TRIBAL Guidance For The QA Jan 2012

GUIDANCE FOR THE QUALITY
ASSURANCE OF MAINTAINED
SCHOOL REPORTS
For use from January 2012
January 2012 Version 13
1
CONTENTS Page(s)
Ofsted guidance 34
Ofsted guidance on sign off 46
Methodology for assuring the quality of a report 69
Quality assurance of a school causing concern 10
Protocols for the QA of HMI reports 1011
Annex 1 Ofsted Report Template with guidance 1241
Annex 2 Tribal Quality Checklist 4247
Ofsteds Annex 5: Quality assurance of inspection 4849
reports
2
QA READER GUIDANCE MAINTAINED SCHOOLS
This document should be read in conjunction with TRIBAL GUIDANCE ON THE

QUALITY ASSURANCE OF INSPECTION REPORTS.
Ofsted guidance
Ofsted have reduced considerably the guidance provided in respect of the report. It is as
follows
CONDUCTING SCHOOL INSPECTIONS (PARAS 67 -70)
THE INSPECTION REPORT
1. The report should be written by the lead inspector, usually the day after the inspection.
A short letter should also be drafted for pupils, thanking them for their involvement and
providing information about the main outcomes of the inspection.
2. The school is required to distribute the inspection report to parents and the report is
published on the Ofsted website. The lead inspector should inform the school of the
following arrangements.
The ISP forwards the report to the school for a factual accuracy check within five
working days of the end of the inspection. The school has one working day to
respond. The lead inspector responds to the schools comments about factual
accuracy.1
The school receives an electronic version of the report, including the letter to pupils,
within 15 working days of the end of the on-site inspection. Schools have five
working days to distribute the report to parents and carers, including the letter to
pupils. After that time, the report is published on Ofsteds website.
If a school is placed in a category of concern, the time to publication is extended so
that the judgements can be moderated by senior HMI and, in the case of those
schools judged to require special measures, confirmed by Her Majestys Chief
Inspector (HMCI).
Telling the story of the school

3. Detailed guidance for inspectors on the content of the report can be found in the
reporting template. Inspectors should make appropriate professional judgements about
the extent of the detail needed to tell the story of the school, depending on the
complexity of circumstances. Inspectors should explain clearly in the report any
apparently stark differences in the main grades from one inspection to the next. This is
to ensure that readers are clear about aspects of the schools work that change
significantly between inspections. It is also to ensure that readers do not confuse such
changes with a lack of consistency in judgements. This is particularly important when
inspections are more frequent than the statutory maximum, for example when a school
has been issued with a notice to improve.
1
In the unlikely circumstances where there is a grade change or the text of a report has been subject
to significant amendments made after the school has completed its factual accuracy check, the lead
inspector should talk this through with the headteacher.
3
4. The letter to pupils provides a brief summary of the report. It should be tailored to the
age of the audience so that it is easy to read for younger pupils. It is intended that
teachers explain the letter to very young children. It should avoid patronising older
pupils. The text should be aimed at the older pupils in the school or, where the school
has a sixth form, at Key Stage 4 pupils. Sixth formers may be expected to read the full
report. The letter should:
convey the main inspection judgements

tell the pupils what is going well and where improvements could be made;
inspectors should ensure that this is done in a way that does not undermine staff
and must avoid identifying individual members of staff, except for the headteacher
state how the pupils themselves can contribute to the schools improvement.
Reporting rubric for satisfactory and inadequate schools

Where a school is reported as satisfactory (grade 3) in its overall effectiveness, the report
must include the following text at the end of the Main findings section of the report:
Schools whose overall effectiveness is judged satisfactory may receive a monitoring

visit by an Ofsted inspector before their next section 5 inspection.
Where the school requires significant improvement and is given a notice to improve, the
following statement must be included in the oral feedback and the written report, at the
beginning of the Main findings section:
In accordance with section 13 (3) of the Education Act 2005, Her Majestys Chief
Inspector is of the opinion that this school requires significant improvement, because
it is performing significantly less well than in all the circumstances it could
reasonably be expected to perform. The school is therefore given a notice to
improve. Significant improvement is required in relation to [state clearly the areas
in which significant improvement is required].
Where inspectors find that the school requires special measures, the following statement must
be included in the oral feedback and at the beginning of the Main findings section of the
written report:
In accordance with section 13 (3) of the Education Act 2005, Her Majestys Chief
Inspector is 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.
Ofsted guidance on sign off
Taken and slightly edited from
Quality assurance Procedures and guidance for quality assurance of inspections
Published October 2010 Reference 090333
Pages 13-15/18-19
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5. Inspectors are responsible for producing high quality reports. In particular, the lead
inspector must ensure that they:
collate the final report, drawing on the inspection teams individual and agreed
contributions, where this is applicable, and edit the report to ensure that it matches
the requirements of the specific inspection remit framework and guidance
ensure that the written report is a fair and accurate reflection of the institution or
provider; that it is written in straightforward language and of a quality that requires
little or no further editing.
6. All inspectors must ensure that reports for all types of inspection events meet Ofsteds
house style and comply with remit specific inspection guidance.
7. All reports quality assured by the quality assurance team will lead to a written
evaluation using Annex 5.
CRITERIA FOR SIGNING OFF REPORTS
8. Inspection service providers will assure the quality of inspection reports for schools in
accordance with the contract schedules. The process of assurance will ensure that the
principles of report writing have been met and that the report is clear and accurate.
9. The quality assurance reader will provide feedback to inspectors and their line managers
about the quality of the report. There are two possible outcomes:
the report meets the standard for publication

or
the report does not meet the standard for publication, amend and return
10. A report which meets the standard for publication may require minor amendments such
as removing unnecessary abbreviations and/or jargon. A report may require occasional
corrections of errors for example, those associated with spelling, punctuation or
grammar. Such errors do not in themselves affect the evaluative comments or
judgements in the report and will be corrected by the quality assurance reader and
signed off. If the quality assurance reader is any doubt about the meaning of a section
of the report, the ISP can be contacted through their individual help desks. During these
conversations the necessary clarity should be agreed so that the reader can make the
necessary amendments. The report can then be released as meets the standard for
publication.
11. A report may not meet the standard for publication for one or more of the following
reasons:
a lack of clarity in a number of areas

a lack of precision in recommendations for further improvement drawn from the
most significant areas of weakness
a major discrepancy between judgements, for example where a limiting judgement
has not had an impact on the outcome for overall effectiveness. Where such
discrepancies are intentional, the reasons must be convincingly explained in the
report
a serious discrepancy between the judgement grades and the supporting text
5
a major internal inconsistency or omission, for example, capacity to improve or
safeguarding.
12. The quality assurance reader should make recommendations for changes where
possible and explain in writing, using track changes, why the aspect of writing has given
cause for considered changes. The inspector responsible for the report will be notified
and the changes should be made as soon as possible so as not to delay publication. If
agreement cannot be reached the principal officer for quality assurance should be
notified.
13. Any proposed change of judgement downwards from the oral feedback given during the
inspection must be discussed with the divisional manager, inspection delivery or the
regional director. On these rare occasions, the lead inspector must inform the provider
of the revised judgements and provide reasons to justify such changes before the
provider receives the draft report.
Procedures for the quality assurance of integrated inspection reports

14. Integrated inspections of maintained or independent boarding schools, residential
special schools and non-maintained special schools with residential pupils involve
inspectors from both schools and social care. The social care sections of integrated
inspection reports will be written by the SCC inspector and forwarded to the lead
inspector. It is the lead inspectors responsibility to integrate it into the full report and
ensure its quality.
Changing judgements
15. Where it appears that in a report the text does not match the grade the golden rule is
change the text not the judgement. Where a QA reader proposes a change of any
of the 5 judgements, Tribals QA team must be informed immediately. A
discussion between the QA reader and MIQA will then take place and an agreement
reached.
16. Any proposed change of judgement downwards from the oral feedback given during the
inspection must be discussed with the lead inspector with a view to making the
necessary changes. Any change downwards must then be discussed with the divisional
manager, inspection delivery or the regional director. On these very rare occasions, the
lead inspector must inform the provider of the revised judgements and provide reasons
to justify such changes before the provider receives the draft report.
METHODOLOGY FOR ASSURING THE QUALITY OF A REPORT
There is no single right approach to quality assuring a report. What matters is that the
report is of high quality and is signed off first time. The following steps, however,
have proved useful to many readers.
Bear in mind that reports are written for parents. A useful question is: will parents get a
clear enough idea of what the quality of education is like for their own children, and how
it might be improved?
Remember: readers must make sure that reports are convincing and well written.
Readers should not impose their own stylistic preferences when the lead inspectors
meaning is clear enough!
6
Step 1: read the front page and the Introduction and Information about the
school sections
The introduction enables the reader to gain an overview of the inspection team and the
evidence used in making judgements. The Information about the school section should
be factual and include the distinctive features the report writing guidance is clear as to
what should included in this section and there have been some changes.
Step 2: examine the inspection judgement table
Check the table to get an overview of the quality of the school and any variations in the
grade profile (this is acceptable and should not be challenged by a reader).
Step 3: read the Key findings
The Key findings section should be brief (300 words), written for parents and must use
bullet points. It should begin with a short statement confirming the schools overall
effectiveness judgement and provide a convincing summary of the strengths and
weaknesses of the school and highlight any outstanding practice. Any statutory wording
should be included in the section. In secondary schools, there must be an evaluative
commentary on the sixth form. Brief comments should be made on overall effectiveness,
achievement, behaviour and safety, teaching and leadership and management. Any
outstanding or inadequate aspects of SMSC or the curriculum should be mentioned.
Step 4: analyse and amend as necessary the whole report in detail
This is the time to ensure that the report is well written and consistent throughout and
that it is specific to the school. Annotations, in the form of comments and suggestions
to improve the report, will be made using track changes. Some general principles to
follow are to:
trust the integrity of the inspection team and avoid judging the school after the event;
the role of the reader is to ensure that the inspection judgements are adequately
explained and appear consistent with each other. Change the text to match the
grade, not the other way round
point out to the LI any inconsistency where it is not clear which judgement should
prevail, but leave the LI to decide what is right
be constructive, for example suggesting alternative forms of wording rather than
leaving all improvements to the LI while avoiding the appearance of taking all
responsibility for a report away from the LI
ensure that when the track changes are accepted the text still reads coherently and
the grammar is correct
avoid being so liberal with comments in the margin that the LI is overwhelmed
though it is useful in places to explain why some changes have been made, as this will
help the professional development of LIs
avoid suggesting personal stylistic preferences, as it is the LIs report and not the
QARs
but make sure that the text complies with Ofsteds style guide
be sensitive, avoiding barbed questions (can be demoralising) and gratuitous comment
(can seem condescending).
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Step 5: check the PIB, RAISE and other documents but only if absolutely
necessary
This should be a very rare occurrence as any discrepancies should be dealt with
through the telephone call with the LI.
Step 6: check against the key questions on the Tribal aide memoire
The key questions on the aide memoire are found in Annex 2. Note: the aide memoire
is for both LIs and QARs to ensure all the writing requirements have been met. QARs
complete the final page. The aide memoire is intended to be used as a final check, to
make sure that no points have been missed.
Before a report is lodged on the portal for proof-reading and sending to Ofsted, all
relevant questions on the aide memoire must be answered affirmatively.
Step 7: come to a view of the overall quality of the report
The reports strengths and weaknesses should lead to a judgement of either ready for
sign-off with minor changes , ready for sign-off with moderate changes or not ready
for sign-off. This is important because it determines the subsequent action that will be
taken.
The overall judgement of the quality of the report and for AI reports only the grade
should be inserted at the start of the report followed by a succinct summary of the main
strengths and weaknesses as judged against the sign-off criteria and evaluation
checklist (there is no need to spell each one out all main questions on checklist are
met may suffice).
Where the judgement is not ready for sign-off because the main reasons should be
explained this is probably done best in the form of exemplified bullet points. Even
where a report will not be signed off there should be some strengths which should be
mentioned in the summary.
Remember, a negative answer to any of the questions on the aide memoire means that
a report is unlikely to be signed off. Almost all reports at first draft stage will have some
ways in which they can be improved. The question is: are these relatively minor points
or moderate points that will not prevent the report being signed off?
Step 8: feeding back to the lead inspector
QARs feed back to LIs in two ways in writing, through annotations on the report made
during the detailed analysis of it, and through the telephone discussion.
A few rules and common sense precepts apply when annotating a report.
QARs should use comments and track changes on the original Word document.
Where there is much to correct and comment upon, it can be difficult to follow all
comments and track changes as they cease to lie close to the relevant passage and may
drift onto a separate sheet. Where there is a great deal of comment, it may be helpful to
suggest a redrafting of a section or paragraph perhaps by copying the section and
amending it below the original, so that the LI can view both versions. The problem of
extensive bunching of comments and deletions in the margin, which lose their alignment
8
with the text, can be simply solved by creating spaces between paragraphs that can be
easily closed afterwards.
Comments can be used to raise questions, indicate omissions or explain why

something needs to be changed (if not overdone, this can be a useful form of
professional development).
QARs can judiciously provide rewording where syntax is unclear, grammar or

punctuation incorrect, or the text departs from Ofsteds house style. The aim is to make
the report clear and in accordance with the agreed conventions. Suggestions should
stop short of trying to impose particular stylistic preferences.
Where AI reports are judged not ready for sign-off, the QAR might need to
intervene more radically. Weak reports often have confused writing in a number of
sections. QARs might need to provide a suggested redrafting of one or two sections to
help move the report forward and show what other sections might look like.
For AI reports, all annotations should finish with a summary at the top of the
report with the statement either ready for sign-off with minor changes,
ready for sign-off with moderate changes, or not ready for sign-off
because and the grade. The summary is very important, as it should communicate
to the LI the most important things that need doing to move the report forward. If the
judgement is not ready for sign-off, the reasons for this need to be clearly explained.
Comments and suggested improvements should be sensitive. QARs should take a

helpful and developmental approach and avoid seeming judgemental. Even praise needs
to be carefully handled, because it can all too easily seem patronising and offensive.
Telephone discussion with the LI
These need to be handled sensitively. It is the joint responsibility of the LI and QAR to
ensure that the report will be signed off so a supportive, collegiate approach will be
most effective. The QAR should explain their case as to why changes to the report are
required and what they should be.
Where reports are judged ready for sign-off the discussion about the moderate points
should not take that long and in many instances may not be needed. The QAR should
not insist that all the points have to be accepted but should point out how they lead to
improvement in the report.
Where the judgement is not ready for sign-off, the conversation needs to be handled
even more sensitively. The QAR recommendations have to be accepted but again these
need to be explained carefully.
Step 9: completing the Tribal report evaluation form
The evaluation form for maintained schools Annex 2 is available on the portal and the
QA reader should complete it after the work on the first draft of the report is finished.
The form requires a grade to be entered. The LI will see this form. This information is
used for QA purposes by the professional team. The grade awarded should be for the
quality of the report on receipt from the lead inspector.
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QUALITY ASSURANCE OF REPORTS AND LETTERS RELATED TO SCHOOLS CAUSING
CONCERN
Where an inspection is carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2000, but it is
deemed to be a section 5 inspection, then the same disciplines and procedures apply
when writing letters as for normal section 5 reports.
There is separate guidance from Ofsted to assist readers who quality assure the letters
that follow visits to schools in special measures, or to other schools that do not receive a
published section 5 report. This guidance is in the form of prompts in the letter template
for each of the different type of visit. Tribal also has a separate checklist for such
reports and letters and this has to be completed by the LI and QAR.
All who work as QARs on these letters should ensure that they have the most recent
Ofsted section 8 zip file obtainable on the Tribal portal, and read it thoroughly, before
undertaking this work.
PROTOCOLS FOR QUALITY ASSURING HMI REPORTS
All HMI reports have the same criteria and quality checks as AI reports, but there are
significant differences in the way QA readers are required to communicate
their reading/editing to HMI.
Please ensure that you adhere to the following guidance. The bullet points at the end of
this section are generally applicable to all reports and constitute sound advice. The
comments on HMI reports must be put sensitively, as on all reports. But the major
difference with HMI reports is that either ready for sign off or not ready for sign
off is written on the front cover. There is no fine grading of reports judged
ready for sign off. It is important to avoid any gratuitous comments that indicate
whether the report as a whole, or any section of it, is well or badly done. The QA
section of the checklist requires completion as for an AI report.
Where readers cannot address an issue in a report they can challenge HMI
judgements. Where there are unexplained inconsistencies, they should be pointed out,
leaving it to the HMI to provide an explanation or, if necessary, amend a judgement. As
with reports written by AIs, readers should refrain from suggesting stylistic changes.
Protocols for inspection service providers when quality assuring HMI reports
Ofsted guidance
The responsibility for the quality of a report lies with the lead inspector. All reports
should be written in line with the guidance and formats provided for the relevant
inspection type. Inspection service providers should enable an open and honest dialogue
with the lead inspector about the quality of the report. Where there are anomalies, for
example, if there are errors regarding Ofsteds house style or a lack of clarity, then the
lead inspector should consider the changes proposed by the reader from the inspection
service provider and respond to the identified areas requiring further consideration.
Having made the necessary changes, the inspector should return the report to the
inspection service provider. The reports for school inspections will be forwarded to the
quality assurance team for final sign off.
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Should the lead inspector and inspection service provider not be able to resolve an issue
about the report, the inspection service provider should notify the quality assurance
principal officer to decide on further action to be taken with the report.
In cases where the QA reader believes that an HMI report is seriously flawed and would
be unlikely to be signed off, the remit lead and Paul Dowgill should be contacted.
It is important that when reading HMI reports we follow similar rules to those adopted
by HMI.
Do:
remember that the findings of the inspection have been communicated orally to the
provider suggestions of a change to key issues and judgements are not appropriate
except in the rarest of circumstances and may raise a complaint or lead to an inspection
being voided
trust the integrity of the inspection team avoid judging the provider after the event
suggest changes, where inconsistency in the text occurs. Change the text to match the
grade, not the other way round
find the solution to the problem by indicating what changes to the text should be
made
ensure that when the track changes are accepted that the sentence still reads
coherently and that the grammar is correct
make comments in the margin but only if they are absolutely necessary, for example
when a solution cannot be found; consider carefully the tone of the comments
avoid suggesting cosmetic changes and personal preference small matters of this
sort will not cause embarrassment to HMCI
make changes where what is written does not comply with the style guide.
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Annex 1 Report template with guidance January 2012
Report writing guidance

Guidance for inspectors when using the section 5 report template
This guidance applies to the report template for inspections of all schools inspected under
section 5 of the Education Act 2005.
Inspectors are recommended to complete the front cover of the report before drafting
their inspection findings. If you wish to draft the inspection findings before completing the
reports front cover, please turn to page 11.
Age group: All

Published: January 2012
Reference no: 090326
12
Contents
Introduction 4
Report front cover, headers and footers 4
Reporting on boarding/residential provision managed by the governing
body 9
Report front cover 9
Main body of the report 9
Reporting on childcare provision managed by the governing body 10
Inspection types 10
Drafting the report 11
Introduction 11
Information about the school 12
What to include in the information about the school 12
What to avoid 12
Inspection judgements 13
Glossary 20
What inspection judgements mean 20
Overall effectiveness of schools 20
Common terminology used by inspectors 21
Formatting bullet points 24
If bullet points are required in any other place within the report 26
INTRODUCTION
This guidance applies to the report template for inspections of all schools inspected
under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.
Inspectors are recommended to complete the front cover of the report before
drafting their inspection findings. If you wish to draft the inspection findings before
completing the reports front cover, please turn to page 11.
REPORT FRONT COVER, HEADERS AND FOOTERS

1 Open the report template and save it as a new document go to File, Save As.
2 Ensure that the report is drafted in the print layout view go to View, and select Print
Layout.
[If the report cover is being completed after the main body of the report has been drafted,
the document needs to be protected, in order that data can be entered into the fields in
this section.
To do this, click once on the padlock icon on the Forms
toolbar.
If the Forms toolbar is not visible at the top of the screen, go to View, Toolbars, and select
Forms.]
3 Left click three times with the mouse on

[Add School Name], to highlight the field.
Type the schools name.
There is no need to delete any of the fields before
typing.
4 Press the Tab key on the keyboard to navigate to
the next field Unique reference number [Add
number].
Type the schools URN.
5 Continue to use the Tab key to move to, and fill in,
the rest of the fields in this section of the report.
6 If you wish to leave a field blank, press Tab again to
go past it, and to continue to the next field. (At
this stage, fields that are not required cannot be
deleted.)
7 If you wish to go back to a field once you have
tabbed past it, left click three times with the mouse
on the relevant field you wish to return to.
8 In the Reporting inspector field, the name of the
inspector must be inserted in the format <first
name> <last name>.
Do not use titles or initials.
Do not type HMI please refer to step 9 below.
Report writing guidance 14

January 2012, No. 090326
9 Press Tab. If the reporting inspector is an HMI,
then use the mouse to select HMI from the drop
down list field next to [Add name]. If not, leave this
field blank.
Press Tab again, to move to the next field Type of
school. We use the establishment types that are
available on Edubase.
The age range is the age range for the main
school only. Any variations should be detailed in
the introduction sections.

January 2012, No. 090326
1 At this stage, the references to the Education Act 2005, the Childcare Act 2006 and the Care
0 Standards Act 2000 cannot be selected or deleted.
1 When you reach the Gender of pupils and Number of pupils on the school roll fields, insert
1 the total summative number of pupils on roll.
1 If the school has a sixth form, insert the disaggregated figure for numbers on roll in
2 the sixth form.
1 In the next field, if the school does not have a sixth form, leave the field blank, and press
3 Tab to continue to the next field.
1 In the next field, insert the Appropriate authority for the school. For inspections of pupil
4 referral units, please note that the appropriate authority is the local authority.
1 Please note that the Chair field should be left blank for inspections of pupil referral
5 units, even if there is a chair of the management committee. This is because the
appropriate authority for pupil referral units is the local authority. (Although a
management committee which runs a pupil referral unit may have a chair person, the
chair does not have any statutory responsibility that is separate from the rest of the
management committee.)
1 Continue to use the Tab key to move to, and fill in, the Headteacher field and the other
6 fields up to and including School address. Not previously inspected can be entered into
the Date of previous school inspection field if this is the schools first inspection. If it is not
possible to accurately reflect a schools composition in any of the fields, please enter
the most appropriate option on the front cover and give the accurate details in the
Information about the school section of the report.
1 In the Telephone number and Fax number fields please enter a space between the area
7 code and the rest of the number. Please note that the area code for London is 020, not
0207 or 0208.
1 The last field to complete in this section is the Email address.
8
1 When the factual data about the school has been entered, select File, Print Preview to
9 check that the details have recorded correctly.
If any of the fields are incomplete, or incorrect, close Print Preview, then use the mouse
to select the relevant field, click three times, and enter the data.
Close Print Preview.
2 Next, the document needs to be unprotected.

0 To do this, click once on the padlock icon on the Forms toolbar.
If the Forms toolbar is not visible at the top of the screen, go to View, Toolbars, and
select Forms.
2 The front cover of the report is structured in a table, to ensure that the data fields
1 align neatly.
If the outlines of the table are not visible, go to Table, Show Gridlines.
(The gridlines will not show when the report is printed.)

January 2012, No. 090326
2 Next, remove the references to the
2 inspection types that are not required:
either section 5 or section 8 of the
Education Act 2005
The registered childcare provision, managed
by the governing body, was inspected under
sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act
2006.
The inspection of boarding provision was
carried out under the Children Act 1989, as
amended by the Care Standards Act 2000,
having regard to the national minimum
standards for boarding schools.
The inspection of residential provision was
carried out under the Children Act 1989, as
amended by the Care Standards Act 2000,
having regard to the national minimum
standards for residential special schools.
Use the left mouse button to highlight the
ones which are not required, then press
Delete on the keyboard.
2 Blank rows are positioned throughout this
3 section of the report, to ensure that there is
adequate spacing between the fields. Please
do not type in these, or delete them.
2 Next, remove the coloured shading from the

4 inspection types that are required.
Ensure the Formatting toolbar is showing (if
it is not, go to View, Toolbars, Formatting).
Use the mouse to highlight the required text.
From the Formatting toolbar select the down-
arrow next to the highlighting tool, and
select None.
2 If the school does not have sixth form

5 provision managed by the governing body,
the sixth form data fields must be deleted.
Highlight the Gender of pupils in the sixth form
row, Right click with the mouse and select
Delete Rows.
Following this, highlight and delete the row
containing the field Of which, number on roll in
the sixth form.
2 If the school has sixth form provision

6 managed by the governing body, the
coloured shading from the sixth form data
fields must be removed. Follow step 24
above.

January 2012, No. 090326
2 For inspections of pupil referral units the
7 Chair field must be deleted (for the reason
set out in step 15 above).
Follow step 25 above for instructions on
deleting a row from the template.
2 Scroll to the top of the first page of the

8 report.
Go to View, Header and Footer.
To remove the reports title and key, move
the mouse to the left of the words Report
template.
When the cursor changes to an arrow
pointing right towards the text, left click and
highlight all the lines of text, including
Boarding/residential provision.
2 Make sure that only the text is highlighted, NOT

9 the blank lines beneath the text, so that the
Ofsted logo is not removed.
3 Press Delete on the keyboard.

0
3 Close Header and Footer.

1
3 If the copyright page disappears when you

2 have finished removing all redundant boxes
from the cover page please do the
following. Place the cursor on the carriage
return above the Section Break (Next
Page) line at the bottom of page one.
Insert a page break here by clicking on
Insert, Break, Next Page
3 If the footer on page 1 and the header on

3 page 2 have automatically updated, go to
View, Print Layout, and continue to page 5 of
the instructions. If they have NOT
automatically updated, follow the
instructions in step 3437 below.
3 Scroll down to view the footer on page 1.

4

January 2012, No. 090326
3 Right click on the [add ages] field, and select
5 Update Field.
Repeat to fill in the Inspection date(s) and
Inspection number fields.
3 Scroll down to the header on page 2.

6 Right click to update the [Add School Name]
and [add date(s)] fields.
3 Go to View, Print Layout to close the headers

7 and footers, and scroll to page 3 of the
report.

January 2012, No. 090326
REPORTING ON BOARDING/RESIDENTIAL PROVISION
MANAGED BY THE GOVERNING BODY
Please note that the template contains optional wording for use in inspection reports
of boarding schools and residential special schools. For inspections of boarding
schools, please use the terms boarding provision and boarders. In the case of
residential special schools, please use the terms residential provision and
residential pupils. This is to ensure national consistency in inspection reports. The
inspection findings in the main body of the report, however, should be tailored
towards the school. Social care inspectors will ask at the outset of the inspection
which terminology the school prefers, for example boarders/residential pupils/care
staff/residential staff, and will use this in their contribution to the integrated
inspection report.
Report front cover

If the boarding/residential provision has a different name to that of the school, it
must be entered in the Boarding/Residential provision field. Where the
provision does not have a discrete name, the Boarding/Residential provision
row should be deleted.
If the boarding provision is a childrens home, the Boarding/Residential
provision row must be deleted in all cases.
The other fields in this section of the report front cover must be completed
in all cases, where there is any type of boarding provision.
Main body of the report

If any national minimum standards have not been met by the provision, the
following standard phrase must appear as one of the recommendations under
What does the school need to do to improve further?: The school must
ensure that it meets the national minimum standards for boarding schools which
have not been met. or The school must ensure that it meets the national
minimum standards for residential special schools which have not been met. The
national minimum standards not met should be listed towards the end of the
report, as set out below.
Any major issues arising from the boarding or residential inspection should be
reported in the section What does the school need to do to improve
futher?.
Inspectors must consider the impact of the grades for boarding/residential
provision on the grades for the whole school, for which they will need to use
their professional judgement, taking account of the proportion of
boarders/residential pupils in the school.
The inspection findings for the overall effectiveness and leadership and
management of boarding, and boarders/residential pupils safety should be
woven into key findings and the corresponding sections of the main report

January 2012, No. 090326
The social care inspectors findings relating to outcomes for boarders/residential
pupils and the quality of the boarding/residential provision should be reported in
the section of the report entitled Boarding (which should be used in the case of
boarding schools) or Residential provision (for use in residential special school
reports). This section should contain about 400 words in total.
The section 5 and boarding grades for leadership and management and
behaviour and safety should either match or be within one grade of each other
and the reasons for this should be clearly stated in the main body of the report.
Any national minimum standards that are not met must be listed under National
minimum standards followed by their reference number in brackets, for
example (NMS 5.1). This list must be introduced with the sentence The school
must meet the following national minimum standards for boarding schools. or
The school must meet the following national minimum standards for residential
special schools. (Used as appropriate.)
If all of the national minimum standards have been met, insert the sentence The
school meets the national minimum standards for boarding schools. Or The
school meets the national minimum standards for residential special schools.
(Used as appropriate.) In these cases, there is no need to use bullet points.
A grade must be given for all five judgements on the boarding/residential
provision. Two options are given for each judgement, the first is for boarding
schools and uses the terms boarding provision/boarders. The second is for
residential special schools and uses the terms residential provision/residential
pupils. Please delete as appropriate.
Please refer to Conducting inspections of boarding and residential
provision in schools for further guidance on writing integrated inspection reports,
available on the Ofsted website: www.ofsted.gov.uk/resources/100180
REPORTING ON CHILDCARE PROVISION MANAGED BY

THE GOVERNING BODY
Inspection types
Any provision for children under the age of eight that is registered, and managed
by the schools governing body, is inspected under sections 49 and 50 of the
Childcare Act 2006, at the same time that the school is inspected under section 5
of the Education Act 2005, in a single inspection (SI).
Any provision managed by the governing body that is not registered, is inspected
as part of the schools section 5 inspection.
Any provision run by a separate provider is not part of a schools section 5
inspection.
Any registered provision run by a separate provider is inspected under
section 49 and 50. Where practicable, the inspection of this other registered
provision on the school site takes place at the same time as, but separately from,
the schools section 5 inspection. This is a parallel inspection event (PIE).

January 2012, No. 090326
Inspection report: [Add School Name], [add date(s)] 1 of 12
DRAFTING THE REPORT

[If this section is being drafted before the front cover has been filled in:
open the report template and save it as a new document go to File, Save As
ensure that the report is drafted in the print layout view go to View, and select Print
Layout
the document needs to be unprotected; to do
this, open the Forms toolbar: go to View, Toolbars,
and select Forms then click on the padlock icon
on the Forms toolbar.]
Before drafting the report the lead inspector should note the guidance in paragraphs 72 to 75 of
Conducting school inspections and also take account of the specific guidance provided in this template
and the Ofsted style guide.
In the report templates, drafting instructions are shown with green highlighted text.
These are fields. Each field contains one instruction or some optional text.
If you wish to retain the text in a field (for example of Her Majestys Inspectors) the
green coloured shading will need to be removed please refer to the instructions in step
24 on page 6 of this guidance.
To delete or overtype a field, left click with the mouse to highlight it, then press Delete or
begin typing.
In the Introduction section of the template space has been provided to insert the names
of up to four inspectors on the inspection team. If more inspector names are required
make sure the cursor is in the last cell of the table and press the tab key, this will insert
another line in the table. If there are less inspectors on the team highlight the superfluous
rows and then right click on them, select delete rows and the extra rows will be deleted. (The
name of the inspector should be inserted in the format <first name> <last name>. Do not
use titles or initials)
The bullet points provided are aligned with the requirements of the Ofsted Style Guide.
Left click to the right of a bullet point to start typing next to it. Pressing Return will
automatically start a new line with a bullet point immediately below the previous one.
Ensure that any other bullet-pointed lists drafted in the report are aligned with the Style
Guide (refer to instructions on page 26 of this guidance).
Introduction
Inspection team
insert name of inspector delete if not applicable: Her Majestys
Inspector additional inspector
Delete if not applicable: This inspection was carried out with two days' at no notice.
(Insert: a comment about the lesson observation strategy such as number of
lessons/ hours observed teaching; the number of teachers seen; state whether or
not meetings have been held with parents, groups of pupils, governors, staff.
Inspectors took account of the responses to the on-line questionnaire (Parent View)
in planning the inspection, observed the schools work, and looked at include some of
the documentation that was scrutinised and include reference to the number of
parental questionnaires.

January 2012, No. 090326
Information about the school

[Insert information about the school in no more than 200 words]
What to include in the information about the school

Describe the main factual characteristics of the school and note particularly any
significant changes since the last inspection including whether the school was
subject to a notice to improve or special measures. When referencing free school
meals data the report should state the proportion of pupils known to be eligible
for free school meals is.
Included a comment about the size of the school compared to others of the
same type for example, xxx is larger than the average sized primary school.
Include information on important features, whether it is part of a childrens centre
or part of a federation. These must be commented on in the report.
Include information on recently accredited and significant awards.
Include information on whether government floor standards have been met
during the past three years.
Include information on any alternative provision that is used by the school.
Briefly describe any childcare or boarding provision provided by the school.
Where there is onsite childcare provision that is not managed by the
governing body (for example a breakfast club or an after school club) it must be
referred to in the information about the school.
What to avoid
Avoid making judgements, which includes any commentary on attainment on
entry or attendance, in this section.
Do not repeat information contained on the front page of the report but note,
where appropriate, aspects of the schools context, such as pupil mobility or
significant staffing issues, which set the scene.
In particular, avoid commentary which may be construed as negative and/or may
offend parents and carers. For instance, quote the percentage of pupils in a
particular group without stating A minority of
The term Early Years Foundation Stage must be referred to in full
whenever it is used.

January 2012, No. 090326
Inspection grades: 1 is outstanding, 2 is good, 3 is satisfactory, and 4 is inadequate

Please turn to the glossary for a description of the grades and inspection terms
Inspection judgements
Overall effectiveness
Achievement of pupils
Quality of teaching
Behaviour and safety of pupils
Leadership and management
Key findings
The style of bullet points to use is shown above. These should be full sentences
beginning with a capital letter and ending with a full stop describing the key
findings from the inspection. (see page 26 of this guidance for instructions on
entering bullet points into the report template).
This section is intended as a very brief summary for parents. It

should begin with a short statement confirming the schools overall
effectiveness judgement: such as: This is an
outstanding/good/satisfactory school. (delete as appropriate) If the
schools overall effectiveness has been judged inadequate the
appropriate wording set out in Conducting school inspections should be
used here. If the school has been removed from an Ofsted category of
concern the appropriate wording should be written at the beginning of
this section.
Inspectors must ensure there is an evaluative commentary on the

sixth form. It must include the sentence The sixth form is
outstanding/good/satisfactory/inadequate. (delete as appropriate)
If the school has boarding or residential provision, inspectors

should refer to its overall effectiveness in the key findings of the
integrated report.
Highlight any outstanding practice and state clearly and plainly

the schools strengths as well as any areas for improvement.
This section should be no longer than 300 words long and should

January 2012, No. 090326
be written using bullet points.
Brief comments should be made on overall effectiveness,

achievement, behaviour and safety, teaching and leadership and
management.
Any outstanding or inadequate aspects of SMSC or the curriculum

should be referenced.
For a Grade 3 school, wording to indicate the possibility of further

monitoring should be inserted at the end of this section (see
Conducting school inspections for the appropriate wording)

January 2012, No. 090326
The main body of the report is structured in a table, to ensure that the text aligns neatly.
If the outlines of the table are not visible, go to Table, Show Gridlines.
(Only the borders around the grades will show when the report is printed.)
Text should be inserted so that it abuts the borders at the top and bottom of the cell, as
exemplified in these instructions. Any superfluous line returns beneath the text should be
deleted.
Blank rows are positioned throughout this section of the report, to ensure that there is
adequate spacing between the judgements and the inspection findings. Please do not type
in these, or delete them.
The bullet points and subordinate bullet points are aligned with the Ofsted Style Guide.
What does the school need to do to improve further?

These should be clear actions for improvement drawn from the
most significant of the areas of performance which are hindering the
schools improvement to a higher grade.
The weaknesses need to be flagged up in the Main Report.
It may be helpful to specify targets, timescales and actions.

These should be challenging, but need to be realistic and achievable,
particularly for schools which are judged to be inadequate.
General actions for improvement, such as Improve the quality of

teaching, are not helpful and should be avoided. Most areas for
improvement need to be broken down further so that inspectors can be
precise in specifying, for example, which elements of teaching require
improvement by when, or in which subjects or year groups.
Please refer to page 9, in the case of integrated inspections of

boarding or residential special schools.
Main report
Inspectors must include a commentary on each of the main
judgements and write these as separate sections under the appropriate header
as set out below.
The report should be succinct and evaluative. Suggested length

of this section is 1400 words, but inspectors should make appropriate
professional judgements about the extent of detail required in each
section to tell the story of the school, depending on the complexity of
circumstances.
Clearly identify what is distinctively good about this school.
Inspectors must ensure that the report captures the schools

provision for promoting pupils SMSC development and the impact of
the schools curriculum
Inspectors must make clear if any key stage is not as strong as

others.

January 2012, No. 090326
Achievement of pupils
Inspectors must include an evaluation of the pupils learning and
performance in the classroom as observed by inspectors. Inspectors
should focus on an evaluation of pupils progress. This should be given
more prominence than any commentary on past test and examination
results. There is no need to write a detailed description of test and
examination results however it is important that inspectors make clear
whether attainment is above average, broadly average or low.
Inspectors must make reference to the outcomes for different groups
including, where relevant the Early Years Foundation Stage. Ensure that
their achievement is explained clearly where there is any evidence of
noticeable variation and reference made to how well gaps in
performance are narrowing compared with all pupils nationally.
Inspectors must comment on the quality of learning for pupils with
special educational needs and pupils with disabilities and their progress.
In primary school reports, inspectors must comment on pupils attainment
in reading by the end of Key Stage 1 and by the time they leave school.
Include the views of parents on how well they feel their children are
achieving and briefly explain whether this view is accurate or not.
Inspectors should refer to outcomes for boarders/residential pupils only
where they are significantly different from other pupils in the school.
Quality of teaching
Write a commentary capturing key strengths and weaknesses in the
quality of teaching which impact on the learning and progress for pupils.
The emphasis should be on using evidence directly observed by
inspectors.
Judicious use of examples of good and better teaching should be used to
illustrate this commentary.
Include references to the impact of teaching on SMSC
Include references to the impact of the planned curriculum
Include the views of parents on how well they feel their children are
taught and briefly explain whether this view is accurate or not.
Behaviour and Safety of pupils
Inspectors must comment on:
typical behaviour over time and not just the behaviour seen
during the inspection
the behaviour of boarders/residential pupils, if appropriate
bullying, including different types of bullying and the
effectiveness of how this is dealt with, including in the boarding
house/in residential provision
the views of pupils (and boarders/residential pupils) and parents

January 2012, No. 090326
with regard to behaviour and safety

January 2012, No. 090326
Leadership and management

When commenting on leadership and management (including
governance), focus on the key features that have contributed to
improving pupils achievement and the quality of teaching in particular
the impact of professional development
Inspectors must make a comment on improvements over time and the
schools capacity to improve further.
This section must contain an evaluation of how well the school provides
a broad, balanced curriculum which meets pupils needs and promotes
their SMSC development. It must include the following sentences The
curriculum is outstanding/good/satisfactory/inadequate. (delete as
appropriate) and SMSC is outstanding/good/satisfactory/inadequate.
(delete as appropriate)
It is not necessary to comment on all aspects of leadership and
management however you must comment on the effectiveness with
which leaders and managers at all levels, including the governing body:
promote equality and tackle discrimination
make arrangements for safeguarding
In and integrated inspection this section must contain an

evaluation of the effectiveness of the boarding/residential provision.

January 2012, No. 090326
If the school does not have Early Years Foundation Stage provision, this section must be
deleted.
Highlight all 10 rows, go to Table, select Delete, and then select Table.
The Early Years Foundation Stage delivered in the registered childcare

provision
Provide a short commentary, or bullet-pointed list, capturing key strengths and

weaknesses, drawing on the features from the evaluation schedule, but not
necessarily referring to all the judgements.
These are the grades for the Early Years Foundation Stage
Overall effectiveness of the Early Years Foundation Stage
Taking into account:
Outcomes for children in the Early Years Foundation Stage
The quality of provision in the Early Years Foundation Stage

The effectiveness of leadership and management of the Early Years
Foundation Stage for the registered provision
Boarding/residential provision
Provide a short commentary please refer to page 9 above and Conducting

inspections of boarding and residential provision in schools, available on the
Ofsted website: www.ofsted.gov.uk/resources/100180.
National minimum standards

If all of the national minimum standards have been met, insert the
sentence The school meets the national minimum standards for
boarding schools. Or The school meets the national minimum standards
for residential special schools. (Used as appropriate.)
If one or more of the national minimum standards have not been
met, provide a bullet-pointed list of the relevant national minimum
standards, followed by their reference number in brackets, for example
(NMS 5.1). This list must be introduced with the sentence The school
must meet the following national minimum standards for boarding
schools. The school must meet the following national minimum
standards for residential special schools. (Used as appropriate.)
If the school does not have boarding provision, this section must be deleted.
Highlight all 11 rows, go to Table, select Delete, and then select Table.
These are the grades for the boarding provision / These are the grades for the
residential provision (delete as appropriate)
Overall effectiveness of the boarding experience / Overall effectiveness of the residential
experience
Outcomes for boarders / Outcomes for residential pupils
Quality of boarding provision and care / Quality of residential provision and
care
Boarders safety / Residential pupils safety

January 2012, No. 090326
Leadership and management of boarding / Leadership and management of the

residential provision

January 2012, No. 090326
Please note that the text in all the sections of the Glossary must not be amended, in order to maintain
consistency between published reports. This includes the definitions given for Common terminology
used by inspectors.
GLOSSARY
What inspection judgements mean
Grade Judgement Description
Grade 1 Outstanding These features are highly effective. An outstanding
school provides exceptionally well for all its pupils
needs.
Grade 2 Good These are very positive features of a school. A school
that is good is serving its pupils well.
Grade 3 Satisfactory These features are of reasonable quality. A
satisfactory school is providing adequately for its
pupils.
Grade 4 Inadequate These features are not of an acceptable standard. An
inadequate school needs to make significant
improvement in order to meet the needs of its pupils.
Ofsted inspectors will make further visits until it
improves.
Overall effectiveness of schools

Overall effectiveness judgement (percentage of schools)
Type of school Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate
Nursery schools 46 46 8 0
Primary schools 8 47 40 5
Secondary schools 14 38 40 8
Sixth forms 15 42 41 2
Special schools 28 48 20 4
Pupil referral
15 50 29 5
units
All schools 11 46 38 6
New school inspection arrangements have been introduced from 1 January 2012. This
means that inspectors make judgements that were not made previously.
The data in the table above are for the period 1 September 2010 to 31 August 2011 and
represent judgements that were made under the school inspection arrangements that
were introduced on 1 September 2009. These data are consistent with the latest
published official statistics about maintained school inspection outcomes (see
www.ofsted.gov.uk).
The sample of schools inspected during 2010/11 was not representative of all schools
nationally, as weaker schools are inspected more frequently than good or outstanding
schools.
Primary schools include primary academy converters. Secondary schools include
secondary academy converters, sponsor-led academies and city technology colleges.
Special schools include special academy converters and non-maintained special schools.
Percentages are rounded and do not always add exactly to 100.

January 2012, No. 090326
Common terminology used by inspectors

Achievement: the progress and success of a pupil in their learning and
development taking account of their attainment.
Attainment: the standard of the pupils work shown by test and

examination results and in lessons.
Attendance the regular attendance of pupils at school and in

lessons, taking into account the schools efforts to
encourage good attendance.
Behaviour how well pupils behave in lessons, with emphasis on

their attitude to learning. Pupils punctuality to lessons
and their conduct around the school.
Capacity to improve: the proven ability of the school to continue improving

based on its self-evaluation and what the school has
accomplished so far and on the quality of its systems to
maintain improvement.
Leadership and management: the contribution of all the staff with responsibilities, not
just the governors and headteacher, to identifying
priorities, directing and motivating staff and running the
school.
Learning: how well pupils acquire knowledge, develop their

understanding, learn and practise skills and are
developing their competence as learners.
Overall effectiveness: inspectors form a judgement on a schools overall

effectiveness based on the findings from their
inspection of the school.
Progress: the rate at which pupils are learning in lessons and over
longer periods of time. It is often measured by
comparing the pupils attainment at the end of a key
stage with their attainment when they started.
Safety how safe pupils are in school, including in lessons, and

their understanding of risks. Pupils freedom from
bullying and harassment. How well the school promotes
safety, for example e-learning.

January 2012, No. 090326
Please note that the introductory text to the letter for pupils must not be edited, and that
the title Inspection of [School name/town/postcode] should be in emboldened Tahoma 12
font.
At the end of the letter for pupils, delete or overtype the sign off and Add name of lead
inspector fields. Left click with the mouse to highlight the field, then press Delete or begin
typing.
Either the Her Majestys Inspector or the Lead inspector field should be retained. Delete
the one which is not required, and remove the green coloured shading from the one you
wish to use please refer to the instructions in step 26 on page 6 of this guidance.
This letter is provided for the school, parents and

carers to share with their children. It describes Ofsteds
main findings from the inspection of their school.
[Add date]
Dear [Children/Pupils/Students]
Inspection of [School name/town/postcode]
Introduce the letter in a manner appropriate to the age/phase of the pupils. Thank
pupils for contributing to inspection.
Summarise main findings giving key strengths and weaknesses refer to pupils views,
including those provided through the questionnaire survey.
List of improvements required and which are relevant to pupils refer to pupils views
and, where possible, refer to the ways in which pupils can help to bring about the
improvements.
[Sign off]
[Add name of lead inspector]
Her Majesty's Inspector Lead inspector

January 2012, No. 090326
The text below about complaints should appear at the bottom of the back page.
Finally, ensure that the text box with information about making a complaint to Ofsted
appears at the foot of a blank page at the end of the report, after the letter to pupils.
Any complaints about the inspection or the report should be made following the
procedures set out in the guidance 'Complaining about inspections', which is available
from Ofsteds website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. If you would like Ofsted to send you a copy
of the guidance, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk.

January 2012, No. 090326
FORMATTING BULLET POINTS
When these instructions have been followed, the settings will be saved to your
computer and can be used in all future reports.
1 Ensure the cursor is positioned where a bullet point is required within the report.
2 Go to Format, and choose Bullets and
Numbering.
Select the Outline Numbered tab; click
on one of the lists (the first list has
been selected in this example).
Choose Customize at the bottom of the
screen.
3 Under Number Style choose the large

square bullet option.
If this option does not appear, select
New Bullet.
4 The square can be found in the

Wingdings Font selection of symbols.
Press OK.

January 2012, No. 090326
5 Under Bullet position, change the alignment to:
Aligned at: 0cm
Tab space after: 1cm
Indent at: 1cm
6 Next, under Level, choose 2.

Select the dash symbol.
If this option does not appear, select New Bullet
The dash can be found under the Symbol Font.
Under Bullet position, change the alignment to:

Aligned at: 1cm
Tab space after: 2cm
Indent at: 2cm
[These are the subordinate bullet points]
7 Press OK a square bullet will appear where the cursor was positioned in the report.
8 When you have typed text next to the first bullet point, pressing Return on the keyboard
will insert a second bullet point underneath the first one.
9 If subordinate bullet points are required in the

report, press Return to insert a new square bullet
point.
Then, press the Increase Indent icon on the
Formatting toolbar.

January 2012, No. 090326
IF BULLET POINTS ARE REQUIRED IN ANY OTHER
PLACE WITHIN THE REPORT
1 Put the cursor where the bullet point is
required.
Choose Format, Bullets and Numbering, and
select the list which was formatted earlier (in
this example, the first list).
Press OK
[Do not use the bullet point icon on the
Formatting toolbar.]
A bullet point will appear where the cursor
was positioned in the report.
38
ANNEX 2 Version 5 in use from January 2012
TRIBALS AIDE MEMOIRE: REPORT WRITING

REQUIREMENTS
School name:
LI: QA reader:
Date Date
URN Inspection
No
Lead inspectors are required to complete the table above.
After writing the report and before uploading it, lead inspectors are required to use this
document as a final aide memoire checking each criterion carefully against the
report to ensure that the report meets all the requirements before entering a Y in
the summary box.
Tribal will view as a serious breach of our QA procedures if the QAR

subsequently identifies checklist issues missed by the lead inspector as it
indicates a failure to use the aide memoire as intended.
A NO in any grey box means the report would not be signed off and. LIs must write a
commentary in the final box in each section to explain any discrepancies ie
where the requirements are not met and why.
It is self evident that if a section in the aide memoire appears under a certain heading
then this must appear in that section of the report.
On completion, the aide memoire must be uploaded to the workflow for the QA reader.
KEY QUESTIONS ABOUT THE QUALITY OF THE REPORT LI check

Y/N/NA
1. 1a. Does the introduction include a comment about the lesson observation strategy
Introduction e.g. the number of lessons and number of teachers seen?
Ofsted sign off

criteria 3
39
2. 2a. Are the main factual characteristics of the school described and any significant
Informati changes since the last inspection including whether the school was subject to a notice
on about to improve or special measures noted? When referencing free school meals data the
the report should state the proportion of pupils known to be eligible for free school meals
school is
2b. Include a comment about the size of the school compared to others of the same
Ofsted sign off type for example, xxx is larger than the average sized primary school.
criteria 3 2c. Include information on important features, whether it is part of a childrens centre
or part of a federation. These must be commented on in the report.
2d. Include information on recently accredited and significant awards.
2e Include information on whether government floor standards have been met during
the past three years.
2f Include information on any alternative provision that is used by the school.
2g Briefly describe any childcare or boarding provision provided by the school.
2h Where there is onsite childcare provision that is not managed by the governing
body (for example a breakfast club or an after school club) it must be referred to in
the information about the school.
2i Does this section:
- avoid making judgements, which includes any commentary on attainment on entry
or attendance?
- not repeat information contained on the front page of the report but note, where
appropriate, aspects of the schools context, such as pupil mobility or significant
staffing issues, which set the scene.
- avoid commentary which may be construed as negative and/or may offend parents
and carers. For instance, quote the percentage of pupils in a particular group without
stating A minority of
I have checked the report and confirm than the introduction and
information sections meet the requirements.
3. Key 3a. Does this section begin with a short statement confirming the schools overall
Findings effectiveness judgement: such as: This is an outstanding/good/ satisfactory school .
(delete as appropriate)? If the schools overall effectiveness has been judged
Ofsted sign off inadequate the appropriate wording set out in Conducting school inspections should
criteria 1,2,3 be used here. If the school has been removed from an Ofsted category of concern the
appropriate wording should be written at the beginning of this section.
3b. Inspectors must ensure there is an evaluative commentary on the sixth form. It
must include the sentence The sixth form is
3c. If the school has boarding or residential provision, inspectors should refer to its
overall effectiveness in the key findings of the integrated report.
3d. Highlight any outstanding practice and state clearly and plainly the schools
strengths as well as any areas for improvement.
3e. This section should be no longer than 300 words long and should be written using
bullet points.
3f. Brief comments should be made on overall effectiveness, achievement, behaviour
and safety, teaching and leadership and management.
3g. Any outstanding or inadequate aspects of SMSC or the curriculum should be
referenced.
3h. For a Grade 3 school, wording to indicate the possibility of further monitoring
should be inserted at the end of this section (see Conducting school inspections for
the appropriate wording)
I have checked the Key findings and confirm that all the
requirements are met.
40
4. What does 4a. Are these clear actions for improvement drawn from the most significant of the
the school areas of performance which are hindering the schools improvement to a higher
need to do to grade?
improve 4b. Are the weaknesses flagged up in the Main Report?
further? 4c. It may be helpful to specify targets, timescales and actions. These should be
challenging, but need to be realistic and achievable, particularly for schools which are
Ofsted sign off judged to be inadequate.
criteria 4 4d. General actions for improvement, such as Improve the quality of teaching, are
not helpful and should be avoided. Most areas for improvement need to be broken
down further so that inspectors can be precise in specifying, for example, which
elements of teaching require improvement by when, or in which subjects or year
groups.
4e. In the case of integrated inspections of boarding or residential special schools are
the requirements of page 9 in the report writing guidance met?
I have checked the points for improvement and confirm that all the
requirements are met. Where there is a discrepancy this is because
(LI adds explanation here)
5. Main report 5a. Inspectors must include a commentary on each of the main judgements and
write these as separate sections under the appropriate header as set out in
Ofsted sign off the report template.
criteria 1,2,3 5b. The report should be succinct and evaluative. Suggested length of this section is
1400 words, but inspectors should make appropriate professional judgements about
the extent of detail required in each section to tell the story of the school, depending
on the complexity of circumstances.
5c. Clearly identify what is distinctively good about this school.
5d. Inspectors must ensure that the report captures the schools provision for
promoting pupils SMSC development and the impact of the schools curriculum
5e. Inspectors must make clear if any key stage is not as strong as others.
I have checked the Main Report and confirm that all the
6. 6a. Inspectors must include an evaluation of the pupils learning and performance in
Achievement the classroom as observed by inspectors. Inspectors should focus on an evaluation of
of pupils? pupils progress. This should be given more prominence than any commentary on past
test and examination results. There is no need to write a detailed description of test
Ofsted sign off and examination results however it is important that inspectors make clear whether
criteria 1,2,3 attainment is above average, broadly average or low.
6b. Inspectors must make reference to the outcomes for different groups including,
where relevant the Early Years Foundation Stage. Ensure that their achievement is
explained clearly where there is any evidence of noticeable variation and reference
made to how well gaps in performance are narrowing compared with all pupils
nationally.
6c. Inspectors must comment on the quality of learning for pupils with special
educational needs and pupils with disabilities and their progress.
6d. In primary school reports, inspectors must comment on pupils attainment in
reading by the end of Key Stage 1 and by the time they leave school.
6e. Include the views of parents on how well they feel their children are achieving and
briefly explain whether this view is accurate or not.
6f. Inspectors should refer to outcomes for boarders/residential pupils only where they
are significantly different from other pupils in the school.
I have checked the achievement section and confirm that all the
41
7. Quality of 7a. Write a commentary capturing key strengths and weaknesses in the quality of
teaching teaching which impact on the learning and progress for pupils. The emphasis should
be on using evidence directly observed by inspectors.
Ofsted sign off 7b. Judicious use of examples of good and better teaching should be used to illustrate
criteria 1,2,3 this commentary.
7c. Include references to the impact of teaching on SMSC.
7d. Include references to the impact of the planned curriculum.
7e. Include the views of parents on how well they feel their children are taught and
briefly explain whether this view is accurate or not.
I have checked the quality of teaching section and confirm that all
the requirements are met. Where there is a discrepancy this is
because (LI adds explanation here)
8. Behaviour 8a. Inspectors must comment on:

ands safety typical behaviour over time and not just the behaviour seen during the
inspection
Ofsted sign off the behaviour of boarders/residential pupils, if appropriate
criteria 1,2,3 bullying, including different types of bullying and the effectiveness of
how this is dealt with, including in the boarding house/in residential
provision
the views of pupils (and boarders/residential pupils) and parents with
regard to behaviour and safety
I have checked the behaviour and safety section and confirm that
all the requirements are met. Where there is a discrepancy this is
because (LI adds explanation here)
9. Leadership 9a. When commenting on leadership and management (including governance), focus
and on the key features that have contributed to improving pupils achievement and the
management quality of teaching in particular the impact of professional development
9b. Inspectors must make a comment on improvements over time and the schools
Ofsted sign off capacity to improve further.
criteria 1,2,3 9c. This section must contain an evaluation of how well the school provides a broad,
balanced curriculum which meets pupils needs and promotes their SMSC
development. It must include the following sentences The curriculum is
outstanding/good/satisfactory/inadequate. (delete as appropriate) and SMSC is
9d. It is not necessary to comment on all aspects of leadership and management
however you must comment on the effectiveness with which leaders and managers at
all levels, including the governing body:
- promote equality and tackle discrimination
- make arrangements for safeguarding
9e. In an integrated inspection this section must contain an evaluation of the
effectiveness of the boarding/residential provision.
I have checked the leadership and management section and
confirm that all the requirements are met. Where there is a
discrepancy this is because (LI adds explanation here)
10. The Early 10a. Provide a short commentary, or bullet-pointed list, capturing key strengths and
Years weaknesses, drawing on the features from the evaluation schedule, but not
Foundation necessarily referring to all the judgements.
42
Stage I have checked the Early Years Foundation Stage section and
delivered in confirm that all the requirements are met. Where there is a
the registered discrepancy this is because (LI adds explanation here)
childcare
provision
Ofsted sign off
criteria 1,2,3
11. Boarding/ 11a. Provide a short commentary please refer to page 9 in the report writing
residential guidance and Conducting inspections of boarding and residential provision in schools,
provision available on the Ofsted website: www.ofsted.gov.uk/resources/100180.
11b. If all of the national minimum standards have been met, insert the sentence The
Ofsted sign off school meets the national minimum standards for boarding schools. Or The school
criteria 1,2,3 meets the national minimum standards for residential special schools. (Used as
appropriate.)
11c. If one or more of the national minimum standards have not been met, provide a
bullet-pointed list of the relevant national minimum standards, followed by their
reference number in brackets, for example (NMS 5.1). This list must be introduced
with the sentence: The school must meet the following national minimum standards
for boarding schools. The school must meet the following national minimum standards
for residential special schools. (Used as appropriate.)
I have checked the boarding /residential provision section and
confirm that all the requirements are met. Where there is a
discrepancy this is because (LI adds explanation here)
12. Pupils 12a. Does the letter have the appropriate phase/age introduction and thanks to the
letter pupils for contributing to the inspection?
12b. Does it summarise main findings giving key strengths and weaknesses referring
Ofsted sign off to pupils views, including those provided through the questionnaire survey?
criteria 1,2,3,4 12c. List of improvements required and which are relevant to pupils refer to pupils
views and, where possible, refer to the ways in which pupils can help to bring about
the improvements
I have checked the letter and confirm that all the requirements are
met. Where there is a discrepancy this is because (LI adds
explanation here)
13. Quality of 13a. Is the report specific to the school and helpfully illustrated with an appropriate
writing selection of quotations and examples?
13b. Does the writing avoid:
Ofsted sign off expressing judgements as recommendations,
criteria 1,5 speculation or prediction,
the overuse of qualifiers,
over-generalisation,
avoid unnecessary repetition?
13c. Is the report written in straightforward language, pitched right for parents,
without exaggerating or being over-colloquial?
13d. Is the use of English generally free from errors of spelling, punctuation and
grammar and is the Ofsted house style followed? (Be careful to distinguish errors from
style)
13e. Is there a clear grade-text match in each section
13f. Are the technical aspects of the report (front page/headers/footers/bullet points)
completed correctly?
I have checked the quality of writing and confirm that all the
43
The QAR section
The report sign off judgement

Grade 1 ready with minor changes;
Grade 2 ready with moderate changes
Grade 3 not ready
Where a grade 3 is entered, the following table is to be completed by QAR indicating

which criterion is not met by writing the number/letter(s) of the criterion from the
checklist against the relevant non sign off criterion e.g. against criterion 5 you might
write 13d, or criterion 3 you might put 6c or 9b. You do not have to change the
checklist. The final box is for a written commentary, which should be the text that
appears on the front of the report i.e. copy and paste, indicating the reasons for non
sign off.
Criterion leading to
failing sign off (from
Ofsted sign off criteria checklist)
1. a discrepancy between the judgement grades and the supporting

text
2. a discrepancy between judgements, for example where a limiting

judgement has not had an impact on the outcome for overall
effectiveness. Where such discrepancies are intentional, the reasons
must be convincingly explained in the report
3. an omission of key points which must be covered within an aspect

of the report, for example, capacity to improve or safeguarding
4. a lack of precision in recommendations for further improvement

drawn from the most significant areas of weakness and in early
years and social care regulatory inspections, one or more incorrect
choices of recommendation rather than action
5. excessive errors in the text for example frequent and numerous

spelling, punctuation and/or grammar
Commentary on reasons for non sign off - copied from the front of the report
44
ANNEX 5: QUALITY ASSURANCE OF INSPECTION
REPORTS
Annex 5 - Quality Assurance of Reports

Quality assurance of inspection reports must ensure that reports are accessible, user-friendly and
meaningful. All reports should meet the following expectations and requirements.
Record of the quality assurance of reports

Remit: Schools
Location:
Date of inspection (enter last day of inspection only):
Type of inspection:
Inspector type:
Inspector name:
Inspection / provider URN:
Provider / establishment name:
Quality assurance inspector name:
Date of QA:
ISP (If appropriate):
Outcome of quality assurance
The report meets the standard for publication:
If the above question is a NO, The report does not meet the
standard for publication for one or more of the following
reasons:
a discrepancy between the judgement grades and the supporting text
Explanation if Yes chosen:
a discrepancy or contradiction between judgements. Where the overall

effectiveness judgement and the individual judgements are not
proportionate or balanced in line with the evaluation schedule. In L&S
reports, where subject grades have not had an impact on aspect
grades. Where such discrepancies are intentional, the reasons must be
explained convincingly in the report.
45
an omission of key points which must be covered in line with the
conducting inspections guidance and the evaluation schedule for
example, safeguarding or in Social Care inspections, a failure to report
the outcomes and impact for children and young people.
lack of precision in recommendations for further improvement drawn

from the most significant areas of weakness and in early years and
social care regulatory inspections, shortfalls inaccurately assessed as a
breach or unmet standard leading to incorrect choice of Action (EY
inspections), Requirements (SC inspections) or Recommendations.
Inaccurate referencing to national minimum standards or regulations.
excessive errors in the text for example frequent and numerous

spelling, punctuation and/or grammar
Action record Comments
Particular or relative strengths observed in the report
Development points for future consideration.
Has the overall effectiveness grade been changed as a result of QA?

This informs ISP KPIs
If not processing a report in Sharepoint, completed Annex 5 should be returned to:
QAreportsLS@ofsted.gov.uk (Learning and skills remits)

QAreportsSC@ofsted.gov.uk (Social Care)
QAreportsEY@ofsted.gov.uk (Early Years)
46

TRIBAL Guidance For The QA Jan 2012

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GUIDANCE FOR THE QUALITY

For use from January 2012

January 2012 Version 13

This document should be read in conjunction with TRIBAL GUIDANCE ON THE

CONDUCTING SCHOOL INSPECTIONS (PARAS 67 -70)

THE INSPECTION REPORT

Telling the story of the school

convey the main inspection judgements

Reporting rubric for satisfactory and inadequate schools

Schools whose overall effectiveness is judged satisfactory may receive a monitoring

Ofsted guidance on sign off

Taken and slightly edited from

Quality assurance Procedures and guidance for quality assurance of inspections

Published October 2010 Reference 090333

CRITERIA FOR SIGNING OFF REPORTS

the report meets the standard for publication

a lack of clarity in a number of areas

Procedures for the quality assurance of integrated inspection reports

METHODOLOGY FOR ASSURING THE QUALITY OF A REPORT

Step 2: examine the inspection judgement table

Step 3: read the Key findings

Step 4: analyse and amend as necessary the whole report in detail

Step 7: come to a view of the overall quality of the report

Step 8: feeding back to the lead inspector

Comments can be used to raise questions, indicate omissions or explain why

QARs can judiciously provide rewording where syntax is unclear, grammar or

Comments and suggested improvements should be sensitive. QARs should take a

Telephone discussion with the LI

Step 9: completing the Tribal report evaluation form

PROTOCOLS FOR QUALITY ASSURING HMI REPORTS

Report writing guidance

Age group: All

REPORT FRONT COVER, HEADERS AND FOOTERS

3 Left click three times with the mouse on

Report writing guidance 14

Report writing guidance 15

2 Next, the document needs to be unprotected.

Report writing guidance 16

2 Next, remove the coloured shading from the

2 If the school does not have sixth form

2 If the school has sixth form provision

Report writing guidance 17

2 Scroll to the top of the first page of the

2 Make sure that only the text is highlighted, NOT

3 Press Delete on the keyboard.

3 Close Header and Footer.

3 If the copyright page disappears when you

3 If the footer on page 1 and the header on

3 Scroll down to view the footer on page 1.

Report writing guidance 18

3 Scroll down to the header on page 2.

3 Go to View, Print Layout to close the headers

Report writing guidance 19

Report front cover

Main body of the report

Report writing guidance 20

REPORTING ON CHILDCARE PROVISION MANAGED BY

Report writing guidance 21

DRAFTING THE REPORT

Report writing guidance 22

Information about the school

What to include in the information about the school

Report writing guidance 23