How to Prepare Your School's Data for an Ofsted Inspection

What Ofsted Actually Looks At

Ofsted inspectors do not arrive with a checklist of data points to tick off. What they want is a coherent narrative — they want to understand whether school leaders know their school, understand what the data means, and have taken appropriate action.

That said, there are specific data sources inspectors consistently reference:

• Attendance and persistent absence — overall, by pupil group, and year-on-year trend
• Exclusions — fixed-term and permanent, by group
• Progress and attainment — particularly for disadvantaged pupils, SEND, and high prior attainers
• Curriculum intent vs. outcomes — are the results consistent with what you say you're delivering?

The Narrative Problem

Most schools have the data. The problem is presenting it in a way that tells a coherent story rather than a spreadsheet dump. Inspectors are experienced at identifying leaders who are hiding behind data complexity.

What to Prepare Before an Inspection

1. Your headline summary (one page) Be able to articulate in plain language: where you are, where you've come from, and what you're doing about gaps. If you can't do this in under three minutes without a slide deck, you're not ready.

2. Pupil group breakdowns Disadvantaged vs. non-disadvantaged is the most scrutinised comparison. Know your gap, know the trend, know your actions.

3. Your SEND picture How many pupils with an EHCP? Are they making progress? What does your provision look like against outcomes?

4. Attendance trajectory Post-pandemic attendance is under the microscope nationally. Know your persistent absence rate (target: below 10%) and what you've done to address it.

5. Your own assessment vs. published data If your internal data tells a different story to national published data, be ready to explain why. Inspectors will probe this.

The Most Common Mistakes

• Presenting raw data without context or explanation
• Being unable to explain year-on-year changes
• Showing data that contradicts your stated priorities
• Not knowing your pupil group breakdowns by memory

How a Data Health Check Helps

A Data Health Check from Northbridge Analytics gives you an independent audit of your school's data before inspection. We identify gaps in your narrative, surface data you may not have considered, and produce a clear summary document your leadership team can present with confidence.

Get in touch to discuss a Data Health Check →