Monitoring inspections for maintained schools

This page tells you about the types of monitoring inspection that your school may have. Monitoring inspections of schools are carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005.

We know that our monitoring inspections are important in helping schools improve. This view is shared by local authorities and school leaders.

Monitoring inspections of schools causing concern

Statutory guidance on schools causing concern is available on the Department for Education website.

Schools that are subject to special measures

The Education Act 2005 states that a school requires special measures if 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.

For further information for schools that were judged to require special measures, and which have had at least one monitoring inspection prior to September 2012, go to Monitoring inspections of schools that are subject to special measures (January 2012).

For further information for schools which were judged to require special measures but have not had a monitoring inspection prior to September 2012, go to Monitoring inspections of schools that are subject to special measures (September 2012).

School that have serious weaknesses

Schools are deemed to have serious weaknesses under section 44(2) of the Education Act 2005, where Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector is of the opinion that the school requires significant improvement, because it is performing significantly less well than it might in all the circumstances reasonably be expected to perform.

For further information, go to Monitoring inspections of schools that have serious weaknesses

Schools given a notice to improve before September 2012

The Education Act 2005 states that a school requires significant improvement if it is judged to be:

failing to provide an acceptable standard of education, but demonstrating the capability to improve

not failing to provide an acceptable standard of education, but performing significantly less well than it might in all the circumstances reasonably be expected to perform.

For further information, go to Monitoring inspections of schools with a notice to improve.

Academy converters or sponsor-led academies whose predecessor schools were in a category of concern

Under the Academies Act 2010, schools may apply to the Secretary of State for Education in order to convert to academy status. These schools are known as ‘academy converters’.

In addition to ‘academy converters’, there are sponsor-led academies which have become academies under the provisions of the Academies Act 2010 and whose predecessor schools were in a category of concern before they closed, to be replaced by the new academy. Upon conversion, the predecessor school effectively closes and is replaced by a new legal entity with a new unique reference number.

These academies will be subject to a monitoring inspection within two full terms of opening. The outcome of the monitoring inspection may influence the timing of future inspection events.

For further information, go to Monitoring inspections of academies whose predecessor schools were in a category of concern

Monitoring inspections of schools not in a category of concern

Ofsted also carries out monitoring inspections of schools requiring improvement.

Schools requiring improvement

Schools that require improvement are not ‘schools causing concern’ as set out in the Education Act 2005. Nonetheless, they are not yet ‘good’.

For further information, go to Monitoring inspection visits and support for schools which require improvement in order to become good or outstanding.

Schools requiring improvement