Key Insights into the New 2023 ISI Inspection Framework

1. Overall Structure: The report starts with a summary of the main inspection findings, detailing the extent to which the school meets the Standards. It then divides into specific sections focusing on leadership, management, governance, pupils’ education, physical and mental health, social and economic wellbeing, and safeguarding【13†source】.
2. Leadership and Management: This section evaluates how leaders and managers at all levels demonstrate appropriate skills and knowledge for their roles, ensuring effective fulfilment of their responsibilities, including the communication of the school’s aims and ethos, provision of necessary information, and maintenance of an effective complaints procedure.
3. Pupils’ Education: There’s a significant emphasis on inclusive teaching and learning practices, especially for pupils with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND). Schools must ensure non-discriminatory policies, teaching, and assessments, making reasonable adjustments as required.
4. Physical and Mental Health: Schools must demonstrate effective plans for physical education and personal and health education. This includes the provision of relationships education or sex education in line with Standards and relevant legislation, ensuring appropriate delivery by trained teachers.
5. Social and Economic Wellbeing: The framework expects schools to effectively prepare pupils for life in British society, evidenced through a comprehensive PSHE/RSE curriculum that aligns with the framework’s expectations.
6. Safeguarding: Safeguarding is a priority, with inspections focusing on the school’s arrangements to safeguard and promote pupil welfare. This includes reviewing safeguarding policies, systems, processes, and the single central register, with particular attention to online safety.
7. Report Style: Inspection reports are designed to be clear and direct, providing nuanced evaluations without overall judgements or grades. Inspectors report on each section, offering evidence for their findings and suggesting next steps or areas for action.
8. Inspection Duration: Routine inspections are scheduled for 2.5 days, starting at midday on the first day, and inspectors usually leave the school site by 6:00 PM each day.
9. Aligned Inspections: Inspections of linked schools, especially those sharing senior leadership teams, may be scheduled simultaneously to minimise disruption and align inspection activities.
10. Wellbeing Emphasis: The framework emphasises the wellbeing of pupils as defined in the Children Act 2004, recognising the interconnectedness of pupil and staff wellbeing, especially in the context of recruitment and retention challenges.
11. Consultation Outcomes: The new framework is seen as a progressive development, reflecting ISI’s response to feedback from school leaders. It aims to reduce unnecessary workload and work collaboratively, focusing on the typical operations of a school.
12. Inspection Reports: New style inspection reports aim to be more concise and informative, providing a clear picture of the school experience from a pupil’s perspective. The reports emphasise leadership and management throughout the school, including governance.
13. Provision and SEND: There’s a renewed focus on provision, particularly for pupils with SEND, ensuring their needs are identified and met. Learning outside the classroom and recreation are also highlighted as key aspects affecting pupil wellbeing.
14. New Inspection Cycle: The inspection cycle has been simplified to include one type of inspection that covers both compliance and education quality, with a new style of reporting that integrates independent school standards with the quality of education.
15. Preparation for Schools: Schools are advised to ensure those responsible for compliance are well-informed, and that policies are regularly reviewed and implemented. Attention to detail is important in staff recruitment and the administration of the Single Central Register.