections) at other times.

Clarification for schools

Terminology

18. In this handbook:

the term 'school' refers to a maintained school or an academy, and the terms 'maintained school' or 'academy' will be used where applicable to that type of school only

the term 'leaders' refers to the staff in a school who are responsible for making key decisions about how the school operates, for example on matters such as the curriculum or behaviour. It will always include the headteacher and will likely include their senior staff, but will otherwise vary from school to school, especially depending on its size. In most schools, it will include middle or subject leaders who have responsibility for individual subjects and/or aspects of the curriculum. Additionally, in a trust, 'leaders' also includes leaders from within the trust (but not from governance roles) who have a role in running the school, including the trust chief executive officer ( CEO) and other roles such as executive headteacher or director of education

the term 'trust' refers to any academy trust, including single-academy trusts, multi-academy trusts and multi-academy companies (many dioceses use the term 'multi-academy companies'; these are legally identical to multi-academy trusts but use a different name)

the term 'board of governors' is used to refer to the accountable authority for a maintained school, and 'governors' is used to refer to members of that board. The board is the appropriate body of the school for the purposes of section 6 of the Education Act 2005

the term 'board of trustees' is used to refer to the accountable authority of a trust, and 'trustees' is used to refer to the trustees on that board (who may be referred to as directors if they are in multi-academy companies). The board is the appropriate body and the proprietor for standalone academies or for all the academies in a trust, for the purposes of section 6 of the Education Act 2005

the term 'disadvantaged pupils' is used to mean: pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities ( SEND); pupils who meet the definition of children in need of help and protection; pupils receiving statutory local authority support from a social worker; and pupils who otherwise meet the criteria used for deciding the school's pupil premium funding (this includes pupils claiming free school meals at any point in the last 6 years, looked after children (children in local authority care) and/or children who left care through adoption or another formal route)

any reference to parents includes registered parents or carers

any reference to a school with serious weaknesses refers to a school that requires significant improvement under section 44 of the Education Act 2005

any reference to 'report' describes the formal written outcome from an inspection, which is usually published

Common misconceptions about inspection

19. The information below confirms our requirements. This is to correct common misconceptions about inspection that can result in unnecessary workload for schools. It is intended to highlight specific practices that we do not require.

Evidence for inspection

20. We do not require schools to do additional work or to ask pupils to do work specifically for the inspection, or create unnecessary workload for teachers through our recommendations.

21. We will not require schools to provide:

Involving leaders and governance in inspections

22. We will invite the headteacher and the chief executive officer ( CEO) of the trust to observe the inspectors' final team meeting at the end of each day of the inspection, when one is required. Other staff may attend at the lead inspector's discretion, but attendees should be few in number.

23. We will encourage maintained schools to invite as many governors as possible and academies to invite as many trustees as possible to meet inspectors during an inspection. These meetings may include a virtual option using video or telephone calls if necessary.

24. In academies, we expect to meet those directly responsible for management and governance, including the CEO or their delegate (or equivalent), the chair of the board of trustees and other trustees. Inspectors will refer to the scheme of delegation and discuss this with the headteacher during their notification call, when deciding who may be the most appropriate individuals to speak to.

Evaluating the quality of education

25. We will judge schools that take radically different approaches to the curriculum fairly; inspectors will assess any school's curriculum favourably when leaders have built or adopted a curriculum with appropriate coverage, content, structure and sequencing and implemented it effectively.

26. We will not look unfavourably on schools that have adopted curriculum sequences created by others, for example commercial or local schemes. We will look at whatever curriculum the school is using. It is up to schools to determine their practices and it is up to leadership teams to justify these on their own merits rather than referring to this handbook.

27. We will not:

Staff information and professional development

28. We will not provide schools with any information from any lesson visit with the intention that it be used in capability or disciplinary proceedings or for the purposes of performance management.

29. We will not routinely check personnel files, although inspectors may look at a small sample. They will also review the single central record for the school and at how the school undertakes necessary safeguarding checks.

30. We will not require schools to:

provide evidence of the monitoring of teaching, teachers' professional development or application of the teachers' standards, other than that which is already part of the school's normal activity

provide evidence about each teacher from each of the bulleted sub-headings in the teachers' standards

provide specific details of the pay grade of individual teachers who are observed during inspection

provide anonymised lists of teachers meeting or not meeting performance thresholds for pay progression

provide processes for the performance management arrangements for staff

use the EIF to grade teaching or individual lessons

include targets relating to the proportion of good or better teaching in the headteacher's objectives

set teachers' performance targets based on commercially produced predictions of pupils' achievement, or any other data set, from which it would then hold teachers to account

Safeguarding and security

31. We expect schools to maintain, as they are required to by 'Keeping children safe in education: statutory guidance for schools and colleges', a single central record of the safeguarding checks they carry out. The statutory guidance also requires trusts to record this information in a way that allows for details of each individual academy to be provided separately and without delay, even if it is held centrally.

32. We do not expect, and there is no requirement for, schools to apply retrospectively for Disclosure and Barring Service ( DBS) checks for existing staff who already have a criminal record check. However, there are limited circumstances where schools and colleges will need to carry out new checks on existing staff for example, when an individual working at the school or college moves from a post that was not regulated activity with children into work which is considered to be regulated activity with children; there has been a break in service of 12 weeks or more, or there are concerns about an individual's suitability to work with children.

33. We expect schools to meet the other requirements of Keeping children safe in education, but have no additional or separate expectations of schools with respect to:

Part 1. How schools will be inspected

Basics of inspection

Timing of inspection

34. An inspection can take place at any point from 5 school days after the first day pupils attend in the autumn term. For example, if pupils return to school on a Wednesday, an inspection can take place as early as the following Wednesday.

35. Ofsted is required to inspect at prescribed intervals all schools to which section 5 applies. The law usually requires the maximum interval for inspections to be no more than 5 school years from the end of the school year in which the last relevant inspection took place. However, if a school's most recent graded or ungraded inspection was before 4 May 2021, the legal maximum for that school will, instead, be up to 7 years.

36. In general, our policy is that a school judged outstanding or good will usually be inspected within the 4 academic years following its last inspection, and a school judged requires improvement or inadequate will usually be inspected within 2.5 years.

37. However, the picture is currently more complicated for several reasons (see our blog on inspection timings for more information). The sections below will give you an indication of when your next inspection is likely to be. You can click on these links to take you directly to that section:

38. As has always been the case, the indications we give are only rough guides. We may inspect sooner if we need to (for example if we have concerns about a school). Further, if a school undergoes significant change, for example through merging with another school, its next inspection may be later to give time for these changes to bed in. We do not confirm exactly when a school will be inspected before we notify it officially.

Schools with an outstanding grade that were previously exempt from routine inspection

39. Timing of the next inspection for schools that were previously exempt from routine inspection due to an outstanding grade will depend on when the inspection was that graded that school outstanding. In some cases, this may be the date its predecessor school was inspected.

Date of last inspection (or of predecessor's last inspection)

Likely date of next inspection

Type of next inspection

Schools with a good or outstanding judgement who have had an ungraded inspection that recommended a follow-up graded inspection

40. If a school's most recent grade was good or outstanding but it has since had an ungraded inspection that recommended a follow-up graded inspection, the next inspection will be:

Date of ungraded inspection

Likely date of next inspection

Before September 2021

Before September 2023

After September 2021

Within 1 to 2 years of the ungraded inspection

Schools with a good or outstanding judgement

41. If a school's most recent grade was good or outstanding, and either:

then the next inspection will be:

Date of last inspection

Likely date of next inspection

Before September 2018

Before July 2024

Before April 2020

Before September 2025

After April 2021

Around 4 years after your last inspection

Schools with a requires improvement judgement

Date of last inspection

Likely date of next inspection

Before January 2020

Before January 2024

Before April 2020

Before January 2025

After April 2021

Within 2.5 years after your last inspection

Schools with an inadequate judgement

Date of last inspection

Likely date of next inspection

Before April 2020

Before July 2024

After April 2020

Within 2.5 years after your last inspection

42. This does not include schools that receive a new URN because they convert to an academy or move to a trust. We treat these as new schools.

Graded and ungraded inspections

43. The EIF and this handbook set out the statutory basis for school inspections carried out under the Education Act 2005.

44. This section of the handbook applies to graded and ungraded inspections of schools in England under sections 5 and 8 of the Education Act 2005, respectively. The schools subject to inspection under this section of the Act are:

maintained schools, including community, foundation and voluntary schools

maintained special schools, including community and foundation special schools

maintained nursery schools

certain non-maintained special schools approved by the Secretary of State under section 342 of the Education Act 1996

pupil referral units ( PRUs)

45. This handbook does not apply to monitoring programmes or inspections. The policy for these inspection events can be found in our monitoring handbook.

46. The further education and skills inspection handbook applies to 16 to 19 academies.

47. We identify a school by its unique reference number ( URN). Any institution with its own URN will be inspected in its own right. Schools that work in partnership with other schools, through federations, managed groups, chains or other collaborative activities, but that have a separate URN will be inspected as individual schools and separate inspection reports will be published. Schools that work on different sites, or that have different provisions, but share a single URN will be inspected as one body. We may, however, try to coordinate the inspection of certain groups of schools, where this is possible.

Graded inspections

48. All schools with a judgement of requires improvement or inadequate will receive a graded inspection, as will a selection of schools with an outstanding or good judgement (see 'risk assessment' section). A graded inspection uses our full framework and grades the school against our key judgement (and any relevant provision judgement) grade descriptors, and for its overall effectiveness (see part 3).

Ungraded inspections

49. Some good and outstanding schools will receive a graded inspection, but many will receive an ungraded inspection instead. An ungraded inspection differs from a graded inspection because it does not result in individual graded judgements but focuses on determining whether the school remains the same grade as at the school's previous graded inspection. It cannot change the overall effectiveness grade of the school. Very occasionally, an ungraded inspection can be 'deemed' to be a graded inspection under section 9 of the Education Act (see further details in the 'ungraded inspection deemed to be a graded inspection section'). Where this is the case, inspectors will make the full set of graded judgements using the 4-point grading scale required for graded inspections.

50. Usually, an ungraded inspection will be followed by a further ungraded inspection after approximately a 4-year interval. However, if inspectors find evidence that a school may no longer be at the same grade for overall effectiveness, they will specify that the next inspection should be a graded inspection, with the full range of graded judgements available. This should take place within 1 to 2 years. The 'outstanding schools that were formerly exempt from routine inspections' section sets out specific temporary rules about some outstanding schools.

51. As is the case for all schools, a good or outstanding school may still receive an urgent inspection (carried out under section 8) at any time in certain circumstances ( see part 4). For example, we may decide that we should inspect a school earlier than its next scheduled inspection if:

there are potential safeguarding issues and/or welfare concerns

there is a potential decline in the standards of pupils' behaviour and/or the ability of staff to maintain discipline

a subject or thematic survey inspection raises general concerns

we have received a qualifying complaint about the school that, taken alongside other available evidence, suggests that it would be appropriate to do so

concerns are raised about standards of leadership or governance

concerns are identified about the breadth and balance of the curriculum (including whether the statutory requirement to publish information to parents is not met)

HMCI or the Secretary of State have concerns about the school's performance

the Secretary of State requests an inspection for any other reason

Schools requesting an inspection

52. The board of governors of a maintained school or the board of trustees of an academy are able to request an inspection of an individual school for which they are responsible. This will be a graded inspection. It will be the same as an inspection carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005, although it will technically be carried out under sections 8 and 9. If Ofsted carries out a requested inspection, HMCI may charge the appropriate authority for its cost.

New schools

53. We define a new school as a school with a new URN. The DfE provides all schools with a URN. If a school changes its status or undergoes significant change and receives a new URN, it becomes a new school for inspection purposes, except where that school was previously exempt from inspection. If the school retains its URN following a change, it will be treated as the same school.

54. Academies account for most new schools. These include free schools, former maintained schools that have voluntarily converted to become academies (academy converters), and former maintained schools that were judged as inadequate by Ofsted and were directed by the Secretary of State to become academies and join a trust.

55. Judgements made about a predecessor school with a different URN are not judgements about the new school, even if the new school is, or seems to be, substantially the same provision. Inspectors may look at the performance of any predecessor school as part of pre-inspection planning. They can look at this data to consider whether the new academy has improved on, or declined from, its predecessor's performance and whether it has tackled any areas of weakness or built on strengths from the predecessor school. However, inspectors will take care not to give undue weight to any progress or attainment compared with those of the predecessor. Inspectors will not take account of the predecessor's key judgements or areas for improvement when reaching their judgements about the new school. Inspectors will make clear to the new school the extent to which they have taken account of the performance data from its predecessor school(s) but judgements will be made about the current school only, not the predecessor.

56. The first inspection of a new school will normally take place as follows:

Date of school opening

Likely date of next inspection

Before September 2020

By the end of your 5th academic year

After September 2020

By the end of your 3rd academic year

57. New academy converters whose predecessor schools were judged good or outstanding at their last graded inspection will normally receive an ungraded inspection as their first inspection instead of a graded inspection. However, these schools may receive a graded inspection if we deem it necessary.

58. We will normally carry out ungraded inspections of academy converters approximately every 4 years (although see timing of inspection above). This is in line with ungraded inspections of other good and outstanding schools. However, when carrying out the first ungraded inspection of a new academy, we will consider the inspection history of the predecessor school to decide the timing of the inspection.

59. For inspections of academy converters that were formerly exempt from routine inspection because their predecessor schools were judged outstanding, the decision on when the first inspection will take place is determined by the most recent inspection of the school's predecessor school(s). We will also use this to determine whether the first inspection will be a graded or ungraded inspection. Further details are set out in the 'outstanding schools that were formerly exempt from routine inspections' section.

60. There are some new academy converters whose predecessor school was judged good, with evidence that it may have improved to outstanding at its most recent ungraded inspection, or the lead inspector was not satisfied that the school would receive at least its current grade if a graded inspection was carried out at that time. In both these circumstances, we informed the predecessor schools that their next inspection would be a graded inspection. If that graded inspection did not happen before the schools converted to academy status, the new academy converter will receive a graded inspection as its first inspection.

61. In both these circumstances, the graded inspection will normally take place:

62. The first graded inspection report of a new academy will state 'not previously inspected as an academy' (this will not apply if an existing academy is re-brokered and receives a new URN). The first graded inspection report of a converter academy will include, in the context section, a statement that follows the example below:

Piccadilly Gate Academy converted to become an academy on 1 September 2019. When its predecessor school, Piccadilly Gate Secondary School, was last inspected by Ofsted, it was judged to be good overall.

Risk assessment

63. We use risk assessment to ensure that our approach to inspection is proportionate so that we can focus our efforts on where we can have the greatest impact. We use risk assessment, for example, to determine which good and outstanding schools will receive an ungraded inspection, and which will receive a graded inspection. Risk assessment is a desk-based review of relevant information pertaining to the school. The indicators that we analyse in our risk assessment are usually the most recent data available at that time.

64. We use a broad range of indicators to select schools for inspection. Therefore, receiving a graded inspection, rather than an ungraded inspection, does not mean that there are significant concerns about a school.

65. Our risk assessment methodology is updated and published yearly.

66. In a risk assessment, we analyse:

data from the DfE (for example, progress, attainment, attendance and exclusion data)

school workforce census data

the views of parents and carers, including those shown by Ofsted Parent View, Ofsted's online questionnaire for parents

qualifying complaints about the school referred to Ofsted

pupil mobility (this measures the amount of pupils leaving the school before the normal leaving age, or joining after the normal joining age, for that school)

the outcomes of any inspections that we have carried out since the last graded or ungraded inspection

statutory warning notices

any other significant concerns that are brought to our attention

Outstanding schools that were formerly exempt from routine inspections

67. Between 15 May 2012 and 13 November 2020, mainstream primary and secondary schools judged to be outstanding in their overall effectiveness at their most recent graded inspection were exempt from routine inspections. These schools are now once again subject to routine inspections. This also applies to academy converter schools that were formerly exempt because the overall effectiveness of their predecessor school was outstanding at its most recent graded inspection.

68. All formerly exempt schools will receive an initial inspection by July 2025. However, for that inspection they will not be subject to the risk assessment process set out above. Those schools that last received a graded inspection before September 2015 will receive an initial graded inspection. Schools that last received a graded inspection after this date will normally receive an initial ungraded inspection. If that ungraded inspection indicates that outstanding performance may not have been maintained, we will normally carry out a graded inspection within the next 12 months or as soon as possible thereafter and, in any event, before 1 August 2026. Beyond these initial inspections, future inspections of these schools will take place as set out in the inspection timings section above.

Provision for 2- and 3-year-olds

69. Schools that take 2- and 3-year-olds as part of their early years provision may not need to register that provision with Ofsted. In these cases, we will inspect provision for 2- and 3-year-olds on both ungraded and graded inspections. On graded inspections, inspectors will ensure that the judgement on the effectiveness of early years provision includes an evaluation of the provision for 2- and 3-year-olds. Inspectors will also note if any children receive additional funding.

70. Any care that a school provides for children in the early years age range, before and/or after the school day or during the school holidays, is considered as part of the evaluation of the school's early years provision.

Inspections of boarding and residential special schools

71. When a boarding or residential special school's graded or ungraded inspection is due in the same financial year as the full inspection of its boarding or residential provision, we will normally carry out an aligned inspection.

72. Aligned inspections are carried out by 2 separate inspection teams (education and social care). They result in 2 sets of graded judgements and 2 separate published reports. We will also publish on our reports website a summary letter using extracts from both reports.

73. Inspectors make the judgements for boarding or residential provision in accordance with the guidance and grade descriptors in the social care common inspection framework (SCCIF): boarding schools and residential special schools. Inspectors carry out the inspection of the education provision under the EIF.

74. Education inspectors will consider the impact of the boarding/residential judgements on the overall effectiveness judgement for the whole school. They will take account of the proportion of boarders/residential pupils who also attend the school and the seriousness of any issues found.

75. In practice, inspectors from both teams will work closely together to plan the inspection activities. They will discuss their findings throughout the inspections. They will normally carry out meetings with key personnel, such as the designated safeguarding lead(s) and the governors or trustees, together. The 2 teams will share inspection evidence where it is appropriate to do so. Examples of when it is appropriate to share evidence include assessing pupils' attendance, the strengths of the links between the day school and the boarding or residential provision, and if concerns are raised with inspectors about the welfare of the children in the school and/or boarding or residential provision.

76. We will notify the provider of the aligned inspections at around 2pm on the day before both inspections are due to start. The lead education and social care inspectors will then follow this notification call with separate calls to the headteacher and head of boarding, respectively. All education and social care teams will arrive and leave the school at the same time at the beginning and at the end of the inspection. Arrival and departure times throughout the inspection will differ according to the requirements of each remit's framework.

77. In instances when the boarding/residential inspection is aligned with an ungraded inspection and that inspection is deemed to be a graded inspection, the inspections will cease to be aligned at that point. They will continue as stand-alone events.

Inspections of schools that are registered as children's homes

78. A graded or ungraded inspection of the education in a school that is also registered as a children's home may take place as a stand-alone inspection of the education provision or at the same time as the full inspection of the children's home. This applies to residential special schools that offer residential provision for more than 295 days a year and must therefore be registered as a children's home.

79. When possible, we will attempt to carry out both inspections at the same time so that inspectors may work together and share evidence. In practice, inspectors from both teams will work closely together to plan inspection activities. They may carry out meetings with key personnel, such as the designated safeguarding lead(s) and the proprietor, together. The 2 teams will discuss their findings throughout the inspections and will share inspection evidence, where it is appropriate to do so. Examples of when it is appropriate to share evidence include assessing pupils' attendance, the strengths of the links between the day school and the children's home provision, and if concerns are raised with inspectors about the welfare of children in the day school and/or children's home.

80. When the education inspection of a school that is also registered as a children's home takes place as a standalone event, inspectors must read the most recent education and children's home reports on the preparation day. They must make themselves aware of any current issues concerning children's welfare that may affect aspects of the school inspection by contacting the lead social care regulatory inspector or that inspector's manager. Inspectors will ensure that they take these into consideration during the inspection.

Concurrent inspections

81. We may schedule inspections at the same time for 'linked provision', which is when one or more schools have arrangements to share important aspects of their provision, such as sixth-form programmes or an inclusion unit. Inspectors will make sure that they communicate with each other before and during the inspections. They will also share evidence electronically where it is appropriate to do so. Inspectors can share:

82. Inspectors will not rely solely on this shared evidence to make their judgements. Shared information must be followed up by inspectors' own evidence gathering.

Before the inspection

Notification and lead inspector's preparation

Notification

83. We will normally contact the school by telephone to announce a graded, ungraded or urgent inspection between 9.30am and 2pm on the school day before the inspection.

84. By exception, we reserve the right to carry out a graded, ungraded or urgent inspection without notice. Where this is the case, the lead inspector will normally telephone the school about 15 minutes before arriving on site.

85. If the headteacher is unavailable when the notification call is made, we will ask to speak to the most senior member of school staff available. Once we have informed the school by telephone that the inspection will take place, we will send confirmation to the school by email.

86. During the initial notification phone call, we will ask the school to confirm the information we hold about the provision. This will include the number of pupils on roll at the school, the governance arrangements for the school and whether the school has any pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities ( SEND), nursery provision for 2- and 3-year-olds or additional resource provision. We will also ask if any adult lives on the school premises. If adults do live on the premises, inspectors will consider the school's risk assessment in assessing the school's safeguarding. Schools will be expected to demonstrate they have fully assessed any risks to children, including in their safeguarding check of residents, in their assessing of access between the residential accommodation and the rest of the premises, and in their consideration of other individuals (such as family members and visitors) that will access the residential accommodation. In academies, there should also be a discussion about who (in the trust and in the school) has responsibility for key decisions like behaviour policy and curriculum content.

87. We will then send the school a letter setting out key information for leaders to be aware of before the inspection. This will include:

Requests for deferral or cancellation

88. A school may request a deferral of its inspection. It may make a request during the initial notification phone call, or to the lead inspector on the day it is notified of the inspection. We will not normally consider requests for deferral if we receive them after 4.30pm on the day the school is notified. The inspection support administrator or lead inspector must immediately contact the regional duty desk. We will decide whether to grant a deferral in accordance with our deferral policy.

89. Normally, if the school is providing education to pupils, an inspection will go ahead. In exceptional circumstances, however, an inspection might be cancelled or deferred after the school has been notified, following a request made by the school. We will aim to let the school know whether a request is granted on the same day it is made, but in some cases, particularly when the request for deferral comes later, this may happen by 8am the next morning.

90. If a school is within 6 months of confirmed closure, and this is evidenced in a funding agreement, for example, but the school does not request a cancellation when the inspector makes contact, the inspection support administrator will call the regional duty desk to highlight this and get advice about whether the inspection should still be carried out. Decisions will be made case by case.

91. In the case of an inspection without notice, any requests for a deferral will be passed to Ofsted's relevant regional director, who will decide whether the request can be granted.

Preparatory telephone call(s) from the lead inspector to the headteacher

92. Once we have informed the school of the inspection, the lead inspector will contact the school by telephone or video and ask to speak to the headteacher. Inspectors' preparatory telephone conversations with headteachers have 2 elements:

93. It may be that both these elements are discussed in a single telephone conversation. Alternatively, they may be carried out as 2 or more separate conversations with a break in between, as agreed between the lead inspector and the headteacher.

Inspection planning conversation

94. This conversation will be short and focused on practical issues. The lead inspector will:

make the school aware of its statutory duty to inform parents of the inspection and that the Ofsted Parent View tool is the main method for gathering the views of parents at the point of inspection; inspectors will remind the school that Ofsted's letter to parents containing the link to Ofsted Parent View may be sent electronically, or a paper copy may be given to pupils to take home

check that the school has received the links to staff and pupil surveys in the notification letter

discuss the nature of any specially resourced provision or designated unit for pupils with SEND or other pupils, if applicable

discuss any nursery provision (see the 'Provision for 2- and 3-year-olds' section), before- and/or after-school care and holiday clubs led and managed directly by the school, particularly if these take 2- to 8-year-olds

establish whether the school is linked to a children's home, and if so whether the children's home is managed by the school

clarify whether the school has boarding or residential provision, and if so the:

invite the headteacher and other leaders, as agreed by the lead inspector and headteacher, to take part in joint visits to lessons and to observe the inspection team meetings at the end of each day, where these are required

establish which approach to the early career framework the school is using for early career teachers ( ECTs)

make arrangements for meetings with relevant staff

agree whether it may be pragmatic to do some elements of the inspection through video or telephone calls. This will usually only be to involve parents and those with leadership, trust or governance responsibility who are unable to attend

ask the headteacher to read Ofsted's code of conduct, which sets out expectations for both inspectors and providers, and explain that if the headteacher has any concerns about inspectors not acting in accordance with the code of conduct, they should raise this as soon as possible with the lead inspector. This is so that any issues can be resolved before the inspection is completed

provide an opportunity for the school to give us information about any other factors they consider relevant to their current context, and ask any questions or to raise any concerns, such as perceived conflicts of interest

95. The lead inspector will also use the conversation to establish whether the school has any pupils who attend off-site alternative provision, either full time or part time, run either by the school or by a different organisation. If the school uses off-site alternative provision, the lead inspector will request further details about this.

96. The lead inspector will also ask the school to provide certain information as early as possible to aid preparation. This will include:

97. It is important that inspectors speak to leaders, governors and trustees during inspections. There are a wide variety of leadership and governance models in the school sector, so it is essential that inspectors establish who is responsible for what.

98. In a maintained school, the lead inspector will:

establish the governance structure of the school and confirm arrangements for meetings with the school, the board of governors and anyone else the lead inspector thinks would be relevant

make arrangements for, as a minimum, a meeting with the chair of the board of governors and as many governors as possible

ask the school to invite as many governors as possible to attend the final feedback meeting

request either a face-to-face meeting or a telephone call with a representative from the local authority, diocese or other relevant responsible body

request that a representative from the local authority, diocese or other relevant responsible body is present at the final inspection feedback meeting

confirm that the school is not requesting a deferral

99. In an academy, the lead inspector will:

establish the governance structure of the academy and of the trust

consult the academy and trust in order to determine the different levels of responsibility and oversight within the trust and so who they need to meet from the trust

if the trust has delegated responsibilities to local committees (known as local governing bodies in trusts' articles of association), clarify where responsibility lies and who they should talk to during the inspection. This should be set out in a scheme of delegation. Academies should also set out their governance structure in their annual financial statements, which can generally be found on the DfE performance tables site

confirm arrangements for a meeting with leaders (in both the academy and the trust) that will include the CEO and anyone else agreed between the headteacher, CEO and lead inspector (see approach to the trust in school inspections section below)

make arrangements for one meeting, as a minimum, with the chair of the board of trustees (or their delegate) and as many trustees as possible. Inspectors will also ask the school to invite as many trustees as possible to attend the final feedback meeting

request either a face-to-face meeting or a telephone call with a representative from the diocese, sponsor or other relevant responsible body

request that a representative from the diocese, sponsor or other relevant responsible body attends the final inspection feedback meeting

where safeguarding is ineffective, request that a representative from the local authority attends the final inspection feedback meeting

confirm that the school is not requesting a deferral

100. If any issues arise, the lead inspector may also need further clarification from the school, for example when information is not available on the school's website.

Preparation carried out by the lead inspector

101. To prepare for the educationally focused conversation, and the inspection as a whole, inspectors will review and consider:

other information on Ofsted's provider information portal, which provides a high-level view of information about providers that we inspect and regulate, including any warning notices

relevant publicly available information, such as the school's website and the trust's website, including:

curriculum information

policies (for example, safeguarding, behaviour, and relationships, sex and health education)

use of funding (for example pupil premium and catch-up funding)

information about SEND provision (for example, SEND information report and accessibility plan)

information schools are required to publish related to Equality Act 2010 duties

information about governance

for an academy, the trust's scheme of delegation

any other information about the school (including safeguarding) that is publicly available, including information reported in the press or online

the most recent inspection report on the relevant local authority's children's services

the main findings from the relevant local area SEND inspection, including (where relevant) arrangements for identifying, assessing and meeting the needs of young children with SEND

information published by local authorities, the DfE (including the Education and Skills Funding Agency and regional school commissioners) and the police

The educationally focused conversation

102. Inspectors will use this conversation to understand:

the school's context, and the progress it has made since the previous inspection, including any specific progress made on areas for improvement identified at previous inspections that remain relevant under the current inspection framework

the specific impact of COVID-19 on the school and how leaders are responding to the ongoing impact. We recognise that responding to COVID-19 has placed great demands on leaders and detailed discussions of this may be required to understand the school's context

the headteacher's assessment of the school's current strengths and weaknesses, particularly in relation to: the curriculum, the way teaching supports pupils to learn the curriculum, the standards that pupils achieve, pupils' behaviour and attitudes, and the personal development of pupils

Where the school is an academy, the role of trust leaders, including which decisions are made centrally by them, and which are delegated to the headteacher and/or other school leaders (see approach to the trust in school inspections section below).

the specific areas or subjects of the school curriculum that should be focused on during inspection - during this call, inspectors will also agree with the head which subjects will receive a deep dive during the inspection

103. This conversation will normally last around 90 minutes, but may be longer. It will help the lead inspector and headteacher to establish a rapport before inspection and give them a shared understanding of the starting point of the inspection. It will also help inspectors to form an initial understanding of the leaders' views on the school's progress.

104. This conversation will be used to agree the inspection plan with the headteacher.

SEND resource bases

105. If the school has a SEND resource base delegated to it by the local authority, that resource base must be inspected as part of the school inspection. Inspectors will consider evidence about the resource base when making judgements about the school overall.

Information that schools must provide by 8am on the day of inspection

106. The inspection support administrator will also send the school a letter setting out that the following information must be made available to inspectors by 8am the next day, at the formal start of the inspection:

strategic documents about the school, including:

anything that sets out school improvement planning or the longer-term vision for the school, such as the school or the trust's strategy

for maintained schools, minutes of governors' meetings and other relevant strategic documentation about governance that the school may have

for academies, minutes of board of trustees' meetings and other relevant strategic documentation about the trust that the school may have

a summary of any school self-evaluation or equivalent

any reports from any external evaluation of the school

operational documents, including:

access to wifi, if it exists, so that inspectors can connect to the internet

maps and other practical information

the school timetable, current staff list (indicating , mentors and induction tutors) and times for the school day, including any planned interruptions to normal school routines during the inspection and whether any teachers should not be visited for any reason

Safeguarding information

107. On arrival at the school, inspectors must have secure access to safeguarding information, including:

the single central record for the school

a list of any referrals made to the designated safeguarding lead in the school and those that were subsequently referred to the local authority, along with brief details of the resolution (a very short summary of how the school dealt with the matter and assurance that pupils have received the appropriate help)

any referrals made to the local authority designated officer regarding staff or other adults

a list of all pupils who have open cases with children's services or social care and all pupils who have a multi-agency plan. This is to ensure that the school knows who these pupils are, and meets the pupils' requirements in respect of their open cases or multi-agency plans. Inspectors may select some children to sample to ensure the school is doing what is required by 'Keeping children safe in education: statutory guidance for schools and colleges'.

108. Schools and inspectors must ensure that all actions are compliant with legal requirements on information-handling.

Seeking the views of parents, staff and pupils

Seeking the views of parents

109. We will provide schools with a letter to pass on to parents that formally notifies them of a graded or ungraded inspection. This letter explains how to use Ofsted Parent View and how parents can contact inspectors. Schools should encourage parents to complete the Ofsted Parent View questionnaire by placing a link to it on their website. In addition, inspectors will encourage the school to notify parents using its own electronic systems (such as text messages), if these are available.

110. Schools will be expected to provide these details to parents on both graded and ungraded inspections. However, schools should note that, for graded inspections, they are required by law to take any reasonably practicable steps to notify the parents of registered pupils at the school, including the parents of those who have been suspended, attend alternative provision or are away from school. Schools are also required by law to notify relevant bodies, including providers of alternative provision. Similarly, inspectors have a statutory duty to have regard to the views of parents and other relevant persons on graded inspections.

111. Inspectors will review the evidence from Ofsted Parent View throughout the inspection to ensure that all online responses received during the inspection are taken into account. If the response rate for Ofsted Parent View is low, inspectors may take steps during the inspection to gather further evidence of parents' views. Inspectors will do this on both graded and ungraded inspections, but it should be noted that inspectors have a specific statutory duty to have regard of the views of parents and other relevant persons on a graded inspection.

112. Inspectors will also take into account any other evidence from parents, including the results of any past surveys the school has carried out or commissioned. If individual parents raise serious issues, inspectors will follow these up with the school and record its response.

113. During aligned inspections of boarding or residential special schools, inspectors will take account of the views that parents have given on Ofsted Parent View about the school's boarding or residential provision. They will also take account of the views of children and young people who are boarders or residential pupils, and those of boarding staff, which will have been gathered through Ofsted's annual point-in-time surveys.

Pupil and staff questionnaires

114. The views of pupils and staff in schools are gathered through online questionnaires. The inspection support administrator sends online links to the school with the formal notification of inspection. The school is asked to encourage staff and pupils to complete the online questionnaires, except for those pupils in any boarding provision whose views will have already been sought through the point-in-time survey. Pupils and staff should complete their questionnaires by 3pm on the first day of the inspection. For ungraded inspections of schools with fewer than 150 pupils (which take place over 1 day), questionnaires should be completed by 11am on the day of inspection.

115. Inspectors may also gather evidence from pupils, parents or other stakeholders in person. This may include informal meetings at the start and/or end of the day. In drawing on evidence from these meetings, every attempt must be made to protect the identity of individuals. There may be circumstances, however, in which it is not possible to guarantee the anonymity of the interviewee. Inspectors have a duty to pass on disclosures that raise child protection or safeguarding issues and/or when there are concerns about serious misconduct, bullying of staff or criminal activity.

116. Meetings with pupils or parents must take place without the presence of any leaders or staff, unless there are exceptional circumstances. When inspectors hold meetings with staff (including headteachers and other leaders), they should remind whoever they are meeting that they are able to have a colleague from the school or trust present too, if they wish. Every effort should be made to ensure that staff can speak freely, especially if they are accompanied by senior leaders.

The inspection

117. Graded and ungraded inspections normally last 2 days. However, an ungraded inspection of a primary school or maintained nursery school with fewer than 150 pupils or children on its roll will normally last for 1 day. The size of the inspection team will vary according to the size and nature of the school. Inspection activity will take place over both days of the inspection.

118. On each day of the inspection, inspectors will not arrive before 8am and will leave by 6pm except in exceptional circumstances (although they may need to stay later for inspections in boarding and residential schools).

119. On aligned inspections of boarding and residential special schools, the social care regulatory inspectors may stay into the evening to ensure that they are able to meet boarding or residential pupils and see the boarding or residential provision operating. How long they stay will depend on their lines of enquiry.

Inspection methodology

120. Our framework puts a single, joined-up conversation about education at the heart of inspection, using a 3-part methodology to inspect schools on graded and ungraded inspections. Through this methodology, inspectors build a view of the quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development and leadership and management:

121. Inspectors' priority during inspections is to collect first-hand evidence.

Approach to the trust in school inspections

122. Inspectors will recognise that trusts are a single legal entity and that decisions made by individual academies and those by trust leaders cannot easily be separated, although inspectors must focus on decisions that impact only the specific academy they are inspecting. Inspectors will ensure that, through conversation with leaders (in the school and the trust), they identify the correct leaders, in the individual academy and the wider trust, to meet with during the course of the inspection. They will also recognise that trusts retain overall legal responsibility for all matters in the school, even where matters are delegated.

123. Inspectors will recognise that the trust leaders they need to speak to may be those who have delegated responsibility and that, where trusts are large, for example, this may be more than 1 person. Inspectors will not limit attendance at meetings or on inspection activities but will use their professional judgement to ensure that the right individuals are present and makes the most effective and efficient use of time.

124. Inspectors will, as a minimum, want to meet the CEO if possible but will recognise that (especially in large trusts) CEOs may need other senior trust leaders present to support these meetings. However, inspectors will want to understand how all leaders ensure that delegated responsibilities are carried out effectively, including how leaders assure themselves that systems are working as intended.

Keeping leaders informed

125. The lead inspector will meet an agreed school leader (nearly always the headteacher) regularly throughout the inspection to:

126. If, by the end of day 1 or during day 2, there is evidence that the school might be judged as inadequate or requires improvement, the lead inspector will alert the headteacher to this possibility. The inspector must emphasise that they do not make final judgements until the final team meeting at the end of day 2.

Early career teachers

127. Inspectors will meet ECTs where possible and may wish to visit ECTs' lessons. When the lead inspector requests a copy of the current staff list, they must ask whether it includes any ECTs and/or any trainees on placement, including those on School Direct or School Direct (salaried) training routes or post-graduate teaching apprenticeships ( PGTA).

128. Inspectors will take into account the fact that ECTs have less experience than other teachers. However, they must assess the effectiveness of the support and professional development put in place for ECTs to ensure that ECTs have the knowledge and skills necessary to teach in their chosen subject or phase.

129. Inspectors should also gather ECTs' views on how the school is supporting their development, including the quality of mentoring and how the school ensures that they access their entitlement to training under the ECF. Inspectors will also discuss how the school supports ECTs in managing pupils' behaviour.

130. Inspectors will meet with mentors and, where possible, the induction tutor. Inspectors will meet any trainees employed by the school on the School Direct (salaried) route or PGTA route to assess their support, mentoring and induction.

131. Inspectors will not visit lessons taught by trainees. The teachers' standards state that providers will assess trainees against the standards in a way that is consistent with what could reasonably be expected of a trainee teacher before the awarding of qualified teacher status ( QTS). Inspectors will not take trainees' performance into account when assessing the quality of education.

Meeting governors or trustees

132. Inspectors will want to meet those responsible for governance during the inspection. In a maintained school, this will usually be the school governors. In an academy, this will be the board of trustees.

133. In a school that is part of a trust, the board of trustees is the accountable entity and governance body. Often, local governing bodies can appear responsible for governance, when in reality it is trustees who are accountable for the academy trust. Local governing bodies are committees to which trustees may choose to delegate some specific responsibilities, but in some cases, they may act purely as advisory bodies and engage with the community. Their responsibilities are set out in the trust's scheme of delegation. Sometimes, their powers are delegated from trust leaders; if this is the case, they are part of the school's management, not its governance. Inspectors will therefore need to be careful to establish who has overall responsibility for governance. Inspectors will also ensure that meetings are with those who are directly responsible for exercising governance of the school and for overseeing its performance.

134. Inspectors will take account of the specific context of the school in deciding who to speak to. For example, this may include inviting diocesan representatives for a multi-academy company.

135. The role that governors and trustees play in the school's performance is evaluated as part of the judgement on the effectiveness of leadership and management.

136. As with meetings with pupils, parents, ECTs and staff, meetings or telephone discussions with those responsible for governance should take place without leaders being present (except where leaders are also trustees).

Other evidence

137. Inspectors will also scrutinise a range of school records, documentation and information relating to, for example, pupils' behaviour, attendance and safeguarding.

138. We may use the evidence that inspectors gather during inspections to inform other work, such as national reporting, for example our education recovery series.

Inspection of religious education and collective worship

139. The Secretary of State designates certain schools as having a religious character. In a faith school, pupils are educated in the context of the principle of a religion. It is normal for there to be a formal link with a religious organisation. In schools without a religious character, we inspect religious education ( RE) and collective worship as part of our graded inspections. This is different in schools with a religious character. In most of these schools, denominational education and collective worship are inspected by a body appointed by the maintained school's board of governors under section 48 of the Education Act 2005 or as provided in the academy's funding agreement. In a voluntary controlled school designated as having a religious character, we inspect RE, but not collective worship.

140. Inspectors may gather evidence from anywhere relevant (including RE lessons and assemblies) to evaluate pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural education, personal development and/or behaviour and attitudes.

141. The fact that the school has been designated as having a religious character must be referenced in the 'information about this school' section of the inspection report.

142. Section 48 inspections (or the equivalent inspection of an academy) are usually carried out every 3 to 5 years (and usually within 2 to 3 years of a new voluntary-aided school or academy or free school opening). Section 48 inspections were suspended during the COVID-19 pandemic and restarted in September 2021. The first inspection will be within 8 years of the last, rather than the usual 3 to 5 years. The lead inspector on a graded inspection will check the section 48 arrangements. This includes when the next inspection is due and when the last inspection was. They will write about this in the inspection report. They will ensure that the required consultation has taken place with the prescribed faith body, when a school has a prescribed faith body and decides not to use that body's inspection service but to appoint its own inspector.

143. Inspectors will familiarise themselves with any issues raised in any section 48 inspection (or equivalent) held since the last Ofsted inspection. Inspectors will not, however, use that evidence in an Ofsted inspection. The lead inspector will note in the inspection report if the section 48 inspection (or equivalent inspection of an academy) is overdue and that, therefore, the school is failing in its statutory duty.

144. If a section 48 inspection (or equivalent inspection of an academy) happens at the same time as an Ofsted graded inspection, inspectors will mention this in the 'information about this school' section.

Specific matters for graded inspections

Inspection of the school's approach to harmful sexual behaviour

145. On graded inspections, we will look at how leaders ensure that their school's culture addresses harmful sexual behaviour. Inspectors will expect schools to assume that sexual harassment, online sexual abuse and sexual violence are happening in the community, and potentially in the school, even when there are no specific reports, and put in place a whole-school approach to address them.

146. Schools should have appropriate and well-communicated school-wide policies in place that make it clear that sexual harassment (including sexual harassment through sexualised language), online sexual abuse and sexual violence are unacceptable. Those policies should be consistently reflected throughout the school (see paragraphs 291, 316, and 379 to 380).

Specific matters for ungraded inspections

147. On ungraded inspections, inspectors will normally adopt the same methodology for inspecting the quality of education and safeguarding as that used on a graded inspection outlined in the 'quality of education' section and 'safeguarding' section.

148. They will also focus on a number of other areas within the graded inspection framework, as set out below.

Attendance - inspectors will consider whether the school is doing all they reasonably can to achieve the highest possible attendance

Behaviour - inspectors will not make a judgement on all the criteria contained in the 'behaviour and attitudes' judgement. Nevertheless, they will consider 2 key factors:

whether the school has high expectations for pupils' behaviour and conduct and applies these expectations consistently and fairly. Inspectors will also consider whether this is reflected in pupils' positive behaviour and conduct. They will consider whether staff make sure that pupils follow appropriate routines, whether low-level disruption is not tolerated and whether pupils' behaviour does not disrupt lessons or the day-to-day life of the school

whether leaders, staff and pupils create a positive environment in which bullying is not tolerated. If bullying, aggression, discrimination and derogatory language occur, they are dealt with quickly and effectively and are not allowed to spread

Gaming and off-rolling - when carrying out inspection activities, inspectors will be particularly alert to any evidence that suggests that the school may be gaming or off-rolling. Definitions of these can be found in the 'Evaluating gaming on a graded inspection and 'Evaluating a school's approach to inclusion and off-rolling on a graded inspection' sections.

Pupils' wider development - inspectors will consider:

the extent to which the curriculum goes beyond the academic, vocational or technical

whether the school provides effectively for pupils' broader development

whether the school's work to enhance pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is of a high quality

secondary schools' approach to careers information, education, advice and guidance ( CIEAG). Definitions of this can be found in the 'careers provision' section. If a school is not meeting its requirements in respect of CIEAG, inspectors will state this in the inspection report

149. Where the lead inspector has concerns about any of the above, this could be evidence that the school would no longer receive at least its current grade if a graded inspection were to be carried out, and, where those concerns are serious, could suggest that the inspection needs to be deemed a graded inspection.

Providing feedback

150. At the end of the final day of the inspection, inspectors will make an overall evaluation of the evidence. They will record the main points for feedback to the school in the evidence base. The on-site inspection ends with a final feedback meeting with the school. Those connected with the school who may attend include:

the headteacher and, for an academy, the CEO (or equivalent or delegate)

for maintained schools, the chair of the school's board of governors and as many governors as possible; the clerk to governors (or equivalent), or their delegate, may also attend to take notes

for academies, the chair of the board of trustees and as many trustees as possible; the clerk to the board (or equivalent), or their delegate, may also attend to take notes

a representative from the local authority (for maintained schools), sponsor and/or the designated responsible body, diocese or other responsible body

in an aligned inspection, social care regulatory inspectors and education inspectors will feed back together to both education and residential staff

the lead inspector may agree that other leaders can attend, but the expectation will normally be that the headteacher and CEO pass on feedback to staff of their choice

Due to the diverse nature of school governance, in some schools a single individual may have more than one of the above roles.

151. During this meeting, the lead inspector will ensure that the headteacher, the CEO, governors, trustees and all other attendees are clear:

Procedures when judging a school as inadequate on a graded inspection

152. If, by the end of the first day of the inspection or during day 2, the lead inspector thinks it is possible that the school's overall effectiveness is inadequate and that it might be judged to have serious weaknesses or to require special measures, they must make the school's leadership aware of this. The lead inspector must also ring Ofsted's duty desk.

153. The lead inspector will be asked for their name and the name and URN of the school. They will then be put through to one of the HMI on duty. In this call, the lead inspector must talk through the evidence used by inspector(s) in reaching an emerging provisional judgement of inadequate. The overall effectiveness judgement is not confirmed at this point. The lead inspector must record the main points of the conversation in the evidence base.

154. During the second day of the inspection, the lead inspector may contact the duty desk again to discuss emerging findings. If the inspection team has made the provisional judgement that the school is inadequate and has serious weaknesses or requires special measures, the lead inspector must telephone the duty desk before the final oral feedback meeting with the school. The lead inspector will be prepared to explain briefly the reasons and underpinning evidence for the inadequate judgement.

Informing a school that it is deemed to be causing concern

155. If a school is provisionally judged to require special measures or to have serious weaknesses, inspectors must use the following words during the final feedback to the school, indicating that the overall effectiveness judgement is subject to moderation by HMIs and, in the case of special measures, agreement by HMCI.

When the school has serious weaknesses:

In accordance with section 44 of the Education Act 2005, His Majesty's Chief Inspector is likely to be of the opinion that this school has serious weaknesses because it is performing significantly less well than it might in all the circumstances be reasonably expected to perform.

When the school requires special measures:

In accordance with section 44 of the Education Act 2005, His Majesty's Chief Inspector is likely to be of the opinion that this school requires special measures because it is failing to give its pupils an acceptable standard of education and the persons responsible for leading, managing or governing the school are not demonstrating the capacity to secure the necessary improvement in the school.

156. The implications for schools causing concern are set out in the 'schools causing concern' section.

157. The Education (Induction Arrangements for School Teachers) (England) Regulations 2012 state that a maintained school that has been judged to require special measures must not appoint ECTs unless HMCI has given permission in writing. When the lead inspector has informed a maintained school that it may not appoint ECTs, the school must seek approval in writing to the relevant Ofsted regional director and giving supporting reasons if it later wishes to appoint ECTs. The restriction on appointing ECTs does not extend to trainee teachers who joined employment-based training programmes at the school before the notice ( paragraph 10 of Schedule 2 to the Qualifications Regulations 2003).

After the inspection

Arrangements for publishing the report

158. The lead inspector is responsible for writing the inspection report and submitting the evidence to Ofsted shortly after the inspection ends. The text of the report should explain the judgements and reflect the evidence. The findings in the report should be consistent with the feedback given to the school at the end of the inspection.

159. Inspection reports will be quality assured before we send a draft to the school. In most circumstances, we will send the draft report to the school within 18 working days after the end of the inspection. This will take place following moderation or quality assurance.

160. The school will have 5 working days to comment on the draft report, inspection process and findings. We will consider all comments. We will respond to them when we share the final report with the school within 30 working days after the inspection. As set out above, we expect leaders to share the inspection outcome and findings with governors or trustees and whoever they deem appropriate. We may also send the draft report to the DfE and other bodies. This will only take place following moderation or quality assurance.

161. If the school wishes to make a formal complaint, it has 5 working days after we have shared the final report with the school (not necessarily the same as 5 school days) in which to do so. If a complaint is not submitted, we will normally publish the report on our reports website 3 working days later. If a complaint has been submitted, the publication of the report may be delayed.

162. For graded inspections, once a school has received its final report, it is required to take such steps as are reasonably practicable to ensure that every parent of a registered pupil at the school receives a copy of the report within 5 working days ( section 14(4)(c) of the Education Act 2005). Schools may wish to consider whether emails to parents and/or publication on the school's website can fulfil this requirement. If the school has not submitted a complaint, we will normally publish the report on our reports website 3 working days later. If it has submitted a complaint, the publication of the report may be delayed.

163. In all cases, the inspection process should not be treated as complete until all inspection activity has been carried out and the final version of the inspection report has been sent to the school.

164. The evidence base for the inspection must be retained in line with our retention and disposal policy. This is normally for 6 years from when the report is published. We may decide that retaining it for longer is warranted for research purposes.

Quality assurance

165. All inspectors are responsible for the quality of their work. The lead inspector must ensure that inspections are carried out in accordance with the principles of inspection and the code of conduct.

166. We monitor the quality of inspections through a range of formal processes, and HMI/Senior HMI visit some schools or monitor remotely to quality assure inspections. We may also evaluate the quality of an inspection evidence base. The lead inspector will be responsible for giving team inspectors feedback about the quality of their work and their conduct.

167. All schools are invited to take part in a voluntary post-inspection survey in order to contribute to inspection development. The link to this survey is provided when the school receives the final copy of its inspection report.

Handling concerns and complaints

168. The great majority of our work is carried out smoothly and without incident. If concerns do arise during the inspection, they should be raised with the lead inspector as soon as possible, in order to resolve issues before the inspection is completed. Any concerns raised, and actions taken, will be recorded in the inspection evidence.

169. If it is not possible to resolve concerns during the inspection or through submitting comments in response to the draft report, the school may wish to lodge a formal complaint when it receives the final report. The lead inspector will ensure that the school is informed that it is able to make a formal complaint and that information about how to complain is available on gov.uk.

170. A school judged to be outstanding or good can use specific Ofsted logos to promote its judgement, for example on its website. Schools may only use a logo when it reflects the judgement of the most recent graded inspection of that school. They must remove the logo when the school's URN changes, or if their grade changes. More information can be found on our logo terms of use page.

Inspection outcomes

Outcomes of a graded inspection: judgements

Schools that are judged outstanding or good

171. A school judged to be outstanding or good on a graded inspection will normally receive an ungraded inspection around 4 years later.

Schools that are judged as requires improvement

172. A school that is judged as requires improvement following a graded inspection is a school that is not good but overall provides an acceptable standard of education. The 'schools causing concern' section explains 'acceptable standard of education'. The judgement of requires improvement is not a formal category of concern, but the school may be subject to monitoring by Ofsted so inspectors will direct the school to Ofsted's monitoring handbook.

173. The school will usually receive a graded inspection within 2.5 years of the publication of the previous report. For the first inspection after the pandemic, this period will be extended by 2 years.

174. If, at the next graded inspection, the school has not demonstrated that it has improved to good, the lead inspector will need to consider whether it continues to require improvement or may be inadequate. If the school has demonstrated improvement in some areas and there is a general upward trend, but key aspects of performance remain less than good, the school may be judged as requires improvement again. In that case another graded inspection will take place within 2.5 years of the publication of the previous report (for the first inspection after the pandemic, this period will be extended by up to 2 years). These considerations will be made at each graded reinspection of a school that was previously judged as requires improvement.

Schools that are judged as inadequate (schools causing concern: special measures and serious weaknesses)

175. Schools whose overall effectiveness is judged to be inadequate following a graded inspection will be deemed to be in a formal category of concern.

176. If inspectors conclude that the school's overall effectiveness is inadequate, but both quality of education and personal development are requires improvement or better, inspectors will conclude that the school is giving an acceptable standard of education and will judge the school to have serious weaknesses.

177. If the school's grade either for quality of education or for personal development is 'inadequate', inspectors will conclude that the school is failing to give an acceptable standard of education. Inspectors must then consider whether school leaders, trust leaders (in academies), and governors or trustees are demonstrating the capacity to improve the school.

178. If inspectors conclude that the school is inadequate, and is failing to give its pupils an acceptable standard of education but school leaders, trust leaders (in academies), and governors or trustees are demonstrating the capacity to improve, they will judge the school to have serious weaknesses.

179. If inspectors conclude that the school is inadequate, and is failing to give its pupils an acceptable standard of education and school leaders, trust leaders (in academies) and governors/trustees are not demonstrating the capacity to improve the school, then the school will be judged to require special measures.

Capacity to improve

180. In deciding whether schools have the capacity to improve, inspectors should not simply consider a school's potential but the extent to which leaders:

Implications for a school causing concern

181. Inadequate schools will be monitored in accordance with the policies set out in the monitoring handbook.

182. Maintained schools and PRUs that are judged to be causing concern will be subject to an academy order as set out in the DfE's statutory guidance. The Secretary of State has a duty to make an academy order for all maintained schools judged to have serious weaknesses ('requiring significant improvement') and those that require special measures. This includes maintained special schools, but excludes maintained nursery schools and non-maintained special schools. For academies that are causing concern, the Secretary of State has a power to terminate the funding agreement, and the academy may join another trust.

183. Whether becoming a new academy or being brokered or rebrokered, these schools will become new sponsored academies. We will then inspect them as new schools within 3 years of operation and normally in the third academic year (or 5th year if they opened before September 2020). However, in exceptional circumstances, schools that are becoming new academies or being rebrokered may receive an ungraded inspection before their next graded inspection.

184. Academies judged to have serious weaknesses will normally be reinspected within 2.5 years of the publication of the inspection report in which they were judged to have serious weaknesses. (For the first inspection after the pandemic, this period will be extended by up to 2 years.)

185. The timing of the next graded inspection for academies subject to special measures will be determined by the academy's rate of improvement. However, it will normally take place within 2.5 years of the publication of the inspection report that judged it to require special measures (for the first inspection after the pandemic, this period will be extended by up to 2 years).

186. Maintained nursery schools and non-maintained special schools judged inadequate are not subject to academy orders.

187. The law states that ECTs (not including trainee teachers on employment-based training programmes) may not be appointed to maintained schools or PRUs judged to require special measures, unless we have given permission in writing. Schools judged to require special measures must apply to us in writing if they wish to appoint ECTs, stating the reasons for the request.

Taking a school out of a category of concern

188. When an inspection team judges that a school no longer requires special measures, inspectors must use the following words during the final feedback to the school:

In accordance with section 13(4) of the Education Act 2005, His Majesty's Chief Inspector is of the opinion that the school no longer requires special measures.

189. When an inspection team judges that a school previously judged to have serious weaknesses no longer has serious weaknesses, inspectors must use the following words during the final feedback to the school:

In accordance with section 13(5) of the Education Act 2005, His Majesty's Chief Inspector is of the opinion that the school no longer requires significant improvement.

Outcomes of an ungraded inspection

190. There are 4 possible outcomes for an ungraded inspection of a good school, 3 of which can apply to an ungraded inspection of an outstanding school.

191. Inspectors will always report on whether safeguarding is effective. If there is evidence that safeguarding may be ineffective, the lead inspector will always deem the ungraded inspection to be a graded inspection.

Schools that remain good/outstanding (outcome 1)

192. Where the lead inspector judges that a school remains good/outstanding, they will confirm this judgement in the final feedback to the school at the end of the ungraded inspection.

193. A school judged to have remained good or outstanding following an ungraded inspection will normally receive an ungraded inspection around 4 years later. (For the first inspection after the pandemic, this period will be extended by up to 2 years.)

Schools that remain good, with marked improvement (outcome 2)

194. Where the lead inspector considers that, based on the evidence they have seen, a school remains good and inspectors have reason to believe that the quality of education might have been outstanding if the school had received a graded inspection instead of an ungraded inspection, the lead inspector will indicate that this is likely to be their conclusion (subject to quality assurance of the inspection).

195. The school will then receive a report that makes clear that its next inspection will be a graded inspection. The report will confirm that the school remains good and will highlight the reasons why inspectors believe that the quality of education is outstanding.

196. The graded inspection will usually take place within 1 to 2 years after the publication of the ungraded inspection report, giving the school time for the strong practice and marked improvements to be consolidated. The decision on the timing of the full graded inspection will be for the relevant Ofsted regional director to determine. Schools may request an early inspection and these requests will be considered by the relevant Ofsted region.

197. The relevant regional director may choose to carry out an ungraded inspection instead, which can be up to 4 years after publication of the original ungraded inspection report, if they believe that a graded inspection is likely to serve no useful purpose (as in, it is likely to yield a further judgement of good). This decision would normally follow a request from a school where the school does not believe it would be likely to receive an outstanding judgement at a graded inspection. We will not draw any conclusions solely from a school making a request. The decision is always at the discretion of the regional director, and they must first assure themselves there is no evidence that the school has declined below good.

Schools that may no longer be good/outstanding (outcome 3)

198. Where the lead inspector is not satisfied that the school would receive its current grade if a graded inspection was carried out at the time of the ungraded inspection, the lead inspector will indicate that this is likely to be their conclusion (subject to quality assurance of the inspection).

199. The school will then receive a letter setting out what the school is doing well and what it needs to improve. The school's current overall effectiveness judgement will not change as a result of the ungraded inspection.

200. The school will subsequently receive a graded inspection, which will typically take place within 1 to 2 years of the publication of the ungraded inspection report.

201. It may be sooner, however, in order to comply with The Education (School Inspection) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2015, which require a graded inspection in these schools within 5 school years from the end of the school year in which the previous inspection took place (this will be 6 years for the school's first inspection following the COVID-19 pandemic). This means that, for a small number of schools, the follow-on graded inspection may be carried out sooner than the usual 1 to 2 years after the inspection has taken place.

202. For outcomes 2 and 3, if a maintained school converts to become an academy before the graded inspection has been carried out, the school's first inspection as a new academy will be a graded inspection at least 1 year after the school becomes an academy.

Ungraded inspection is deemed to be a graded inspection (outcome 4)

203. The ungraded inspection will be deemed to be a graded inspection, usually within 48 hours, if there are serious concerns about the quality of education, behaviour, potential gaming (including off-rolling) or safeguarding. This will occur if inspectors:

204. The ungraded inspection will also be deemed to be a graded inspection (under the Education Act 2005) when the lead inspector has gathered evidence that suggests that the school would be inadequate in one or more of the graded judgements if it had received a graded inspection instead of an ungraded inspection.

205. A decision to deem the inspection to be a graded inspection does not predetermine the outcome of the graded inspection. At the end of the graded inspection, the school may receive any grade along the 4-point grading scale.

206. If inspectors gather evidence that suggests an outstanding school's performance may have declined so that if a graded inspection was to be carried out at the time of the ungraded inspection, the school would likely be judged as requires improvement or inadequate, inspectors will deem the ungraded inspection to be a graded inspection, usually within 48 hours.

207. Where the ungraded inspection is HMI-led and is deemed to be a graded inspection, the HMI will normally remain the lead inspector for the graded inspection. However, where the ungraded inspection has been led by a contracted Ofsted Inspector ( OI), the OI may either remain as the lead inspector for the graded inspection or an HMI may lead the graded inspection. More inspectors may join the lead inspector. The ungraded inspection will become a graded inspection, and the team will gather and evaluate evidence in order to make a full set of graded judgements.

208. An ungraded inspection report will not be produced when the ungraded inspection is deemed to be a graded inspection. Instead, the school will receive a graded inspection report.

Part 2. Explanation of Ofsted's judgements

209. This section of the handbook sets out how we evaluate schools on the 2 most common types of inspection: graded inspections and ungraded inspections.

210. Inspectors evaluate schools against the following key judgements:

211. The 'Evaluating the quality of education' section applies to both graded and ungraded inspections. The other judgement sections are split into specific graded inspections and ungraded inspections sections.

212. The majority of inspections that we carry out are ungraded inspections. The purpose of these inspections is to confirm whether a school remains good or outstanding under the definition of overall effectiveness set out in the grade descriptors. These differ from graded inspections, where inspectors make an overall effectiveness judgement, as well as the other 4 key judgements set out in part 3.

Evaluating the quality of education

The curriculum

213. A school's curriculum sets out the aims of a programme of education. It also sets out the structure for those aims to be implemented, including the knowledge and skills to be gained at each stage. It enables the school to evaluate pupils' knowledge and skills against those expectations.

214. All pupils in maintained mainstream and special schools are expected to study the basic curriculum, which includes the national curriculum, religious education and age-appropriate relationships and sex education. PRUs and alternative provision settings are not necessarily expected to deliver the national curriculum (see statutory guidance). The national curriculum sets out requirements for:

215. Since September 2020, schools have also been required to teach:

216. Academies are expected to offer all pupils a broad curriculum that should be similar in breadth and ambition to the national curriculum, and must include English, mathematics, science and religious education.

217. All schools that include early years provision must comply with the DfE's statutory framework for the early years foundation stage (EYFS).

218. In key stage 1, pupils should be able to read, write and use mathematical knowledge, ideas and operations so that they are able to access a broad and balanced curriculum at key stage 2. Some schools are exempt from the learning and development requirements of the EYFS. Where this is the case, the expectation is that pupils are able to read and write fluently by Years 5 and 6.

219. In key stages 2 and 3, schools need to provide a broad, rich curriculum. Our research into the curriculum shows that these stages are particularly susceptible to a narrow curriculum, and that this has a disproportionately negative effect on disadvantaged pupils (including those with SEND). If a school has shortened key stage 3, inspectors will look for evidence that the school has made provision to ensure that pupils still have the opportunity to study a broad range of subjects, commensurate with the national curriculum, in Years 7 to 9.

220. In the key stage 4 curriculum, the government's national ambition is that 90% of Year 10 pupils in state-funded mainstream schools should be starting to study EBacc GCSE courses nationally by 2025 (taking their examinations in 2027). This is an ambition, and not a target for any individual school. Inspectors will not make a judgement about the quality of education based solely or primarily on the school's progress towards the EBacc ambition. Nevertheless, it is an important factor in understanding a school's level of ambition for its pupils. It is, therefore, important that inspectors understand what schools are doing to prepare for this, and they should take those preparations into consideration when evaluating the intent of the school's curriculum.

221. All schools are also required to promote the spiritual, moral, social, cultural, mental and physical development of pupils at the school and of society; and prepare pupils at the school for the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of later life.

222. If remote education is in place, schools should ensure that it is well integrated within their course(s) of study, and is well designed to support the wider implementation of the school's curriculum.

223. The DfE has set out a minimum expectation of at least 32.5 hours for the length of the school week in (non-statutory) guidance in mainstream state-funded schools by 1 September 2024 at the latest. Where it is clear that increasing the overall time pupils spend in school (to at least 32.5 hours per week) would improve the quality of education, inspectors will reflect this in their evaluation of the school, and in the inspection report. If a school is not meeting the minimum expectation, and this impacts on the quality of education, inspectors will expect schools to set out a clear rationale for this and understand what impact it has on the quality of education. They will also want to understand what plans are in place to meet the minimum expectation.

Ofsted's approach to evaluating the curriculum

224. Inspectors will consider the knowledge and skills that pupils will gain at each stage through the school's curriculum (we call this 'intent'). They will look at the scope of the curriculum, including how carefully the leaders (including trust leaders) responsible for the curriculum in the school have thought about what end points the curriculum is building towards (with reference to the national curriculum and, where relevant, the EYFS). They will also look at how the leaders (including trust leaders) responsible for the curriculum have broken down the content into components and sequenced that content in a logical progression, systematically and explicitly, for all pupils to acquire the intended knowledge and skills. Inspectors will also consider the rigour of subject-specific planning.

225. Inspectors will consider how the curriculum developed or adopted by the school is taught and assessed in order to support pupils to build their knowledge and to apply that knowledge as skills (we call this 'implementation'). This includes how well the subject curriculum is presented to ensure that pupils understand key concepts, and that they can transfer key knowledge to long-term memory and apply it fluently. This includes the use of assessment to check pupils' understanding of what the curriculum intent says they should know, and to identify and correct misunderstandings and inform teaching. It also includes whether teachers either have expert knowledge of the subjects that they teach, or are supported to address gaps in their knowledge so that pupils are not disadvantaged by ineffective teaching.

226. Finally, inspectors will consider the outcomes that pupils achieve as a result of the education they have received (we call this the 'impact'). This will include their view of how pupils are progressing through the curriculum, and their view on schemes of work or other long-term planning (in whatever form they are normally used).

227. Inspectors will focus on what our inspection experience and research show are the most important factors to consider. These are the extent to which:

228. In evaluating the quality of education, inspectors will form a top-level view of the curriculum through conversations with the leaders (including trust leaders) responsible for curriculum in the school. They will use the official IDSR as a starting point, but will want to see the quality of education as experienced by pupils first hand and understand how well leaders know what it is like to be a pupil at the school. Inspectors' understanding of the school's curriculum is primarily formed through deep dives. We will look at the curriculum in all the key stages that the school has, through our deep dives. Inspectors will use 2022 outcomes cautiously and 2021/22 data will only be used to inform discussion with the schools about pupil outcomes. No schools will be marked down on the basis of the 2021/22 data alone.

229. The number of deep dives will vary depending on the size of the school and the inspection team:

in primary schools (and infant, junior and lower-middle schools), inspectors will always carry out a deep dive in reading and deep dives in one or more foundation subjects. In addition, inspectors will often carry out a deep dive in mathematics

in secondary schools, the deep dives will typically focus on a sample of 4 to 6 subjects, looking at a wide variety of pupils in different year groups across that sample

in small schools (with fewer than 150 pupils), for ungraded inspections, the methodology will be adapted to reflect the shorter inspection (only 1 day)

for maintained nursery schools and specialist settings, see the 'Provision-specific considerations' section

230. Deep dives gather evidence of the curriculum within a certain subject, to build an understanding of the curriculum in the school as a whole. They encompass a range of activities, including:

231. Inspectors may not always carry out all of these activities on a deep dive. More detail on these activities can be found in the sections below.

232. Inspectors will not grade intent, implementation and impact separately and will not grade individual lessons or teachers. Instead, inspectors will reach a single graded judgement for the quality of education, drawing on all the evidence they have gathered and using their professional judgement.

233. Inspectors recognise that there may still be some limited circumstances in which a pupil may need to learn remotely. Where this is the case, this learning will not be evaluated separately but as part of the wider curriculum. Similarly, where the school is directly deploying tutors to support education recovery from the pandemic, inspectors will consider how this supports the aims of the school curriculum, rather than evaluate the quality of the tutoring. Use of tutors will be integrated into the evaluation of both the quality of education and leadership and management and will not be inspected separately.

234. Inspectors will not look at non-statutory internal progress and attainment data on inspections of schools. That does not mean that schools cannot use data if they consider it appropriate. Inspectors will, however, put more focus on the curriculum and less on schools' generation, analysis and interpretation of data. Teachers have told us that they believe this will help us play our part in reducing unnecessary workload. Inspectors will be interested in the conclusions drawn and actions taken from any internal assessment information, but they will not examine or verify that information first hand. Inspectors will use published national performance data as a starting point on inspection, where it is available.

235. Inspectors will be alert to unnecessary or excessive attempts to simply prompt pupils to learn glossaries or long lists of disconnected facts. Learning can be defined as an alteration in long-term memory. If nothing has altered in long-term memory, nothing has been learned. However, pupils learn by connecting new knowledge with existing knowledge. Pupils also need to develop fluency and unconsciously apply their knowledge as skills. This must not be reduced to, or confused with, simply memorising disconnected facts. When inspectors evaluate the impact of the education provided by the school, their focus will primarily be on what pupils have learned.

236. We will judge schools taking radically different approaches to the curriculum fairly. We recognise the importance of schools' and trusts' autonomy to choose their own curriculum approaches. If leaders are able to show that they have thought carefully, that they have built a curriculum with appropriate coverage, content, structure and sequencing, and that it has been implemented effectively, and that the curriculum does not leave some pupils behind, then inspectors will assess the school's curriculum favourably.

237. Inspectors will recognise that some schools are going through a period of change, including when they have been brokered into a trust or rebrokered from one trust to another. In some schools, the quality of education may have been poor and may now be showing significant and sustained improvement. In these situations, nationally generated performance data may lag behind the current quality of education in the school and so inspectors will view the national data in this context.

238. Inspectors will also bear in mind that developing and embedding an effective curriculum takes time, and that the school may only be part-way through the process of adopting or redeveloping a curriculum. If leaders have an accurate, evaluative understanding of current curriculum practice in their school and have identified appropriate next steps (taking into account any impact of COVID-19) to improve curriculum quality and develop curriculum expertise across the school, inspectors will evaluate 'intent' favourably when reaching the holistic quality of education judgement. They will recognise that the criteria for a judgement of good are the best fit. Where inspectors consider available national data, they will be mindful of the age of this data, especially around statutory assessment and qualifications, when making judgements. Teacher-assessed grades from 2020 and 2021 will not be used to assess curriculum impact.

239. As part of making the judgement about the quality of education, inspectors will consider the extent to which schools are equipping pupils with the knowledge and cultural capital they need to succeed in life. Our understanding of 'knowledge and cultural capital' is derived from the following wording in the national curriculum:

It is the essential knowledge that pupils need to be educated citizens, introducing them to the best that has been thought and said and helping to engender an appreciation of human creativity and achievement.

240. National assessments and examinations are useful indicators of pupils' outcomes, but they only represent a sample of what pupils have learned. Inspectors will consider any outcomes data, where this is available in published national data (this does not include teacher- or centre-assessed grades from 2020 and 2021), but it does not constitute a substitute for inspectors' first-hand inspection activities.

Talking about the curriculum with leaders

241. Talking to leaders is vital to understanding the curriculum within that subject. Inspectors understand that subject leadership works differently in different schools - especially smaller schools - and will work within that context in each school.

242. In an academy, this will also include talking to relevant trust leaders about any role they have in the curriculum. This does not mean that Ofsted expects the trust to make curriculum decisions, necessarily. However, where trusts have made decisions that affect the implementation and impact of the curriculum within an individual academy (including a decision to allow schools to make all curricular decisions), inspectors will want to understand how and why that decision was made, and the impact on pupils.

243. Inspectors will want leaders to set out the scope of what they intend pupils to learn. This will include:

244. We define rigour as ensuring that the curriculum keeps to subject-specific questions, methods, conventions, rules and practices and how the subject discipline builds new knowledge. This should not prevent a topic-based or thematic approach, however. Inspectors will also want to understand the approach to teaching and assessing whether pupils have understood the content they have been taught.

Joint visits to lessons

245. Inspectors will not take a random sample of lessons to visit. Instead, they will connect lesson visits to other evidence, such as discussions with curriculum leaders, teachers and pupils, and work scrutiny.

246. Inspectors will discuss with school leaders what lessons will be visited as part of the deep dive to see the curriculum in action. Where possible, inspectors will visit several lessons from the same curriculum area or subject, including from different year groups. They will invite the headteacher, subject leaders and/or other leaders to take part in joint visits to lessons.

247. Lesson visits are not about evaluating individual teachers or their teaching. Teaching will not be graded. Inspectors will connect evidence from lesson visits with what they learn from other deep dive activities, to form a rounded view of the quality of education.

248. Lesson visits are also useful for gathering evidence that contributes to the 'behaviour and attitudes' judgement by providing direct evidence about how behaviour is managed within individual classrooms and how pupils respond. This evidence will complement the other evidence that inspectors gather about behaviour during inspection.

Work scrutiny

249. Inspectors will look at pupils' work. Work scrutiny will help inspectors to form a view of whether pupils know more and can do more, and whether the knowledge and skills they have learned are well sequenced and have developed incrementally.

Talking to and observing pupils in addition to joint visits to lessons

250. Inspectors will ask to speak to groups of pupils, including about the subjects they have been looking at. They will want to understand what pupils have learned and how their teachers help them to learn new curriculum content. Inspectors will take advantage of opportunities to gather evidence from a wide range of pupils, both formally and informally. Evidence from pupils will always be considered alongside the other evidence that inspectors collect.

251. Inspectors will also talk to and observe pupils in a range of situations outside of normal lessons to evaluate personal development, behaviour and attitudes, and safeguarding for example:

252. During informal conversations with pupils, inspectors will ask them about their experiences of teaching, learning and behaviour in the school, including the prevention of bullying and how the school deals with any form of harassment and violence, discrimination and prejudiced behaviour, if they happen. Inspectors will ensure that all questions are appropriate.

253. During the inspection, it is important that pupils are able to express their views freely to inspectors. Therefore, inspectors must have the opportunity to speak to pupils with no other adults present, unless there are exceptional circumstances. This is particularly important when inspectors ask pupils questions about safeguarding. Inspectors will, where relevant and practical, also try to ensure that they speak to at least some single-sex pupil groups to provide the opportunity for pupils to speak more freely about issues such as sexual harassment, online sexual abuse and sexual violence. See 'Inspectors talking to pupils on inspection'.

Discussions with staff

254. Inspectors will discuss with staff:

255. It is important that staff are able to express their views freely to inspectors. Therefore, inspectors must have the opportunity to speak to staff without senior colleagues present.

Early stages of learning to read

256. During all inspections, inspectors will be interested in how the school supports pupils who are at the early stages of learning to read, including older pupils. This is especially the case because of the disruption to learning caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

257. On inspections of infant, junior, primary and lower-middle schools, inspectors will carry out a deep dive to evaluate how well pupils are taught to read. They will pay particular attention to the pupils who most need to improve their reading (the lowest 20%) to assess how well the school is teaching phonics and supporting all children to become confident, fluent readers. This will include understanding how reading is taught remotely, where applicable.

258. Inspectors will listen to several low-attaining pupils in Years 1 to 3 read from unseen books that are appropriate to their stage of progress. They should also draw on information from the school's policy for teaching reading, phonics assessments, phonics screening check results and lesson visits.

259. Wherever possible, inspectors will listen to children read to a familiar adult in a classroom or in an open area that the pupils are familiar with. They will take into consideration the length of time a pupil has attended the school.

260. In reaching an evaluation against the 'quality of education' judgement, inspectors will consider whether:

the school is determined that every pupil will learn to read, regardless of their background, needs or abilities. All pupils, including the weakest readers, make sufficient progress to meet or exceed age-related expectations

stories, poems, rhymes and non-fiction are chosen for reading to develop pupils' vocabulary, language comprehension and love of reading. Pupils are familiar with and enjoy listening to a wide range of stories, poems, rhymes and non-fiction

the school's phonics programme matches or exceeds the expectations of the national curriculum and the EYFS early learning goals. The school has clear expectations of pupils' phonics progress term by term, particularly from Reception to Year 2

the sequence of reading books shows a cumulative progression in phonics knowledge that is matched closely to the school's phonics programme. Teachers give pupils sufficient practice in reading and re-reading books that match the grapheme-phoneme correspondences they know, both at school and at home

reading, including the teaching of systematic synthetic phonics, is taught from the beginning of Reception

the ongoing assessment of pupils' phonics progress is sufficiently frequent and detailed to identify any pupil who is falling behind the programme's pace. If they do fall behind, targeted support is given immediately

the school has developed sufficient expertise in the teaching of phonics and reading

Mathematics

261. When inspectors look at mathematics, they will evaluate the quality of a school's mathematics education through lesson visits, discussions with pupils and scrutiny of their work, discussions with subject leaders, and examining any published data. This will include understanding how mathematics is taught remotely, where applicable.

262. Inspectors will draw on information from the Year 4 multiplication tables check. The check provides information about the extent to which pupils recall their times tables fluently, which is essential for future success in mathematics. Inspectors will use the information as a starting point only and understand that it represents a small element of the mathematics curriculum overall.

263. Inspectors will consider what steps the school has taken to ensure that:

Pupils with SEND in both mainstream and specialist settings

264. All parts of the EIF apply to state-funded and non-maintained special schools provision, PRUs, alternative provision and mainstream schools' provision for pupils with SEND. However, as with all provision, SEND provision has some specific factors that should be taken into account.

265. Pupils with SEND have a range of different needs and starting points. Pupils will have unique, individual needs, even where their needs may fall under the same umbrella term, such as autism. Some pupils have severe, complex or profound needs that have a significant impact on their cognitive development, especially the way that they are able to make alterations to their long-term memory. Other pupils have starting points at least as high as other pupils of their age, for instance some pupils with sensory impairments.

266. Inspectors will gather and evaluate evidence about:

how well the school identifies, assesses and meets the needs of pupils with SEND, including when pupils with SEND are receiving remote education

whether leaders are suitably ambitious for all pupils with SEND

how well leaders ensure that the curriculum is coherently sequenced to meet all pupils' needs, starting points and aspirations for the future

how successfully leaders involve parents, carers and, as necessary, other professionals/specialist services in deciding how best to support pupils with SEND, including agreeing the approach to remote education

how well leaders include pupils with SEND in all aspects of school life

how well leaders ensure that pupils' outcomes are improving as a result of any different or additional provision being made for them, including any reasonable adjustments in remote education provision. This covers outcomes in:

communication and interaction

cognition and learning

physical health and development

social, emotional and mental health

how well pupils with SEND are prepared for their next steps in education, employment and training, and their adult lives, including: further/higher education and employment, independent living, participating in society and being as healthy as possible in adult life. See 'Special educational needs and disability code of practice: 0 to 25 years'.

267. Because of the wide range of pupils' needs, inspectors will not compare the outcomes achieved by pupils with SEND with those achieved by other pupils with SEND in the school, locally or nationally.

268. Pupils with SEND often have significant and complex vulnerabilities and can face additional safeguarding challenges. This includes understanding and pre-empting increased risks that pupils may be drawn into harmful situations as a result of grooming, be more likely to experience abuse from other pupils or adults, and may experience additional barriers in reporting abuse and having abuse recognised by professionals. Inspectors will evaluate the ways in which leaders have made appropriate and effective safeguarding arrangements that reflect these additional vulnerabilities.

Specialist settings

269. All parts of the EIF apply to special schools, PRUs and other alternative provision in free schools and academies, while accepting that the curriculum may be very specialised. For this reason, in special schools, deep dive areas may not be traditional subject areas. The lead inspector will seek to understand the school's curriculum during the initial phone call with the headteacher. Once the lead inspector has understood the school's curriculum design, the areas for a deep dive will be agreed. These may include national curriculum subjects, may derive from the 4 broad areas of need (for example, communication and interaction or physical development), may be a curriculum area very specific to that school or may be a combination of these examples. Inspectors will work closely with staff to understand how the curriculum area they are looking at is designed and implemented to meet the needs of pupils in the school. Inspectors will evaluate whether pupils' outcomes are improving as a result of the curriculum.

270. The government's ambition for EBacc does not apply to special schools with secondary-age pupils. In addition, the Progress 8 accountability measure may not always be the most appropriate performance indicator for these schools.

Provision-specific considerations

Maintained nursery schools

271. All parts of the EIF apply to maintained nursery schools and to early years provision in mainstream schools. However, as with all provision, maintained nursery schools have some specific factors that should be taken into account.

272. In maintained nursery schools, inspectors will always carry out at least 3 deep dives; one will be in communication and language and one other prime area of learning. At least one other deep dive will be in a specific area of learning.

273. Inspectors will spend most of the inspection time gathering first-hand evidence by observing the quality of the daily routines and activities of children and staff. Inspectors will also discuss children's development with staff. Much of this will be through incidental conversations prompted by observing the children at play and the interactions between them and adults.

274. The choice of teaching methods is a decision for providers. The inspector will judge the quality of the provision in relation to the impact it has on children's learning, development and well-being.

275. We recognise that the disruption to learning caused by the pandemic may have impacted on what children have learned. This could result in some children having a wider than usual range of starting points and gaps in their knowledge. Inspectors will pay close attention to how maintained nursery schools identify and address any of these delays and gaps and what it is doing to address disruption to learning to ensure that children are well prepared for their next stage of education. Inspectors will use all their evidence to evaluate what it is like to be a child in the maintained nursery school, taking account of the ages of the children and whether they attend part time or full time.

276. Inspectors will gather and evaluate evidence about:

how well the school identifies children's early starting points, particularly those children with SEND

the extent to which staff use the 7 areas of learning to introduce children to new ideas, vocabulary and syntax, and to develop children's love of stories, poems, songs and rhymes

how well the school includes disadvantaged children (including those with SEND) in all aspects of school life

how well leaders ensure that the EYFS curriculum is coherently sequenced to meet all children's needs and starting points

whether leaders are suitably ambitious for all children and consider their cultural capital when preparing them for the next stage in their education

how successfully leaders involve parents, carers and, as necessary, other professionals/specialist services in deciding how best to support children

how well children's learning and development are shared with parents as required by the EYFS, and the extent to which parents are supported to help their child to learn

Junior, middle, studio schools and university technical colleges

277. There are some schools that start and stop at non-standard ages for pupils, so inspectors take into account national expectations differently.

278. Pupils at junior schools, on average, have higher attainment scores at the end of key stage 2 than pupils at all other primary schools. However, on average, they also have lower progress scores. This may be for a variety of reasons, and inspectors will take this into account when comparing their results with those of pupils in schools that start education from the beginning of key stage 1.

279. Pupils at middle schools, on average, have lower progress scores at the end of key stage 2 than pupils at primary schools. Due to the age range of pupils at middle schools, pupils will have only attended a middle school for a short time before they take their key stage 2 tests and will still have a number of years left at the school. Inspectors will take this into account when comparing pupils' results to those of schools that start educating their pupils from the beginning of key stage 1.

280. The government's ambition for EBacc does not apply to UTCs and studio schools because they provide a specialist technical and professional education.

281. The Progress 8 accountability measure is not the most appropriate performance indicator for UTCs and studio schools. These establishments typically start educating pupils at age 14 and have a focus on preparing pupils for their future careers. Inspectors will pay attention to other measures, particularly pupils' destinations when they leave the UTC or studio school.

Evaluating the use of off-site alternative provision

282. Where pupils, including those in PRUs and other alternative providers, attend off-site alternative provision, inspectors will evaluate the extent to which these placements are safe and effective in promoting pupils' progress. Inspectors will normally visit a sample of the alternative providers used and, if required, may speak to local authorities, other agencies and parents/carers to gather evidence. Inspectors will want to understand how providers ensure that pupils who attend multiple settings or part time are kept safe when they are not on site for the whole school day.

Evaluating quality of education in pupil referral units and academy alternative provision

283. PRUs and academy alternative providers differ from other schools in that they are intended to be short-term interventions to secure the successful re-engagement into education. In these settings, inspectors will gather and evaluate evidence about:

how well the school identifies, assesses and meets the needs of pupils when they first begin to attend the PRU or other alternative provider, including pupils with SEND

how well leaders ensure that the curriculum is coherently sequenced and meets all pupils' needs, starting points and aspirations for the future, including through remote education

how successfully leaders involve parents, carers and, as necessary, other professionals or specialist services in deciding how best to support pupils

whether leaders are ambitious for all pupils, and the extent to which governors or trustees understand the particular context of the provision

how well leaders include pupils in all aspects of school life, giving particular emphasis to how well they are prepared for their next steps in education, employment and training, and adult lives

how well leaders ensure that pupils' outcomes are improving as a result of any different or additional provision being made for them, including outcomes for pupils with SEND

284. Pupils in PRUs and other alternative providers often have significant, complex vulnerabilities. In the same way as with other schools, inspectors will evaluate the ways in which leaders have made appropriate and effective safeguarding arrangements for pupils in the light of their higher vulnerability to safeguarding risks. Inspectors will expect providers to understand their unique contextual safeguarding factors and outline how they proactively work, including with other agencies, to mitigate the specific factors that affect their pupils and the community that they serve.

285. PRUs and other alternative providers may have different objectives in their work related to the reasons why a pupil is placed in alternative provision, the needs of the pupil, the duration of placements and the proportion of time that pupils stay with the provider each week. For instance, in a PRU that provides short-term placements for excluded pupils or those at risk of exclusion, the core work may emphasise specific improvements in pupils' attitudes, behaviour and/or attendance alongside their academic/vocational/technical achievement or be aiming to reintegrate pupils into mainstream schools. Alternative providers may also offer services to schools and other educational settings to help them support children with additional needs in their settings. An alternative provision setting may be the permanent destination for some pupils. Inspectors will evaluate schools' success in these areas, while bearing in mind that we expect high academic/vocational/technical aspirations for all pupils.

286. Transitions into PRU and alternative providers are often complex, involving dual registration, periods of non-attendance and meetings with a range of services and families. When evaluating pupils' attainment and progress, inspectors will consider the ways in which the school has identified, assessed and met the needs of pupils. They will evaluate the progress that pupils have made since they began to attend the alternative provision.

287. For pupils who have left the PRU or other alternative provider, inspectors will consider how well the progress they made there enabled them to move on to suitable destinations and, post-16, to take courses at an appropriately demanding level. They will also look closely at how effective liaison is with other schools to ensure that there are appropriately high expectations and, as far as reasonably possible, continuity in pupils' education programmes. Inspectors will also look at whether the provider works closely with families, schools and other agencies to ensure a smooth transition to and from alternative provision. They will look at whether it sets expectations that reintegration back into mainstream education is a key component of a placement.

Evaluating behaviour and attitudes

288. The behaviour and attitudes judgement considers how leaders and other staff create a safe, calm, orderly and positive environment in the school and the impact this has on the behaviour and attitudes of pupils.

289. The judgement focuses on the factors that research and inspection evidence indicate contribute most strongly to pupils' positive behaviour and attitudes, thereby giving them the greatest possible opportunity to achieve positive outcomes. These factors are:

290. Inspectors' evidence for the importance of each of these factors comes from their inspection experience, areas of agreement in academic research and our own research. A full note of how the criteria relate to the available research can be found in our EIF research commentary.

291. Additionally, inspectors will expect schools to have effective behaviour policies in place regarding harmful sexual behaviour. The policies should include details of appropriate sanctions that should be applied consistently and that reflect and are consistent with the messages that are taught across the curriculum.

Specific considerations for evaluating behaviour and attitudes

Attendance

292. Inspectors will expect schools to do all they reasonably can to achieve the highest possible attendance, while recognising that the context in which schools operate has changed. (Attendance between March 2020 and March 2021 will not impact on the judgement of the school.)

293. Inspectors will expect schools to have done an analysis of absence and persistent absence rates for all pupils, and for different groups, compared with the published local and national averages for all pupils. This includes the extent to which pupils with persistent and severe absence are improving their attendance over time or whether attendance is consistently low. Inspectors will want to see this analysis and how this has fed in to the school's approach.

294. Where attendance is not consistently at or above what could reasonably be expected, inspectors will expect attendance to be a high priority for leaders and for it to be improving towards and beyond national, pre-pandemic levels. There should be a strong understanding of the causes of absence (particularly for persistent and severe absence) and a clear strategy in place that takes account of those causes to improve attendance for all pupils. In some cases of persistent and all cases of severe absence, schools should make efforts to engage in multi-agency work with the local authority and other partners.

295. Where leaders are aware of the issues affecting attendance and have a clear, strategic plan of action in place but attendance for all pupils is not yet consistently very high, inspectors should judge this favourably, as long as there is a track record of improvement that demonstrates leaders' capacity to continue to improve attendance (using the same factors used in considering what category of concern schools should be placed into).

Pupils who have specific needs, including pupils with SEND

296. The school may be working with pupils with particular needs in order to improve their behaviour or their attendance. When this is the case, behaviour and conduct that reflects the school's high expectations and their consistent, fair implementation are likely to include demonstrable improvement in the attendance and behaviour of these pupils, taking account of individual circumstances.

Pupils who are not in the school during the inspection

297. Inspectors will gather evidence about the typical behaviour of all the pupils who attend the school, including those who are not present on the day of inspection. If there is evidence that a school has deliberately removed pupils from the school site on the day of inspection or has arranged for them to be absent, and inspectors reasonably believe that this was done in order to have an impact on the inspection, then inspectors are likely to judge both behaviour and attitudes and leadership and management to be inadequate.

Behaviour

298. Inspectors will also recognise that the context in which schools operate with respect to behaviour has changed as a result of the pandemic.

299. Where inspectors see evidence of poor behaviour but leaders are aware of the issues and have a clear, strategic plan of action, inspectors will judge this favourably, as long as there is a track record of improvement that demonstrates leaders' capacity to continue to improve behaviour (using the same factors used in considering what category of concern schools should be placed into).

Suspensions and exclusions

300. If a school uses suspensions, inspectors will evaluate their effectiveness, including the rates, patterns and reasons for suspensions and whether any pupils are repeatedly suspended. Schools should have a strategy for reintegrating a pupil who returns to school following a suspension and for managing their future behaviour. Inspectors will consider how well the school is recognising and acting to address any patterns that exist. This is because disruptive behaviour or sudden changes in behaviour can be an indication of unmet needs or a change in another aspect of a young person's life.

301. Headteachers have the right to exclude pupils when there are legitimate reasons for them to do so. Used correctly, exclusion is a vital measure for headteachers to use. Exclusions must be legal and justified. Permanent exclusions should only be used as a last resort, in response to a serious breach or persistent breaches of the school's behaviour policy, and when allowing the pupil to remain in school would seriously harm the education or welfare of the pupil or others in the school.

302. Inspectors will consider whether the school is developing the use of alternative strategies to exclusion and taking account of any safeguarding risks to pupils who may be excluded. Inspectors will recognise when schools are doing all that they can to support pupils at risk of exclusion, including through tenacious attempts to engage local support services.

303. See also the inclusion section below.

Evaluating behaviour and attitudes in pupil referral units and academy alternative provision

304. Inspectors will take the school's official records as a starting point for discussions about attendance. They must evaluate pupils' attendance as a percentage of a full-time timetable, even when temporary part-time arrangements are in place. Leaders may have a range of ways of evaluating pupils' attendance, given that pupils often join and leave the school roll at various times of the year. Inspectors will take into account the turnover of pupils in the provision when considering evidence for attitudes and behaviour. Inspectors will evaluate the impact of strategies that leaders use to improve pupils' attendance.

305. Often, pupils attending PRUs, UTCs and alternative providers have had poor attendance in the past. Inspectors will evaluate the improvement in pupils' attendance from their starting points when this is relevant. Inspectors will also evaluate the ways in which leaders take account of pupils' weak attendance in their safeguarding systems and the clarity of their attendance recording. If schools use part-time timetables, and pupils are not attending other provision or placements in addition to their school, inspectors will evaluate the extent to which schools monitor these situations and are aspirational and effective in getting pupils into education full time , quickly and in line with DfE guidance. Part-time timetables should not be open-ended and should result in swift full-time education for the pupils. (See the inclusion section for more details).

Ofsted's approach to evaluating behaviour and attitudes on graded inspections

306. Inspectors will hold discussions with pupils and staff to gather evidence about school culture and practice in relation to pupils' behaviour, support for staff and other systems. In setting up discussions, inspectors will select a sample of staff. These discussions will include trainees, supply staff, ECTs, administrative support staff and catering staff, as well as other members of staff. The discussions will provide inspectors with valuable information that includes the views of those who most urgently require the school's support in managing pupils' behaviour. Where practically possible, inspectors will carry out discussions with individuals, not groups, to allow members of staff to give clear evidence without being influenced by the views or expectations of others in the group when talking about a sensitive issue.

307. Inspectors will speak to pupils from a range of different backgrounds and who have different experiences of the school's approach to behaviour. This should include pupils who have experienced sanctions under the school's behaviour policy. Inspectors will take into account the views of these pupils, their experiences of others' behaviour and attitudes towards them, and their understanding of the importance of positive behaviour in school and beyond school.

308. Inspectors will evaluate the experience of particular individuals and groups, such as pupils for whom referrals have been made to the local authority (and check, for a small sample of these pupils, how the referral was made and the thoroughness of the follow-up), pupils with SEND, looked-after children, those with medical needs and those with mental health needs. In order to do this, inspectors will look at the experience of a small sample of these pupils and consider the way the school is working with the multi-agency group to ensure that the child receives the support they need. For pupils with SEND, this will include ensuring that appropriate reasonable adjustments are made in accordance with the Equality Act 2010 and the SEND code of practice.

309. The pupil and staff surveys used in inspection contain questions about safeguarding, behaviour and discipline, bullying, how respondents feel about the school and how well supported and respected they feel they are in the school. Inspectors will meet school leaders to discuss the results of the interviews and surveys of pupils and staff.

310. Over the course of inspection, inspectors will carry out evidence-gathering activities. In some cases, inspectors will be able to gather this evidence as part of other activities they are carrying out. The activities are:

Ofsted's approach to evaluating behaviour and attitudes on ungraded inspections

311. In evaluating behaviour and attitudes for ungraded inspections, inspectors may consider any of the factors set out in the grade descriptors for graded inspections. However, they will usually focus on:

312. Inspectors will gather this evidence principally through the deep dives carried out. They may carry out additional inspection activity (such as that set in the paragraph above) where they consider it necessary.

Evaluating personal development

313. The curriculum provided by schools should extend beyond the academic, technical or vocational. Schools support pupils to develop in many diverse aspects of life. The personal development judgement is used by inspectors to evaluate leaders' (including trust leaders') intent to provide for the personal development of all pupils, and the quality with which the school implements this work. Inspectors will recognise that the impact of the school's provision for personal development will often not be assessable during pupils' time at school.

314. At the same time as the school is working with pupils, those pupils are also being influenced by other factors in their home environment, their community and elsewhere. Schools can teach pupils how to build their confidence and resilience, for example, but they cannot always determine how well young people draw on this. Schools are crucial in preparing pupils for their adult lives, teaching them to understand how to engage with society and providing them with plentiful opportunities to do so. In this judgement, therefore, inspectors will seek to evaluate the quality and intent of what a school provides (either directly or by drawing on high-quality agencies and providers, for example the Duke of Edinburgh's Award scheme, Cadet Forces and the National Citizenship Service), but will not attempt to measure the impact of the school's work on the lives of individual pupils.

315. This judgement focuses on the factors that research and inspection evidence indicate contribute most strongly to pupils' personal development. These include how the school:

316. We will expect the school's relationships, sex and health education ( RSHE) curriculum (and wider curriculum) to specifically address sexual harassment, online abuse and sexual violence. The curriculum should also address safeguarding risks (including online risks), issues of consent, and what constitutes a healthy relationship both online and offline. We will also expect schools to provide effective pastoral support. This includes being alert to factors that increase a child's vulnerability, or potential vulnerability, such as mental ill health, domestic abuse, having additional needs, and being at greater risk of exploitation and/or of feeling unable to report abuse (for example, girls and lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender children).

Specific considerations for evaluating personal development

317. Where usual opportunities have been disrupted by the pandemic, inspectors will look at whether the school has found alternative approaches to providing a rich range of personal development opportunities since the school reopened to all pupils in March 2021.

Relationships, sex and health education on graded inspections

318. Relationships education is compulsory for all schools providing primary education. Relationships and sex education is compulsory for all schools providing secondary education (including, where a school has one, in sixth form provision). Health education is also compulsory for pupils in state-funded schools.

319. If a school is failing to meet its obligations, inspectors will consider this when reaching the personal development and leadership and management judgements.

320. See the guidance 'Inspecting teaching of the protected characteristics' for more information.

Spiritual, moral, social and cultural development

321. Inspectors will evaluate the effectiveness of the school's provision for pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural education. This is a broad concept that can be seen across the school's activities, but draws together many of the areas covered by the personal development judgement.

322. Provision for the spiritual development of pupils includes developing their:

323. Provision for the moral development of pupils includes developing their:

324. Provision for the social development of pupils includes developing their:

325. Provision for the cultural development of pupils includes developing their:

understanding and appreciation of the wide range of cultural influences that have shaped their own heritage and that of others

understanding and appreciation of the range of different cultures in the school and further afield as an essential element of their preparation for life in modern Britain

ability to recognise, and value, the things we share in common across cultural, religious, ethnic and socio-economic communities

knowledge of Britain's democratic Parliamentary system and its central role in shaping our history and values, and in continuing to develop Britain

willingness to participate in and respond positively to artistic, musical, sporting and cultural opportunities

interest in exploring, improving understanding of and showing respect for different faiths and cultural diversity and the extent to which they understand, accept, respect and celebrate diversity. This is shown by their respect and attitudes towards different religious, ethnic and socio-economic groups in the local, national and global communities

Ofsted's approach to evaluating personal development on graded inspections

326. On graded inspections, inspectors will focus on:

whether the school has had due regard to the statutory guidance on RSHE (see 'Relationships, sex and health education on graded inspections' section) and so:

has formed a policy following consultation with parents

has staff trained to assess and deliver the RSHE curriculum

appropriately supports children with SEND to learn RSHE

whether pupils have sufficient age-appropriate awareness and understanding of the protected characteristics

whether pupils have sufficient knowledge about how to stay safe, including online

pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development, citizenship education, modern British values, the development of character and wider development

in secondary schools, the effectiveness of CIEAG

327. Much of the evidence that inspectors will consider in making the personal development judgement will be drawn from across the deep dives carried out, and conversations with leaders, other staff, pupils and governors. Inspectors will also draw on any other evidence they consider as part of the inspection.

Careers provision on graded inspections

328. All schools providing secondary education are expected to provide effective CIEAG, in line with the statutory 'Careers guidance and access for education and training providers', to encourage pupils to make good choices and understand what they need to do to succeed in the careers to which they aspire.

329. As part of this, it is important that schools understand and meet the requirements of section 42B of the Education Act 1997 (referred to in DfE guidance as 'provider access legislation'), which came into force in January 2018. Both maintained schools and academies are required by law to:

330. In assessing a secondary school's personal development offer, inspectors will assess the quality of careers provision and how well it benefits pupils in choosing and deciding on their next steps. This will include looking at:

the quality of the unbiased careers advice and guidance provided to pupils

the school's implementation of the provider access arrangements to enable a range of education and training providers to speak to pupils in Years 8 to 13

how the school provides good-quality, meaningful opportunities for pupils to encounter the world of work

the school's use of the Gatsby Benchmarks

the school's published information about its careers provision (as required by the School Information Regulations) and the school's statement on its provider access arrangements (as required by section 42B of the Education Act 1997)

331. If a school is not meeting the requirements of section 42B of the Education Act 1997, inspectors will state this in the inspection report. They will consider what impact this has on the quality of careers provision and the subsequent judgement for personal development.

Ofsted's approach to evaluating personal development on ungraded inspections

332. In evaluating personal development for ungraded inspections, inspectors may consider any of the factors set out in the grade descriptors for graded inspections. However, they will focus on:

the extent to which the curriculum goes beyond the academic, vocational or technical

whether the school provides effectively for pupils' broader development

whether the school's work to enhance pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is of a high quality

secondary schools' approaches to CIEAG

Evaluating a school's approach to harmful sexual behaviour on ungraded inspections

333. Inspectors will expect schools to assume that sexual harassment, online sexual abuse and sexual violence are happening in and around the school, even when there are no specific reports. They will expect schools to work to prevent sexual harassment, online sexual abuse and sexual violence through a whole-school approach that includes an effective behaviour policy with appropriate sanctions, pastoral support and a carefully planned RSHE curriculum that includes addressing issues of consent.

Evaluating a school's approach to careers provision on ungraded inspections

334. Inspectors will review and assess secondary schools' approaches to CIEAG. If a school is not meeting its requirements in respect of career's advice, inspectors will state this in the inspection report.

Evaluating leadership and management

335. The leadership and management judgement is about how leaders and governors or trustees ensure that the education that the school provides has a positive impact on all its pupils. It focuses on the areas where inspection and research indicate that leaders can have the strongest effect on the quality of the education provided by the school. Important factors include:

336. Our evidence for the importance of each of these factors comes from our inspection experience, areas of consensus in academic research and our own research. There is a full note of how the criteria relate to the evidence available in our EIF research commentary.

337. The 'safeguarding' section sets out the importance of safeguarding and its place on inspection.

Different levels of leadership

Leadership and management in a school

338. Inspectors will look at the work of headteachers, trust leaders, subject leaders and others with leadership and management roles when reaching this judgement.

Leadership and management in academies

339. When a school is an academy, it is important for inspectors to remember that the trust is one entity, and that the board of trustees and trust leaders are responsible for the quality of education provided in all the schools that make up the trust.

340. It is highly likely that parts of some of the leadership functions described in the grade criteria are performed by trust leaders (for example, the CEO or an education director) and not solely by individual leaders of the school. As such, the roles those leaders perform will be relevant to the school inspection.

341. Even where most decisions are made at the school level, the role of trusts will still be relevant, including how they assure and ensure that decision making about the implementation of trust policy, where applicable, is leading to a high-quality education for pupils.

342. Inspectors will consult the school and trust in order to determine the different levels of responsibility and oversight within the trust and so who they need to meet in the structure of the trust in order to inspect the school. Because leadership functions will be performed by trust leaders, inspectors will consider which they will need to meet in order to gather evidence.

343. It will be normal for inspectors to meet the CEO or their delegate. The CEO or their delegate may also attend key inspection team meetings at the end of each inspection day.

Governance

344. Inspectors will seek evidence of the impact of the board of governors or the board of trustees.

345. The DfE's governance handbook sets out the purpose of governance, which is to provide confident, strategic leadership and to create robust accountability, oversight and assurance for educational and financial performance.

346. Inspectors will explore how governors or trustees carry out their functions. For example, the clarity of the school's vision, ethos and strategic direction will have a significant impact on the decisions that leaders make about the curriculum. Inspectors will consider whether the work of the board of governors or the board of trustees in this respect is supporting the school to provide a high-quality education for its pupils.

347. In addition, the board of governors or the board of trustees are responsible for ensuring that the school fulfils its statutory duties, for example under the Equality Act 2010, and other duties, for example in relation to the 'Prevent' duty. The board of governors or the board of trustees are also expected to exercise strategic oversight of all aspects of safeguarding. When inspectors consider whether the board of governors or the board of trustees are fulfilling this responsibility, they are not expected to construct or review a list of duties.

Governance in academies

348. In an academy, the board of trustees is responsible for governance. Inspectors will speak to the chair of the board of trustees and as many other trustees as possible.

349. Executive trust leaders may or may not sit on the board of trustees (and as such be part of the governance of a trust) and so the distinction between leadership and governance may vary in different trusts. All trusts should have, and publish, a scheme of delegation clearly setting out everything that has been delegated by the board of trustees. Advice on how this should work can be found in the DfE guidance 'Multi-academy trusts: establishing and developing your trust'.

350. When inspecting academies, inspectors will need to bear in mind that governance functions can be quite different from those in a maintained school. Some functions that a governing body in a maintained school would carry out may be done by the trust's leaders or staff. If this is the case, it will be important for inspectors to ascertain the board of trustees' role in that process and how it ensures and assures that these functions are carried out properly.

351. It may be that the board of trustees have chosen to delegate some of their powers to members of an 'academy committee' or 'local governing board' at school level. If inspectors are informed that a local governing body has delegated responsibilities, they should establish clearly which powers are with the trustees, which are with the trust leaders and which are with the local governing board. They should then ensure that both their inspection activities and the inspection report accurately reflect who is responsible for what. Whatever the situation, they will still need to talk to the chair of the trust board.

Specific considerations for evaluating leadership and management

The use of the pupil premium and catch-up funding

352. Inspectors will gather evidence about the use of the pupil premium and catch-up funding (and, where applicable, early years pupil premium), particularly regarding:

the level of funding received by the school in the current academic year and levels of pupil premium funding received in previous academic years

how leaders and governors have spent the funding, their rationale for this spending and its intended impact on the learning and progress of disadvantaged pupils (including those with SEND).

External support

353. If the school has received support from an external body, inspectors will not evaluate or report on the quality or the impact of the support and challenge on improvement in the school. Instead, they will comment on the action that the school has taken and the impact that this has had on the quality of the school's work.

354. If a school is part of a trust and is receiving support from within the trust, inspectors will be clear that this is internal, not external, support.

Separation by sex

355. Schools have an obligation not to discriminate against pupils on the basis of protected characteristics. It may be unlawful for schools to separate pupils on the basis of any protected characteristic such as sex, religion, belief or gender reassignment while at school, unless permitted by an exception under the Equality Act 2010, such as:

356. If an inspector finds any evidence of potentially less favourable treatment because of a protected characteristic, they will contact the duty desk and must take legal advice. If complex issues mean that advice takes longer than anticipated, we may pause the inspection until the advice has been received.

357. It would be for a court to decide whether a school is in fact unlawfully discriminating against its pupils. However, if inspectors consider that there is sufficient evidence to support such a conclusion, they will write about this clearly in the inspection report. The separation may have an impact on the schools grade:

358. Where appropriate, inspectors will also refer to the following guidance:

Inspecting teaching of the protected characteristics

359. How a school meets the expectations of the DfE's statutory guidance on relationships education, relationships and sex education and health education contributes to the leadership and management judgement. If a primary school does not teach about lesbian, gay and bisexual relationships, this will not have an impact on the leadership and management judgement as long as the school can satisfy inspectors that it has still fulfilled the requirements of the DfE's statutory guidance. If it cannot do this, for example if it has failed to consult with parents, inspectors will consider this when making the leadership and management judgement. Similarly, if a secondary school has not fulfilled the requirements of the DfE 's statutory guidance, for example, if it has failed to consult with parents, inspectors will also consider this when making the leadership and management judgement. In those circumstances, the school will not ordinarily receive a judgement for this better than requires improvement.

360. If a secondary school does not teach about lesbian, gay and bisexual relationships, it will not be meeting the expectations of the DfE 's statutory guidance. Inspectors will consider this when making the leadership and management judgement. In those circumstances, the school will not ordinarily receive a judgement for this better than requires improvement.

361. See 'Inspecting teaching of the protected characteristics' for further guidance.

Workload

362. When used effectively, assessment helps pupils to embed knowledge and use it fluently, and assists teachers in producing clear next steps for pupils. However, assessment is too often carried out in a way that creates unnecessary burdens for staff and pupils. It is therefore important that leaders and teachers understand its limitations and avoid misuse and overuse.

363. Assessment should support the teaching of the curriculum, but not substantially increase teachers' workloads by necessitating too much one-to-one teaching or overly demanding programmes that are almost impossible to deliver without lowering expectations of some pupils.

364. Collecting data can also create an additional workload for school leaders and other staff. Inspectors will look at whether schools' collections of attainment or progress data are proportionate, represent an efficient use of school resources, and are sustainable for staff. The Teacher Workload Advisory Group's report, 'Making data work', recommends that leaders should not have more than 2 or 3 data collection points a year, and that these should be used to inform clear actions.

365. Schools choosing to use more than 2 or 3 data collection points a year should have clear reasoning for:

366. Inspectors will seek to understand how staff are supported and the steps that are being taken to remove the risk of additional workload. If a school's system for data collection is disproportionate, inefficient or unsustainable for staff, inspectors will reflect this in the inspection report.

Safeguarding

367. All schools should have an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts pupils' interests first. This means they:

protect pupils from serious harm, both online and offline

are vigilant, maintaining an attitude of 'it could happen here'

are open and transparent, sharing information with others and actively seeking expert advice when required and making sure all safeguarding decisions are accessible for appropriate scrutiny, being accepting of challenge to ensure the right decisions are made, and accepting that there may be safeguarding issues in any provision at any time (see also paragraph 424 of 'Keeping children safe in education: statutory guidance for schools and colleges')

ensure that all those who work with pupils are trained well so that they understand their responsibilities and the systems and processes that the school operates and are empowered to 'speak out' where there may be concerns

actively seek and listen to the views and experiences of pupils, staff and parents, taking prompt but proportionate action to address any concerns, where needed

are receptive to challenge and reflective of their own practices to ensure that safeguarding policies, systems and processes are kept under continuous review

368. Inspectors will not use the four-point grading scale for this aspect of the school. However, inspectors will always make a written judgement under 'leadership and management' in the report about whether the arrangements for safeguarding pupils are effective.

369. Inspectors will be familiar with relevant guidance and statutory responsibilities for schools on safeguarding, including:

370. However, inspectors will go beyond ensuring that schools meet their statutory requirements and beyond simply reviewing documents. They will triangulate evidence gathered during the inspection to evaluate the effectiveness of the safeguarding culture that has been established in the school.

Evaluating safeguarding culture

371. Inspectors will evaluate the extent to which there is an effective whole-school approach to safeguarding. They will want to find out how well staff keep pupils safe.

372. Inspectors will not make judgements about safeguarding based solely on the evidence that the school presents during the inspection. To examine safeguarding culture, inspectors must probe further and take into account a range of evidence so that they are able to evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding arrangements over time. Inspectors will focus on reviewing decisions made and incidents that have occurred since the last inspection. They will also give proportionate consideration to pupils' and parents' views using surveys, complaints or local intelligence.

373. Inspectors will look for evidence of effective safeguarding practice and at the impact of this practice on all pupils. Inspectors will examine how a school is implementing its safeguarding policies and processes effectively and how it keeps them under review.

374. Inspectors will ensure that the school has proper arrangements in place for sharing information appropriately with relevant parties, including forwarding information to schools and post-16 or post-18 providers (such as at the point of transition) and other agencies, such as the Teaching Regulation Agency, for example, around teacher misconduct.

375. On all inspections, inspectors will determine whether there have been any safeguarding incidents or allegations since the last inspection, and whether the school has taken appropriate action to safeguard the pupils affected and/or to deal with allegations.

376. Inspectors will take a proportionate account of the comments made about safeguarding from staff, pupils and parents of pupils who attend the school, balancing these alongside the other evidence collected during the inspection.

Speaking to pupils

377. The school must provide opportunities for inspectors to speak to pupils with no other adults present, unless there are exceptional circumstances, as it is important that pupils are able to express their views freely to inspectors. See our guidance 'inspectors talking to pupils on inspection'.

378. As outlined above, inspectors will triangulate evidence gathered during the inspection to evaluate the effectiveness of the safeguarding culture that has been established in the school. If inspectors cannot corroborate this evidence because they are prevented from talking to pupils on inspection, then safeguarding will likely be judged ineffective.

Arrangements for handling evidence or allegations of abuse

379. Inspectors will also look at how schools handle allegations of sexual abuse, including sexual harassment and sexual violence, including the extent to which:

380. If schools do not have adequate processes in place to manage evidence or allegations of abuse, it is likely that safeguarding will be considered ineffective.

Evidence or allegations of abuse identified on inspection

381. On a very small number of occasions, inspectors may come across evidence or allegations of child abuse, including sexual abuse, during an inspection. Inspectors must not attempt to investigate any incident or allegations but will make sure that concerns about a child's safety are reported to the appropriate authority. Any referrals will normally be made by the designated safeguarding lead for the school (see 'safeguarding concerns: guidance for inspectors'). Inspectors must be satisfied that the correct referral has taken place and record this in their evidence base.

382. If a child discloses to an inspector that they are suffering or at risk of abuse, the inspector will stop all other activity and focus on ensuring that the child receives the help they need. Specific guidance on what to do in this situation can be found in 'safeguarding concerns: guidance for inspectors'.

Minor safeguarding improvements

383. Inspectors may identify minor improvements that need to be made to the school's safeguarding practices during inspection, such as administrative errors in paperwork or out-of-date policies. Some of these improvements may be rectified easily before the end of the inspection. Where this is the case, inspectors will give the school the chance to make these minor improvements. Where minor improvements are required but these are not able to be resolved before the end of the inspection, if the school has taken steps to resolve the issue, the school can still be judged effective for safeguarding. Importantly, any minor improvements that need to be made, while strengthening safeguarding practice, will not have an immediate impact on the safety of pupils.

Ineffective safeguarding

384. Safeguarding is ineffective when there are serious or widespread failures in the school's safeguarding arrangements. The school's arrangements for safeguarding pupils do not meet statutory requirements, or they give serious cause for concern, or the school has taken insufficient action to remedy weaknesses following a serious incident.

385. While it is not possible to produce an exhaustive list, the following are examples of what may constitute ineffective safeguarding:

insufficient action is being taken to remedy weaknesses following a failure of safeguarding arrangements that meant children may have not been safe

safeguarding allegations about staff members are not being handled appropriately

clear evidence of serious failures in safeguarding practice that lead pupils or particular groups of pupils not to be safe in school

statutory requirements, such as breaches of the requirements for Disclosure and Barring Service ( DBS) checks, are not being met

pupils have little confidence that the school or setting will address concerns about their safety, including risk of abuse, because leaders have not taken their views seriously and/or addressed relevant concerns

pupils, particularly vulnerable pupils, who are not on the school site (whether long term, temporary or for part of the school day) and the school are either not clear where those pupils are or are not able to give reassurances as to the appropriate steps taken to safeguard them when off-site. This can include children absent from education and children attending inappropriate, unregistered or unmonitored alternative provision.

Ofsted's approach to evaluating leadership and management on graded inspections

386. Evidence used to evaluate the impact of leaders' (including trust leaders') work, both currently and over time, includes, but is not limited to:

387. Inspectors will always report on the school's activity to gather the views of staff, whether through its internal procedures or through using the Ofsted questionnaire. They will do this in the 'Information about this inspection' section.

Evaluating schools' use of alternative provision on graded inspections

388. Inspectors will evaluate how well a school continues to take responsibility for its pupils who attend alternative or off-site provision. Inspectors need to be assured that leaders have ensured that the alternative provision is a suitable and safe placement that will meet pupils' academic/vocational/technical needs, pastoral needs and, if appropriate, SEND needs. Inspectors will speak to a selection of pupils who attend off-site provision, where possible, including potentially through video or telephone calls.

389. Inspectors will ask the school about the registration status of any alternative providers that they use. Any provider of alternative provision must be registered as an independent school if it caters full time for 5 or more pupils of compulsory school age, or one pupil who is looked after or has an education, health and care ( EHC) plan. If a school uses alternative provision that should be registered but is not, inspectors will carefully consider whether this affects the likelihood that pupils are safeguarded effectively.

390. Inspectors will normally visit a sample of any part-time unregistered alternative providers during the inspection, as directed by the relevant Ofsted region. This may be completed remotely. This is to assess the adequacy of the school's quality assurance process. Inspectors will normally visit any registered alternative provision site that we have not yet inspected to assess the adequacy of the school's quality assurance process.

391. Inspectors will consider the quality of registered alternative provision using our latest inspection report and assess its impact on the overall quality of education for pupils in a proportionate way.

392. Inspectors will consider:

the reasons why leaders considered off-site provision to be the best option for the pupils concerned, and whether leaders have kept that under review

whether leaders have made the appropriate checks on the registration status of the provision and how that has influenced their decision to use that provider

what safeguarding checks leaders have made and continue to make to ensure that the provision is a safe place for their pupils to attend

the extent to which leaders ensure that pupils benefit from a well-planned and sequenced, well-taught, broad and balanced curriculum

the attendance and behaviour of the pupils who attend the provision

how well the provision promotes pupils' personal development

393. If a school uses a provider that is not registered, the inspector must contact the duty desk so that staff can notify Ofsted's unregistered schools team. Following the inspection, the team will determine whether Ofsted needs to take further action because there is reasonable cause to believe that the setting is operating as an unregistered school.

394. A school is likely to be judged inadequate for leadership and management if:

Evaluating gaming on a graded inspection

395. Inspectors will challenge leaders about unusual patterns of examination entry that appear to 'game the system', for example if they are entering pupils for courses that are not in their educational best interest. The IDSR will provide inspectors with areas to investigate when nationally available data suggests that gaming may be taking place. If inspectors uncover evidence that deliberate gaming is taking place, the leadership and management judgement is likely to be inadequate.

396. Inspectors will also challenge leaders about unusual patterns in the way that the school records attendance, including the use of inaccurate register codes or changes to when the register is taken. For example, if inspectors reasonably believe that a school is inaccurately recording attendance, has changed the timing of session registration to game attendance rates or is using part-time timetables inappropriately, then inspectors are likely to judge leadership and management to be inadequate.

Evaluating a school's approach to inclusion and off-rolling on a graded inspection

397. Schools should have an inclusive culture that supports arrangements to:

398. As set out in the DfE's attendance guidance, in very exceptional circumstances, where it is in a pupil's best interests, there may be a need for a temporary part-time timetable to meet their individual needs. The DfE guidance 'Summary of responsibilities where a mental health issue is affecting attendance' provides further specific guidance for pupils who are anxious about attending school.

399. Both pieces of guidance are clear that a part-time timetable must be in place only for the shortest time necessary and not be treated as a long-term solution, and may not be used to manage behaviour. The school will need to show inspectors why a part-time timetable is in place for any pupil and that there were plans, from the very beginning, to return to a full-time timetable. Where part-time timetables are being used inappropriately, this may be an unlawful suspension of a pupil (see next paragraph). If a part-time timetable is justified but the school has no clear plans to return the pupil to full-time education, this will likely impact its leadership and management grade.

400. An unlawful suspension is where a pupil is sent home, or told not to come into school, often as a result of a pupil's behaviour, without a formal suspension being used. This may be off-rolling (see next paragraph), although it may not be off-rolling: the school may consider it to be in the pupil's interest. Like any other legal breach that has a negative impact on pupils, this would normally mean an inadequate judgement for leadership and management.

401. 'Off-rolling' is a form of gaming where a school:

402. When inspectors find evidence of off-rolling taking place by Ofsted's definition, they will always address this in the inspection report. They may, depending on the scale and impact, need to consider it when reaching the judgement. Where a decision is lawful, but still meets Ofsted's definition of off-rolling, inspectors will be careful to consider the context of the decision and the integrity of leaders' actions. They should be clear about what impact the off-rolling has had on pupils involved, and on the school. There are many different activities that can constitute off-rolling, so there can be no hard and fast rules as to how it should be addressed. However, if inspectors determine the school to be off-rolling according to Ofsted's definition, then the leadership and management of the school are likely to be judged inadequate.

403. There are many situations where a school removes a pupil from the school roll that would not amount to off-rolling. These include those set out in the DfE's School suspensions and permanent exclusions guidance. Managed moves and off-site direction, for example, can both be effective tools in breaking a cycle of poor behaviour. Neither are off-rolling when they are genuinely used in a pupil's best interests, and within the requirements of the statutory guidance. Similarly, if a pupil transfers to the roll of their alternative provision, is dual-registered or dual-coded across 2 schools or providers, or uses alternative provision while they remain registered at the school, provided this is genuinely in the best interest of the pupil, it is not off-rolling. If a school appropriately removes a pupil from the roll due to a formal permanent exclusion and follows the proper processes, this is not off-rolling. Headteachers have the right to exclude pupils when there are legitimate reasons for them to do so. Used correctly, exclusion is a vital measure for headteachers to use.

404. However, any of these measures can amount to off-rolling or gaming in some cases, and if a school uses them, inspectors may ask to see evidence of the ways in which these have been carried out.

405. Inspectors will also be interested if there are high numbers of pupils moving on and off roll, but this may not in itself mean that off-rolling is taking place.

The impact of safeguarding on the leadership and management judgement on graded inspections

406. When safeguarding is ineffective, this is likely to lead to a judgement of inadequate for leadership and management.

Ofsted's approach to evaluating leadership and management on ungraded inspections

407. In evaluating leadership and management for ungraded inspections, inspectors may consider any of the factors set out in the grade descriptors for graded inspections; however, they will focus on the matters set out below. In addition, inspectors will consider the extent to which governors or trustees understand their role and carry this out effectively.

Evaluating a school's approach to safeguarding on an ungraded inspection

408. Inspectors will always consider the effectiveness of the school's safeguarding. All schools should have an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts pupils' interests first. This means that they:

protect pupils from serious harm, both online and offline

are vigilant, maintaining an attitude of 'it could happen here'

are open and transparent, sharing information with others and actively seeking expert advice when required

ensure that all those who work with pupils are trained well so that they understand their responsibilities and the systems and processes that the school operates and are empowered to 'speak out' where there may be concerns

actively seek and listen to the views and experiences of pupils, staff and parents, taking prompt but proportionate action to address any concerns, where needed

are receptive to challenge and reflective of their own practices to ensure that safeguarding policies, systems and processes are kept under continuous review

409. Inspectors will usually carry out the following activities during the inspection to inform their safeguarding judgement:

410. Inspectors will not grade this key aspect of a school's work. However, inspectors will always make a written judgement in the report about whether the arrangements for safeguarding children and pupils are effective. Inspectors will go beyond simply reviewing documents in order to evaluate the safeguarding culture of the school.

411. Inspectors may identify minor improvements that need to be made to the school's safeguarding practices during inspection, such as administrative errors in paperwork or out-of-date policies. Some of these improvements may be rectified easily before the end of the inspection. Where this is the case, inspectors will give the school the chance to make these minor improvements. Where minor improvements are required but these are not able to be resolved before the end of the inspection, the school can still be judged effective for safeguarding. Importantly, any minor improvements that need to be made, while strengthening safeguarding practice, will not have an immediate impact on the safety of pupils.

Evaluating a school's approach to gaming and off-rolling on an ungraded inspection

412. Inspectors will look for any evidence that suggests that the school may be gaming or off-rolling, which could be evidence that the school would no longer receive at least its current grade if a graded inspection were carried out. Where the lead inspector has serious concerns about gaming or off-rolling, the inspection will be deemed to be a graded inspection.

Evaluating a school's approach to staff workload on an ungraded inspection

413. Inspectors will look at the extent to which leaders engage with staff and are aware and take account of the main pressures on them, engaging with them realistically and constructively.

414. Inspectors will consider the extent to which staff are free from bullying and harassment. Inspectors will also consider whether leaders and other staff understand the limitations of assessment and use it in a way that will avoid creating unnecessary burdens.

415. Inspectors will seek to understand how staff are supported and the steps that are being taken to remove the risk of additional workload.

416. If these issues are not being managed well, this could be considered as evidence that the school would no longer receive at least its current grade if a graded inspection were carried out. Where the lead inspector has serious concerns about workload or the bullying or harassment of staff, the inspection will be deemed to be a graded inspection.

Evaluating early years and sixth-form provision on graded inspections

Early years provision in schools

417. Inspectors are required to grade the standards of education and care in any early years provision in schools and to write about its effectiveness in the inspection report. Inspectors' judgement on the effectiveness of early years provision will include evaluation of the provision for 2- and 3-year-olds. Inspectors will also note if any children receive additional funding.

418. We recognise that the disruption to learning caused by the pandemic may have impacted on children's learning or, development. This could result in some children having a wider than usual range of starting points and gaps in their knowledge. Inspectors will pay close attention to how schools identify and address any of these delays and gaps and what the school is doing to address disruption to learning to ensure that children are well prepared for their next stage of education. Inspectors will use all their evidence to evaluate what it is like to be a child in the early years provision, taking account of the ages of the children and whether they attend part time or full time.

419. The effectiveness of the arrangements for safeguarding children is reflected in the main judgement for the school.

420. Inspectors will take account of all the judgements made across the evaluation schedule. In particular, they should consider:

the extent to which leaders and other staff plan, design and implement the early years curriculum

the extent to which the curriculum and care practices meet the needs of the range of children who attend, particularly any children with SEND

the progress all children make in their learning and development relative to their starting points and their readiness for the next stage of their education

children's personal, social and emotional development, including whether they feel safe and are secure, stimulated and happy

421. Inspectors will particularly consider the intent, implementation and impact of the school's early years curriculum. They will evaluate the impact that the quality of education has on children, particularly disadvantaged pupils (including those with SEND).

422. Inspectors will look at children's learning and development over time. They will ascertain how well the curriculum is meeting children's needs. This will be evident in the extent to which children know and remember more of the intended curriculum. Inspectors need to make careful inferences about children's current progress by drawing together evidence from a range of sources.

423. Inspectors will consider, taking into account any exemptions from the learning and development requirements of the EYFS, how well:

leaders assure themselves that the aims of the EYFS are met and that it is appropriately ambitious for the children it serves. Staff ensure that the content, sequencing and progression in the 7 areas of learning are secured

the content of the EYFS curriculum is taught in a logical progression, systematically and in a way that is explained effectively, so that it gives children the necessary foundations for the rest of their schooling

children develop, consolidate and deepen their knowledge, understanding and skills across all the areas of learning in the EYFS

staff develop children's communication and language through singing songs, nursery rhymes and playing games

staff develop children's love of reading through reading aloud and telling stories and rhymes

424. More information about inspections and the EYFS, including how inspectors will take account of any exemptions and modifications to the learning and development requirements, can be found on GOV.UK

425. Teaching is a broad term that covers the many different ways in which adults help young children learn. It includes their interactions with children during planned and child-initiated play and activities, communicating and modelling language, showing, explaining, demonstrating, exploring ideas, encouraging, questioning, recalling, providing a narrative for what they are doing, facilitating and setting challenges. It takes account of the equipment that adults provide and the attention given to the physical environment, as well as the structure and routines of the day that establish expectations. Integral to teaching is how practitioners assess what children know, understand and can do, as well as taking account of their interests and dispositions to learn (characteristics of effective learning), and how practitioners use this information to plan children's next steps in learning and to monitor their progress.

426. In addition, when observing provision for 2- and 3-year-olds, inspectors will consider the extent to which all staff are:

Sixth-form provision in schools

427. Inspectors are required to grade the standard of education in any sixth-form provision in schools and to write about the sixth form in the inspection report. Inspectors will use all their evidence to evaluate what it is like to be a student in the sixth form.

428. The effectiveness of the arrangements for safeguarding students is reflected in the main judgement for the school.

429. Inspectors will take account of the key judgement areas in the evaluation schedule. They should consider:

the extent to which leaders and teachers have high expectations for attainment and progress and the effectiveness of the systems they use to monitor and develop the quality of sixth-form programmes for all students, including disadvantaged pupils, which in turn includes those with SEND

how leaders and teachers develop a curriculum that provides progression, stretch, mathematics and English for those young people without GCSE grades 9 to 4 (or legacy grades A* to C), as well as work experience or industry placements and non-qualification activities (which may include tutorials, work to develop study, leadership, teamwork, self-management skills and volunteering)

the effectiveness of high-quality, impartial careers guidance in enabling all students to make progress and move on to a higher level of qualification, employment or further training when they are ready to do so

430. Through observing teaching and training activities and by holding discussions with students, teachers and support staff, inspectors will consider how well:

431. Inspection of apprenticeships training is not in the scope of graded or ungraded inspections of schools. Inspection of T-level technical education programmes is in scope from September 2023. Where T-levels are offered by a school sixth form, inspectors will consider this provision as part of their evaluation of the quality of education.

Part 3. Grade descriptors for graded inspections

432. This part sets out the grade descriptors that inspectors will use in coming to judgements on graded inspections.

Reaching a judgement

433. Inspectors will make 4 key judgements:

434. Where relevant, inspectors will also make 2 provision judgements:

435. Inspectors will also make a judgement on the school's overall effectiveness.

436. The grade descriptors are not exhaustive. They do not replace inspectors' professional judgements. Inspectors will interpret the way that grades are described according to pupils' age, stage and phase of education.

Ofsted judgements

437. Inspectors use the following 4-point scale to make all judgements:

438. Outstanding is a challenging and exacting judgement. In order to reach this standard, inspectors will determine whether the school meets all the criteria for good under that judgement, and does so securely and consistently.

439. In other words, it is not enough that the school is strong against some aspects of the judgement and not against others, but it must meet each and every good criterion. In addition, there are further criteria set out under the outstanding judgement, which the school will also need to meet.

440. When considering a judgement of good or requires improvement, inspectors will look at whether the overall quality of the school is most closely aligned to the descriptors set out.

441. A school is likely to be inadequate under a particular judgement if one or more of the inadequate criteria applies.

Grade descriptors for quality of education

442. In order for the quality of education judgement to be outstanding, the school must meet all of the good criteria securely and consistently and it must also meet the additional outstanding criteria.

Outstanding (1)

In addition, the following apply.

The school's curriculum intent and implementation are embedded securely and consistently across the school. It is evident from what teachers do that they have a firm and common understanding of the school's curriculum intent and what it means for their practice. Across all parts of the school, series of lessons contribute well to delivering the curriculum intent.

The work given enables pupils, over time and across the school, to consistently achieve the aims of the curriculum, which is coherently planned and sequenced towards cumulatively sufficient knowledge and skills for future learning and employment.

Pupils' work across the curriculum is consistently of a high quality.

Pupils consistently achieve highly, particularly the most disadvantaged. Pupils with SEND achieve exceptionally well.

443. In order to judge whether a school is good or requires improvement, inspectors will use a 'best fit' approach, relying on the inspection team's professional judgement.

Good (2)

Leaders adopt or construct a curriculum that is ambitious and designed to give all pupils, particularly disadvantaged pupils (including pupils with SEND), the knowledge and cultural capital they need to succeed in life. This is either the national curriculum or a curriculum of comparable breadth and ambition.

The curriculum may undergo necessary changes (for example, following a review by leaders or to take account of COVID-19) and certain aspects may be more developed than others. Where this is the case, these changes do not prevent all pupils having access to an appropriately broad and ambitious curriculum. Where adaptations to curriculum breadth are made for particular pupils, there is a clear rationale for why this is in those pupils' interests, and, where appropriate, there is a clear plan for returning all pupils to studying the full curriculum.

The school's curriculum is coherently planned and sequenced towards cumulatively sufficient knowledge and skills for future learning and employment.

Pupils study the full curriculum; it is not narrowed:

in primary schools, a broad range of subjects (exemplified by the national curriculum) is taught in key stage 2 throughout each and all of Years 3 to 6

in secondary schools, the school teaches a broad range of subjects (exemplified by the national curriculum) throughout Years 7 to 9. The school's aim is to have the EBacc at the heart of its curriculum, in line with the DfE 's ambition where this applies, and good progress has been made towards this ambition.

The curriculum is successfully adapted, designed or developed to be ambitious and meet the needs of pupils with SEND, developing their knowledge, skills and abilities to apply what they know and can do with increasing fluency and independence.

The work given enables pupils to achieve the aims and ambition of the curriculum, which is coherently planned and sequenced towards cumulatively sufficient knowledge.

Teachers have good knowledge of the subject(s) and courses they teach. Leaders provide effective support, including for those teaching outside their main areas of expertise.

Teachers present subject matter clearly, promoting appropriate discussion about the subject matter being taught. They check pupils' understanding systematically, identify misconceptions accurately and provide clear, direct feedback. In so doing, they respond and adapt their teaching as necessary without unnecessarily elaborate or individualised approaches.

Over the course of study, teaching is designed to help pupils to remember long term the content they have been taught and to integrate new knowledge into larger ideas.

Any remote education is well integrated within course(s) of study, and is well designed to support the wider implementation of the school's curriculum.

Teachers and leaders use assessment well. For example, they use it to help pupils embed and use knowledge fluently, or to check understanding and inform teaching, or to understand different starting points and gaps as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Leaders understand the limitations of assessment and do not use it in a way that creates unnecessary burdens on staff or pupils.

Teachers create an environment that focuses on pupils. The textbooks and other teaching materials that teachers select - in a way that does not create unnecessary workload for staff - reflect the school's ambitious intentions for the course of study. These materials clearly support the intent of a coherently planned curriculum, sequenced towards cumulatively sufficient knowledge and skills for future learning and employment.

Reading is prioritised to allow pupils to access the full curriculum offer.

A rigorous and sequential approach to the reading curriculum develops pupils' fluency, confidence and enjoyment in reading. At all stages, reading attainment is assessed and gaps are addressed quickly and effectively for all pupils. Reading books connect closely to the phonics knowledge that pupils are taught when they are learning to read.

The sharp focus on ensuring that younger children and those at the early stages of reading gain the phonics knowledge and language comprehension necessary to read, and the skills to communicate, gives them the foundations for future learning.

Teachers ensure that their own speaking, listening, writing and reading of English support pupils in developing their language and vocabulary well.

Pupils develop detailed knowledge and skills across the curriculum and, as a result, achieve well. This is reflected in the work that pupils produce.

Where available, impact is reflected in results from national tests and examinations that meet government expectations, or in the qualifications obtained. Teacher assessed grades from 2020 and 2021 will not be used to assess impact.

Pupils are ready for the next stage of education, employment or training. They have the knowledge and skills they need and, where relevant, they gain qualifications that allow them to go on to destinations that meet their interests and aspirations and the intention of their course of study. Pupils with SEND achieve the best possible outcomes.

Pupils read widely and often, with fluency and comprehension appropriate to their age. They are able to apply mathematical knowledge, concepts and procedures appropriately for their age.

Requires improvement (3)

The quality of education provided by the school is not good. </div>

Inadequate (4)

The quality of education is likely to be inadequate if any one of the following applies.

The school's curriculum has limited ambition, little or no structure or coherence, and leaders have not appropriately considered content and sequencing. Pupils experience a jumbled, disconnected series of lessons that do not build their knowledge, skills or understanding.

The pupils' experiences in lessons contribute weakly to their learning of the intended curriculum.

The range of subjects is narrow and does not prepare pupils for the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of life in modern Britain.

Pupils cannot communicate, read, write or apply mathematics sufficiently well for their age and are therefore unable to succeed in the next year or stage of education, or in training or employment. (This does not apply for some pupils with SEND.)

The progress that disadvantaged pupils make is consistently well below that of other pupils nationally and shows little or no improvement.

Pupils with SEND do not benefit from a high-quality education. Expectations of them are low, and their needs are not accurately identified, assessed or met.

Pupils have not attained the qualifications appropriate for them to progress to their next stages of education, training or employment. </div>

Grade descriptors for evaluating behaviour and attitudes

444. In order for the behaviour and attitudes judgement to be outstanding, the school must meet all of the good criteria securely and consistently and it must also meet the additional outstanding criteria.

In addition, the following apply:

445. In order to judge whether a school is good or requires improvement, inspectors will use a 'best fit' approach, relying on the inspection team's professional judgement.

Grade descriptors for personal development

446. In order for the personal development judgement to be outstanding, the school must meet all of the good criteria securely and consistently, and it must also meet the additional outstanding criteria.

In addition, the following apply:

447. In order to judge whether a school is good or requires improvement, inspectors will use a 'best fit' approach, relying on the inspection team's professional judgement.

Grade descriptors for leadership and management

448. In order for the leadership and management judgement to be outstanding, the school must meet all of the good criteria securely and consistently, and it must also meet the additional outstanding criteria.

In addition, the following apply:

449. In order to judge whether a school is good or requires improvement, inspectors will use a 'best fit' approach, relying on the inspection team's professional judgement.

Grade descriptors for early years provision in schools

450. In order for the early years provision of a school to be judged outstanding, it must meet all of the good criteria securely and consistently, and it must also meet the additional outstanding criteria.

In addition, the following apply:

451. In order to judge whether a school is good or requires improvement, inspectors will use a 'best fit' approach, relying on the inspection team's professional judgement.

Grade descriptors for sixth-form provision in schools

In addition, the following apply:

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This guidance came into force on 1 September 2023. 1. This handbook describes the main activities carried out during graded, ungraded and urgent inspections of maintained schools and academies in England under sections 5 and 8 of the Education Act 2005, respectively.

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This document from the government explains schools' responsibilities under the Equality Act. It's particularly useful when developing policies and procedures for tackling discrimination. I refer to it regularly when updating our school policies.

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Guidance to help schools understand how the Equality Act affects them and how to fulfil their duties under the act.

Applies to England

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Guidance to help schools understand how the Equality Act affects them and how to fulfil their duties under the act.

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The DfE's guidance on preventing and tackling bullying is essential reading for all school staff. It provides clear legal requirements and practical approaches to creating an anti-bullying culture in schools.

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Guidance for schools on preventing and responding to bullying.

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The Traveller Movement Education Toolkit

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The Traveller Movement Education Toolkit

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Their education toolkit is brilliant for understanding and addressing the specific challenges faced by GRT pupils. It includes strategies for improving attendance, engagement and achievement. The case studies are particularly helpful for understanding best practices.

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This charity provides excellent resources for supporting GRT pupils in education. Their cultural awareness training has been eye-opening for our staff, and their educational resources help create an inclusive environment for GRT students.

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This colourful book can help young readers from Gypsy, Roma and Traveller community written and produced by Maxine Lambert.
Read the digital book. The Pavee and the Buffer Girl by Siobhan Dowd
This book tells the story of Jim, a young Traveller boy, his experiences at the Buffer school (Buffer is what Travellers call non-Travellers) and developing new friendships.
Find out more and purchase the book. Books by Richard O'Neill
Author and playwright, Richard O'Neill has written a serious of illustrated books with fantastic representation of Gypsy and Traveller characters. Look out for Polonius and The Pit Pony, Yokki and The Porno Gry, The Lost Homework, and Ossiri and The Bala Mengro.
Purchase books by Richard O'Neill. The Show Must Go On
Purchase this book to celebrate 'World Funfair Month 2021'. Follow Mary Ann and her travelling Showmen family as they defend their yard from developers. The generations work together to help everyone understand that Grandad Henry is right: 'not all treasure glistens'.

Purchase the book.
Wee Bessie by David Pullar
Wee Bessie is Inspired by the childhood of Scottish Traveller Betsy Whyte one of Scotland's most celebrated storytellers.
Find out more on Good Reads. Books by Janna Elliot
Settela Steinbach was a Dutch Sinti girl, she was murdered along with other members of her family in Auschwitz. Janna Eliot translator of the original biography, created the novel 'Settela's Last Road' for younger readers.
See all of Janna's books on Good Reads. Why the Moon Travels by Oein DeBhairduin
Why the moon travels is a haunting collection of twenty tales rooted in the oral tradition of the Irish Traveller community.
Find out more about the book. Can't lose Cant
A book of Cant, the Old Language of Irish Travellers, by Children in Co Kildare Ireland.
Buy the book. Books by Robert Dawson
Robert Dawson has a wide selection of books and activity booklets on his website, including 'Leaves in the Holocaust', a novel about the persecution of Roma and Sinti people in World War Two.
View the Robert Dawson website. Fairground Art: The art forms of Travelling Fairs, Carousels and Carnival Midways by Geoff Weedon and Richard Ward
The authors devoted years of research to photographing and cataloguing the work of fairground artists as well as investigating the histories of the craftsmen and their creations.
Find the book. they lit fires: lenti hatch o yog Raine Geoghegan
Raine Geoghegan presents a selection of timeless and culturally rich songs and monologues based upon her Romani Roots.
Purchase the book.
Books by Maggie Smith-Bendell

Maggie's books, including 'Rabbit Stew and a Penny or Two' recount the 'old ways' and Romani Gypsy life and culture at the dawn of the 21st Century.
Find out more on Good Reads. Books by Eva Petulengro
Eva Petulengro is a Romani author who spent her childhood in a caravan before settling in Brighton. Eva's books 'The Girl in the Painted Caravan' and 'Caravans and Wedding Bans', reflect on Eva's life on the road.
Find out more. The Showmen's War by Michael Smith, Stephen Smith and Kevin Scrivens
This book was produced to accompany the Exhibition held at the Fairground Heritage Centre in 2018 to commemorate the part played in the Great War by the Travelling Showmen of Great Britain.
Find the book. Voyage of the Sparrowhawk by Natasha Farrant
In the aftermath of World War One, Ben, Clara and Lotti try to rebuild their lives, As they make their way on an epic journey, some of which on a narrowboat, they search for loved ones and a place to call home.
Books by Jess Smith
Jess Smith comes from a long line of Travelling people and writes about her early years on the road in Scotland with her family.

View Jess' website.
The Stopping Places by Damian Le Bas
In this critically acclaimed book, Damian seeks to better understand his heritage by setting out on a journey to discover the stopping places - the old encampment sites known only to Travellers.

Find out more about the book.
Gypsy Girl by Rosie McKinley
Rosie McKinley is an Irish Traveller, she grew up on the road moving around England and Ireland. Read her story of roaming fields and meadows with her siblings.

Find out more about the book.
Muddy Waters by DH Clacher
A series of fun, vibrant and colourful books sharing Muddy's adventures on the UK Waterways.
Find out more about the books. Books by Betsy Whyte
The Yellow on the Broom and Red Rowans and Wil Honey cover Betsy's childhood as a Gypsy Traveller in 1920s and 1930s Scotland, as well as traditional workmanship from hawking to, fruit and potato picking until the Second World War.
Find out more about the books. Smoke in the Lanes by Dominic Reeve
The author's account of living the Gypsy life on the road in the 1950s.
Find out more about the book. Gypsy Princess by Violet Cannon
The story of Violet's parents and her childhood.
Find our more about the book.

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Teaching Resources - Friends, Families and Travellers

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Many Gypsy, Roma and Traveller young people feel that their culture and way of life is not recognised or affirmed within the education system. We have created this page to support teachers and other staff in ... Teaching Resources Read More "

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Their 'Universal Values' workshops are fantastic for promoting equality and diversity in schools. They offer in-school training and have free downloadable resources that address various forms of discrimination.

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Free Resources for Equality, Diversity and Inclusion in Schools EqualiTeach's free resources have been carefully designed in collaboration with leading partner organisations. A selection of our resources are included below [...]

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This organisation provides excellent educational workshops and resources specifically designed for UK schools. Their videos featuring professional footballers really engage students. They offer teacher training and classroom resources that address racism in a way our students can relate to.

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Show Racism The Red Card 🛑 | ft. Hudson-Odoi, Omobamidele & Bedeau

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The NSPCC's 'Speak Out Stay Safe' programme is brilliant for primary schools. They offer assemblies and workshops that help children understand abuse and bullying. Their resources are age-appropriate and well-received by pupils.

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Speak out Stay safe programme | NSPCC Learning

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Speak out Stay safe is a programme for primary schools in the UK. It aims to equip a generation of children with the knowledge they need to stay safe from abuse and neglect.

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As a teacher, I've seen how digital harassment affects our pupils. The UK Council for Internet Safety (UKCIS) provides excellent guidance on addressing cyberbullying. Their framework helps schools develop robust online safety policies and support procedures.

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The Anti-Bullying Alliance offers brilliant free CPD training for all school staff. Their tools and resources are particularly useful during Anti-Bullying Week, but can be implemented year-round. I've found their lesson plans incredibly practical for both primary and secondary settings.