FULLY UPDATED SEPTEMBER 2025

The School Website
Requirements Guide 2025/26

The School Website
Requirements Guide 2024

Significant changes to statutory school website requirements were released in May 2024, with further updates in October 2024, including restructured content, rewritten guidance, and brand new requirements.

This updated guide reflects everything you need to know for 2025/26.

Used by thousands of schools and trusts, this is the most trusted and up-to-date guide in the UK.

Chapter 1

What’s New for 2025/26?

Each year, school website requirements shift slightly—and 2025/26 is no exception. This year’s updates include a growing focus on transparency around executive pay and gender pay gap reporting, even for smaller schools. The pressure to present a clear, parent-friendly SEND page is increasing, and there’s continued scrutiny on the quality and accessibility of published policies and curriculum information.

We’ve refreshed this guide to reflect all the latest requirements, plus practical tips and best practice examples from schools and trusts doing this really well. Whether you’re managing a single school or overseeing a MAT, this year’s updates are designed to help you stay fully compliant—and communicate with clarity and confidence.

Let’s take a look at what’s changed and what you need to know for the year ahead.

Chapter 2

Latest School Website Requirements

Last updated for 2025/26

Staying compliant isn’t just about checking boxes—it’s about showing your school or trust is well-run, transparent, and focused on students. The very best schools don’t wait for Ofsted to update their website; they use it year-round to show how they live out their values and policies every day.

What Are the Latest Trends?

The most confident schools and trusts are now:

  • Using their website to evidence the quality of education and inclusion in action.
  • Linking policies and practice clearly so visitors, inspectors and families see consistency.
  • Publishing everything required—and going a step further by providing plain-language context and examples.

From our training workshops and recent surveys, it’s clear that school staff:

  • Want help prioritising what really matters for inspection readiness.
  • Need time-saving tools for keeping the site up to date.
  • Often aren’t confident about whether their current setup meets all the requirements—especially for SEND, curriculum, and policies.
Our Advice

Here’s what we recommend based on what schools like yours are telling us:

  • Don’t rely on a single ‘compliance page’. Make sure required content is where people expect to find it (e.g. curriculum details under each subject).
  • Use real evidence. If you say you value inclusion or enrichment, include photos, pupil voice, or links to stories showing it.
  • Stay ahead by scheduling updates around key calendar dates—like PE & Sport Premium by 31 July, and Pupil Premium by 31 December.
  • Treat ‘should’ as ‘must’. Every recommended item in DfE guidance is included in our checklists because these are what inspectors often ask about.
  • Use your website to reassure parents and Ofsted at the same time. When your SEND page, curriculum content or safeguarding details are clear and visible, you reduce queries and increase trust.

Practical Tools

  • Use our School Website Requirements Checklist to see exactly what needs to be published.
  • If you need expert help, ask us about a Pro School Website Audit—you’ll receive a written report and step-by-step support.
  • Join our free compliance workshops to stay updated throughout the year.

Let us know if you’d like to book a one-to-one call to talk through any requirements—we’re here to help.

Chapter 3

7 Top Tips for School Website Compliance

Our in-house team supports hundreds of schools and trusts every year. We listen closely to what inspectors look for and what real users experience. Here’s what we know for certain: compliance isn’t just about ticking boxes—it’s about building confidence.

So before you dive into the full checklist, here are seven key strategies to help you get it right—and keep it right.

TIPS #1

If there are issues on the website, there are likely issues in school

This phrase comes directly from Ofsted inspectors we’ve worked with. Your website is often the first and longest inspection task. If it’s disorganised, out of date, or missing information, it can cast doubt on the leadership and management of the school.

That doesn’t mean everything has to be perfect—but it does mean the basics need to be in place and easy to find. If you say inclusion matters, your SEND page should reflect that. If safeguarding is a priority, your policy must be up to date and clear.

TIPS #2

Make content easy and fast to find

We regularly hear stories of inspectors spending over 10 minutes hunting for statutory content—and giving up. Don’t let poor navigation be the reason for a critical comment. Structure your site clearly, and use logical categories that match what people are looking for (e.g. “Curriculum”, not “Teaching & Learning”).

Read our Definitive guide to School Website Structure.

TIPS #3

Safeguarding: non-negotiable

If your safeguarding information is out of date or unclear, nothing else will matter. Inspectors check for this first—before they step foot in school. Make your safeguarding statement, policy, and key contacts clear and visible on your homepage and safeguarding page.

💡 Read: How to Create the Best Safeguarding Page

TIPS #4

Work systematically with a set schedule

Outdated content is usually the result of a lack of process. Set review dates for every statutory content area. Delegate responsibilities. Use a termly audit system. Our compliance software makes this simple, or you can download our free School Website Requirements Checklist.

If you’re short on time, book a Pro School Website Audit—we’ll check everything for you and provide a tailored action plan.

TIPS #5

School Website Accessibility matters (and is a legal requirement)

Since September 2020, schools must meet WCAG 2.1 AA standards. Your site must be accessible to users with disabilities, and you must publish an accessibility statement.
Accessibility is not optional. Most exemptions don’t apply to school websites, and poor accessibility is something the Equality and Human Rights Commission is monitoring more closely.

💡 Read: School Website Accessibility – What You Need to Know

TIPS #6

Should you rely on an Ofsted Early Warning System?

While traffic-tracking tools can alert schools to possible Ofsted interest, we don’t recommend relying on these. Ofsted has adapted: they now use VPNs and delayed access to hide inspection signals.
The most effective strategy? Stay compliant year-round. Treat your website as a live reflection of your values, not a scramble in the days before a visit.

💡 Explore: Impact of the Ofsted Early Warning System

TIPS #7

Multi-Academy Trusts: Centralise for compliance and clarity

MATs face unique challenges—but they also have the biggest opportunities. With the right tools, you can manage policy updates, compliance tracking and content deployment across all your schools from one central hub.

Using the Schudio MAT Portal, trusts can:

  • View real-time compliance reports across all schools
  • Update policies and content once and push to all sites
  • Access audit-ready checklists and strategic summaries
  • Work with any website provider—or take full control using Schudio websites

💡 Ask us about a demo or view the MAT Portal features

NEW FOR 2025

Using AI for Website Compliance – Helpful or Harmful?

With the rise of AI tools, many schools are exploring automated ways to manage website content. We support responsible use of AI—but we’ve also seen the risks.
Here’s our position:

✅ AI can support content audits and reviews, helping flag outdated pages or missing documents.
✅ It can assist in formatting and proofreading written content.
❌ It should never be used to generate statutory policy content without expert review.
❌ It must not replace real human understanding of what good communication looks like—especially in areas like SEND, safeguarding, or curriculum.

We’re working on ways to safely integrate AI into your workflow (especially for MATs), but we’ll always prioritise clarity, compliance, and trust over shortcuts.

💡 Read more: [Coming soon – Using AI for School Website Compliance the Right Way]

Chapter 4

Presenting Policies & Documents – Best Practice for Schools and Trusts

Policies might not be the most exciting content on your website—but they are among the most important. Not just because they’re required, but because they’re often one of the first places inspectors, parents and other stakeholders look when judging how well-run your school or trust is.

It’s not just about publishing your policies. It’s about making them clear, accessible and easy to manage over time.

Why Presentation Matters

Your policy page may not change often, but it must stand the test of time. Many schools redesign their website every 3–4 years, so the way you present policies today is likely to stick for a while. If your documents are in one long, hard-to-navigate list, or links are broken, it doesn’t just frustrate visitors—it can lead to serious compliance concerns. Inspectors may flag missing or outdated content even if your policy is technically live somewhere on the site.

And remember: some policies must include references to legislation in the introduction or overview. This is a common oversight, so double-check before uploading.

Policies displayed with Schudio School Website Software Document Groups Module

How to Display Policies Effectively

  • Group policies into categories (e.g. Safeguarding, Curriculum, Finance). This is far easier for users to scan and understand.
  • Style the policy section clearly. Even something simple like an icon or download button improves usability.
  • Avoid dead links and outdated files. This is one of the most common (and unnecessary) compliance failures.
  • Enable in-page previews where possible. This keeps users on your site and aligns with accessibility expectations.
  • Use readable, accessible PDF files, not scanned documents or huge downloads.

The Schudio Solution: Document Groups

  • All Schudio-powered websites include a powerful feature called Document Groups. This module lets you:
  • Upload policies once and display them in multiple places on your website.
  • Automatically update all versions when a policy is changed—no duplicate uploads.
  • Sort and group policies into a structured, user-friendly layout.
  • Embed live, searchable document sections anywhere on your site.

For example, your SEND policy might appear both on your Policies page and your SEND page. Update it once, and it’s updated everywhere.

Managing Policies Across Multi-Academy Trusts

For MATs, the need for centralised policy control is even more critical.
Using the Schudio MAT Portal, trusts can:
✔ Upload and manage policy documents centrally
✔ Distribute and publish documents across all school websites—even if schools use different website providers
✔ Automatically update policy links trust-wide from one dashboard
✔ Reduce admin time and ensure consistent compliance across the trust
This doesn’t just make policy management easier. It protects your schools from accidental non-compliance, ensures consistency, and gives peace of mind at leadership level.

Final Tip

Don’t treat your policies like background files. Treat them like front-facing evidence of your school’s or trust’s commitment to excellence, transparency, and statutory responsibility. Display them well—and manage them smartly. If you need help reviewing your current setup or want to centralise policy management for your MAT, get in touch with our team. We’re happy to help.

Chapter 5

The School Website Checklist 2025/26

Last updated October 2025
The statutory requirements for school and college websites continue to evolve—and staying compliant means staying proactive.

This definitive School Website Checklist is fully up to date with the latest guidance from the Department for Education and includes everything that Ofsted expects to see. Whether you’re preparing for an inspection or just want to stay ahead, this is your go-to tool.

As always, if you need support while working through the checklist, our team is here to help. You can book a free call any time.

ABOUT THIS GUIDE

This checklist brings together all the statutory requirements and best practice recommendations for maintained schools, academies, FE colleges, and Multi-Academy Trusts.
It is designed to be practical and easy to use—especially when paired with the School Website Compliance Software or included as part of any Schudio School Website Design Package.
Use it to:

  • Track your compliance status clearly
  • Assign responsibility to team members
  • Set reminders and build a routine that works all year round
  • Ensure your website reflects the quality of your school

Let’s make compliance simple—and turn your school website into a strength, not a stress.

Table of Contents

Section 1

Admission Arrangements

The admission arrangements section is different depending on your school type and who determines your admissions. Every maintained school and academy trust must publish their admission arrangements to comply with the:

Foundation and voluntary aided schools have specific responsibilities regarding the information they must publish, especially concerning admission arrangements and performance measures. They must also follow updates in various sections of guidance, including governance and diversity, to ensure transparency and compliance with regulations.

The school admissions and appeals codes do not apply to special academies, alternative provision settings or stand-alone 16 to 19 institutions.

Requirements

September Admissions – normal point of entry
By 15 March each year, the school or trust must publish on its website:

  • The admission arrangements for children who will be starting school at the normal point of entry in September of the following year. It must retain them there for the whole of the academic year in which offers for places are made.

The admission arrangements must explain:

  • How the trust considers applications for places in each relevant age group (that is, the age group in which children are normally admitted to its schools
  • How many children the trust intends to admit in each relevant age group (known as the published admission number, or PAN)
  • What a parent or carer needs to do if they want to apply for their child to attend one of the trust’s schools
  • How the trust allocates places if there are more applicants than places available

Where applicable, the school or trust must also explain how:

  • Children applying to a selective school are selected for a place
  • A parent or carer of a primary-age child can request that a school delay or defer their child’s entry to reception, and the process for requesting admission outside the normal age group
  • Many external applicants a school intends to admit into the sixth form

In-year admissions
By 31 August each year, the school or trust must publish:

  • How it will manage in-year applications for places (that is, applications for places in the middle of a school year, or to start in the September of a year which is not the normal point of entry).

If the trust manages those applications, it must provide:

  • An application form
  • Supplementary information, if necessary

If the local authority manages those applications, the school or trust must publish a link to the in-year application coordination scheme

Admission appeals

  • By 28 February each year, the school or trust must publish a timetable setting out how it will organise and hear admission appeals.

This timetable must:

  • Include a deadline that allows a parent or carer at least 20 school days from the date of notification that their application was unsuccessful to prepare and lodge a written appeal

include reasonable deadlines for:

  • A parent or carer to submit additional evidence
  • Admission authorities to submit their evidence
  • The clerk to send appeal papers to the panel and parties
  • Ensure that a parent or carer lodging an appeal receives at least 10 school days’ notice of their appeal hearing
  • Ensure that decision letters are sent within 5 school days of the hearing, wherever possible

Further guidance is available in the school admission appeals code.

What 16 to 19 academies and FE colleges should publish

16 to 19 academies and FE colleges should publish their admission arrangements.
The school admissions and appeals codes do not apply to these settings.

  • By the September of the academic year before the one in which they will apply, 16 to 19 academies and FE colleges should publish their arrangements. Parents, carers and young people will use these to make an informed choice, so they should remain unchanged during that year.

The admission arrangements should include details of:

  • The open days planned
  • How to apply for a place
  • Whether the 16 to 19 academy or FE college gives priority to applications from pupils enrolled at particular schools

What community and voluntary-controlled schools must publish

  • Community and voluntary-controlled schools must publish a link to the local authority’s website for parents and carers who wish to find out about the school’s admission and appeal arrangements. It is the local authority that manages both processes.

Section 2

Annual Reports and Accounts

Requirements

What academy trusts must publish

  • Academy trusts must publish their audited annual report and accounts on their website by 31 January each year. Guidance is available in the academy trust handbook.

What FE colleges must publish

  • By 31 January each year, FE colleges must publish their annual report and audited financial statements in an easily accessible location on their website and retain them there for 2 years.

Section 3

Behaviour Policy

Additional information is available in the government guidance for school leaders and staff on developing and publishing your school’s behaviour policy.

Requirements

What schools must publish

  • Schools must publish their behaviour policy. It must comply with section 89 of the Education and Inspections Act 2006.

What academies must publish

  • Academies must publish their behaviour policy, including their anti-bullying strategy. Guidance on developing and publishing a behaviour policy is available.

What FE colleges should publish

  • FE colleges should publish their behaviour policy, including their anti-bullying strategy.

Schudio Tips

Note here that while the current guidance is that only academies and FE colleges should publish an anti-bullying strategy, the expectation from conversations with DfE is that maintained schools should do this as well.

Consider grouping your policy documents, including your behaviour policy together for easier navigation through them by your website visitors.

If your behaviour policy adheres to the section within the act include that somewhere in your policy document, ideally on a title page.

Section 4

Careers Program Information

This information has been simplified to be more clear and easy to understand. The information below has been collated from the requirements published by DfE and restructured to be easier to understand and implement.

Requirements for Key Stage 2 (end of primary school) result

What all secondary schools, secondary academies, 16 to 19 academies and FE colleges must publish

  • All listed schools above must publish a policy statement to comply with section 42B of the Education Act 1997, known as the ‘provider access legislation’. This statement must set out the circumstances in which they will give providers of technical education and apprenticeships access to year 8 to 13 pupils, as applicable.

For the current academic year, this must include:

  • The name and contact details of their careers lead
  • A summary of the careers programme, including details of how young people, parents, carers, teachers and employers can access information about it
  • How the academy or college measures and assesses the programme’s impact on young people
  • The date by which it will review this information

Statutory guidance on providing careers guidance is available.

Schudio
Tips

Note that for academies the information listed above is stated as “should”, rather than must but we recommend approaching this as a mandatory requirement.
Provide this careers information in a clear location on your website. A dedicated page or area on your website for careers is a good idea. Consider including additional resources alongside the statutory information.

DfE also advise:
Beyond these requirements, the school can design the policy statement in a way which best suits their needs. For example, it could be incorporated into a wider careers plan. What is most important is that the document includes details of the opportunities for providers to visit the school to talk directly to pupils and the process for providers to request access.

Section 5

Charging and Remissions Policies

Guidance on charging for school activities is available. Sections 449 to 462 of the Education Act 1996 set out the law on charging in schools maintained by local authorities. Academies are required by their funding agreement to comply.

Requirements

What schools and academies must publish

Schools and academies must publish their:

  • Charging policy, giving details of activities for which they will charge parents and carers
  • Remissions policy, giving details of the circumstances in which they will wholly or partly waive any charge they would otherwise expect parents and carers to pay

Schudio Tips

Make sure you have this policy (or policies) on your website and that you are covering both charging and remissions, one policy is probably easier with information about both included.
Make sure to follow best practice when linking to external websites and have the site open in a new window/tab.

Section 6

Complaints Policy

All schools and colleges should publish details about their complaints policies and procedures.
Read guidance on developing your school’s complaints procedure.

Requirements

What maintained schools must publish

  • Schools must publish their complaints policy to comply with section 29 of the Education Act 2002. The best practice guidance supports them to set up and review their complaints procedures.
  • They must also publish the details of any arrangements for handling complaints from parents and carers about the support they provide for children with special educational needs and disability (SEND). They must do this as part of their SEN information report.

What academy schools and trusts must make available

  • All academies and trusts (with the exception of 16-19 academies) must have a complaints procedure that meets the requirements in the standard at the Education (Independent School Standards (England) Regulations 2014 Schedule 1, Part 7. The complaints procedure must be available to parents and carers of children attending an academy.

What academy schools must publish

  • Academy schools must publish the details of any arrangements for handling complaints from parents and carers about the support they provide for children with special educational needs and disability (SEND). They must do this as part of their SEN information report.

What academy trusts and FE colleges must publish

  • Academy trusts must publish details of their whistleblowing procedure.
  • FE colleges must publish their whistleblowing policy and regularly review it.

Schudio Tips

These requirements are here to ensure these documents are available and easy to find on your website. Consider grouping all your policies into categories or groups and including the policies above in groups.

Section 7

School Contact Details

NOTE: Schools that do not have a website
Schools that do not have their own website must publish this information on an alternative website and provide parents and carers with a link to it.

EXPLAINED: You must still publish all of the information which is set out on this webpage online even if you do not maintain your own website. You can use an alternative website to host the information as long as you make the address and details of the website known to parents, for example, by providing parents with the URL (website address) and any other relevant details.

Requirements

What all schools must publish

All schools must publish:

  • Their postal address
  • Their telephone number
  • The name of the member of staff who deals with queries from parents and carers, and the public

What mainstream maintained and academy schools must publish

  • Mainstream schools must also publish the name and contact details of their special educational needs co-ordinator.

What academy schools and FE colleges should publish

  • The name of their headteacher or principal
  • The name and contact details of the chair of their governing body, if applicable
  • The contact details of their academy trust and a link to its website, if applicable

Schudio Tips

Our recommendation is that every school adds all this information to their website, even where some requirements are not specifically marked as mandatory. They should be added to the contact us page and any specific relevant pages as well; ie your SENCO details should be on your SEND page, your contact page and your staff page.
If your behaviour policy adheres to the section within the act include that somewhere in your policy document, ideally on a title page.

Section 8

Curriculum

This requirement is for information about the curriculum being taught at your school to be presented on your website. Some requirements are education phase specific. The information below has been collated from the requirements published by DfE to avoid duplication and make the information easier to understand.

Make sure you cover all the requirements appropriate for the phases taught at your school. Consider backing up your curriculum information up with regular blog posts demonstrating work.

NOTE for all schools: Your approach to the curriculum should also include how you are complying with your duties in theEquality Act 2010 and the Special Educational Needs and Disability Regulations 2014 about making the curriculum accessible for those with disabilities or special educational needs.

Requirements

What all schools must publish

All schools must publish:

  • The content of the curriculum in each academic year for every subject, including mandatory subjects such as religious education (RE) – this applies even if it is taught as part of another subject or known by another name
  • Information to make parents and carers aware they have the right to withdraw their child from all or part of RE
  • How parents, carers or other members of the public can find out more about the curriculum
  • An accessibility plan that sets out how, over time, they will increase the extent to which disabled pupils participate in the curriculum

What schools with key stage 1 provision must publish

  • Schools with key stage 1 provision must publish a list of any phonics or reading schemes they use.

What schools with key stage 4 provision must publish

  • Schools with key stage 4 provision must publish a list of the key stage 4 courses they offer, including GCSEs.

Where relevant:

  • 16 to 19 qualifications they offer

What all schools should publish

  • Alongside the content of their music curriculum, all schools are expected to publish information about their music development plan. A template is available to support with this.

What all academies must publish

  • Academies must publish their policy on relationships education or relationships and sex education. They should consult parents and carers when developing and reviewing it. It must meet pupils’, parents’ and carers’ needs, and reflect the community the academy serves.

What academies with 16 to 19 provision should publish

  • Academies with 16 to 19 provision should also publish information on how their curriculum meets the 16 to 19 study programme requirements.

Section 9

Ethos and Values

Requirements

What schools, academies and FE colleges should publish

  • Publish a statement of their ethos and values

Schudio Tips

Have a headteacher’s/principal’s welcome on your website as well as the ethos and values page. Consider creating a link between the two pages so visitors who read the welcome will also be able to go straight to your ethos and values page.

Section 10

Executive Pay

These requirements are specific to academy trusts and FE colleges. There is no requirement for academies to publish information related to the trust, nor is there a requirement for maintained schools to publish this information.

Requirements

What academy trusts must publish

  • Academy trusts must publish the number of employees whose salary and related benefits exceeded £100,000 during the previous academic year ended 31 August. They must present this information in:
    • An easily accessible form
    • £10,000 bandings

The requirements to publish financial information are set out in the academy trust handbook.

What FE colleges must publish

  • FE colleges must publish in their annual accounts the salaries of higher-paid staff, in line with the college accounts direction.

Schudio Tips

The recommendation is to add information as a table. Read the blog article linked here of information on how to achieve this. Also, if you don’t have anyone earning over £100,000 still reference that.

Section 11

Financial Information

These requirements are specific to maintained schools. Note that this requirement includes the previously separate requirement for linking to the benchmarking service.

Requirements for Maintained Schools

What schools must publish

Schools must publish:

  • The number of their employees, if any, whose gross annual salary exceeds £100,000, presenting this information in £10,000 bandings – DfE recommends using a table to display this
  • A link to the dedicated webpage for their school on the schools financial benchmarking service.

Schudio Tips

The recommendation is to add information as a table. Read the blog article linked here of information on how to achieve this. Also, if you don’t have anyone earning over £100,000 still reference that.

Section 12

Governance Information

Schools must publish on their website up-to-date details of its governance arrangements in a readily accessible form. The details below have been broken down by school type.

Maintained Schools publish information on the governing body in line with the constitution of governing bodies of maintained schools statutory guidance.

Academies can follow details as explained in the ‘Academies financial handbook’ (paragraphs 2.49 to 2.50).

Requirements for Maintained Schools

What maintained schools must publish

Maintained Schools publish information on the governing body in line with the constitution of governing bodies of maintained schools statutory guidance.

What maintained schools should publish

Schools should publish information about the structure and remit of the governing body and any committees, including the full names of their chairs.

  • their full names
  • the date they were appointed
  • their term of office
  • the date they stepped down, where this applies
  • who appointed them, in accordance with the governing body’s instrument of governance
  • their attendance record at governing body and committee meetings over the last academic year

Schools should publish governors’ relevant business, financial and pecuniary interests, including:

  • governance roles in other educational institutions
  • any material interests arising from relationships between governors or relationships between governors and school staff, including spouses, partners and close relatives

Schools should also publish this information for associate members, and whether they have voting rights on any committee they have been appointed to.

DfE also encourages schools to publish easily accessible data about the diversity of:

  • their board
  • any associated committees

There is no prescriptive way to collect this data, but schools may choose to follow a similar approach to that they use to collate the diversity data of pupils.

Board or committee members can opt out of sharing their information, such as protected characteristics, including after the data has been published.

Schools must ensure that individuals cannot be identified, which may be a particular issue when board or committee member levels are low. Guidance on the Equality Act 2010 and data protection in schools is available.

Requirements for Academy Trusts

What academy trusts must publish

Academy trusts must publish the following in an easily accessible format on their website:

  • A memorandum of association
  • Their articles of association
  • The names of trust members and academy trustees
  • The relevant business and financial interests of members, trustees, local governors and accounting officers
  • Their funding agreement
  • Any supplemental funding agreement
  • Up-to-date details of governance arrangements

Further guidance is available in the academy trust handbook.

What academy trusts should publish

DfE encourages academy trusts to publish easily accessible data about the diversity of:

  • Their board
  • Any associated committees

There is no prescriptive way to collect this data, but trusts may choose to follow a similar approach to that they use to publish the diversity data of pupils.

Board or committee members can opt out of sharing their information, such as protected characteristics, including after the data has been published.

Trusts must ensure that individuals cannot be identified, which may be a particular issue when board or committee member levels are low. Guidance on the Equality Act 2010 and data protection in schools is available.

Requirements for FE CollegeS

What FE colleges must publish

FE colleges must publish the following:

What FE colleges should publish

FE colleges should publish the following:

  • Their governing body’s structure and responsibilities
  • Details of any committees
  • The names of the chair and governors
  • Information on governor recruitment, such as selection procedures and the work of any search committee

They may wish simply to publish their governors’ handbook, which should include all of this information.

They should also publish their instrument and articles of government.

DfE encourages FE colleges to make an energy and carbon reporting disclosure equivalent to that set out in the Companies (Directors’ Report) and Limited Liability Partnerships (Energy and Carbon Report) Regulations 2018. Guidance is available in the college accounts direction.

Schudio Tips

This information should be provided in a ‘readily accessible’ form.

Section 13

Ofsted Report

All schools are required to do one of the following. See the Schudio Tip below for best practice advice.

Requirements

What schools and academies should publish

All schools and academies should publish either a:

  • Copy of their most recent Ofsted report, or
  • Link to the report on the Ofsted website

Schudio Tips

The OFSTED reports requirement advises that one of the requirements must be met. However we recommend you provide information for both requirements. Providing your OFSTED report on your own website also gives you the chance to comment on the report.

E.g. How pleased you are, or what is being done after the recent inspection.

Section 14

Pay Gap Reporting

This is an entirely new requirement with different requirements for all organisations. Note how the advice is to publish this information no matter what size organisation you are. We have collated the requirements to make this easier to understand and implement.

Requirements

What schools, academy trusts, academies and FE colleges with 250 or more employees must publish

Schools with 250 or more employees must, in line with the Equality Act 2010 (Gender Pay Gap Information) Regulations 2017:

  • Report their gender pay gap information to the government via the gender pay gap service
  • Publish this information in a prominent place on their website within one year of their ‘snapshot date’, which, for most public authority employers, will be 31 March

Statutory guidance on the gender pay gap information employers must report is available.

What schools, academy trusts, academies and FE colleges with 250 or more employees may wish to publish

Most public authority employers, including schools, do not need to publish a written statement on their public-facing website.

However, schools with 250 or more employees may wish to publish:

What schools, academy trusts, academies and FE colleges with fewer than 250 employees should publish

Schools with fewer than 250 employees:
are not required to comply with the regulations, but should give serious consideration to the business benefits of doing so

Guidance on who counts as an employee is available.

For schools interested in looking at their ethnicity pay gap, guidance for employers on voluntary ethnicity pay reporting is also available.

Section 15

PE And Sport Premium

Requirements

What all schools with primary-aged pupils must publish

Schools that receive PE and sport premium funding must publish, by 31 July each year:

  • The amount of premium received
  • A full breakdown of how it has been or will be spent
  • The impact seen by the school on pupils’ participation and attainment in PE and sport
  • How this improvement will be sustained

By 31 July each year, all schools are required to publish the percentage of pupils in their year 6 cohort who have met the national curriculum requirement to::

  • Swim competently, confidently and proficiently over a distance of at least 25 metres
  • Use a range of strokes effectively – for example, front crawl, backstroke and breaststroke
  • Perform safe self-rescue in different water-based situations

Further guidance is available in the conditions of grant document.

If a school downloads a copy of its digital form return and uses this as its published report, it must ensure the form is converted to HTML format. This is to meet accessibility requirements.

Section 16

Public Sector Equality Duty

Previously titled, Equality Objectives – Public bodies, must comply with the public sector equality duty in the Equality Act 2010 and the Equality Act 2010 (Specific Duties and Public Authorities) Regulations 2017. The Equality Act 2010 and Advice for Schools provide information as to how your school can demonstrate compliance.

Requirements

What schools, academies and FE colleges must publish

Schools must publish:

  • Details of how they comply with the public sector equality duty, updating this every year
  • Their equality objectives, updating these at least every 4 years

The Equality Act 2010: advice for schools provides guidance on how schools can show they have complied, as required by the Equality Act 2010 and the Equality Act 2010 (Specific Duties and Public Authorities) Regulations 2017.

What FE colleges should publish

FE colleges should publish:

  • An annual equality, diversity and inclusion review, including data on protected characteristics at these levels:
    • Board
    • Executive leadership
    • Staff
    • Student
  • The actions taken to address disparities

Section 17

Pupil Premium

Requirements

What schools must publish

Schools that receive pupil premium funding must publish a strategy statement on their school website by 31 December each year.

It must explain:

  • How the school’s pupil premium funding is being spent
  • The education outcomes being achieved for disadvantaged pupils

Schools must publish the statement in the DfE template provided on the pupil premium guidance page.

DfE recommends that schools plan their pupil premium spending over 3 years. If they do so, they must still update their statement annually to reflect:

  • Their spending activity for the current academic year
  • The impact of pupil premium in the previous academic year

What academies must publish

Academies that receive pupil premium funding must publish a strategy statement on their school website by 31 December each year.

It must explain:

  • How the academy is spending its pupil premium funding
  • The education outcomes which disadvantaged pupils are achieving

Academies must publish their statement in the DfE template provided on the pupil premium guidance page.

DfE recommends that academies plan their pupil premium spending over 3 years. If they do so, they must still update their statement annually to reflect:

  • Their spending activity for the current academic year
  • The impact of pupil premium in the previous academic year

Section 18

Remote Educaton

Requirements

What schools and academies must publish

  • Schools should publish information about their remote education provision.

Section 19

School Opening Hours

This requirement was new in 2022 and is still missed by lots of schools. Schools should publish on their website their opening and closing times and the total time this amounts to in a typical week (for example 32.5 hours).

Schools should show the compulsory times they are open. This time runs from the official start of the school day (morning registration) to the official end of the compulsory school day. It includes breaks, but not optional before or after school activities.

Requirements

What all schools and academies should publish

  • Official start time of the compulsory school day
  • Official end time of the compulsory school day
  • Total time this amounts to in a typical week, including breaks but not after-school activities

Section 20

School Uniform

This requirement was new in 2022 and is still missed by lots of schools. The department produces statutory guidance on the cost of school uniforms which schools must have regard to when developing and implementing their school uniform policy. This guidance requires schools to publish their uniform policy on their website.

Requirements

What all schools and academies should publish

  • Schools whose pupils are required to wear a uniform should publish an easily understandable policy on their website, in line with statutory guidance on the cost of school uniforms.

It should include information about:

  • Optional or required items
  • Items that will be worn only at certain times of year (for example, winter or summer uniform)
  • Items that must be branded or can be generic
  • Whether items can be bought only from a specific retailer or more widely
  • Where second-hand uniform can be purchased

Section 21

Special Education Needs (SEN) And Disability Information

You must publish a report on your school’s policy for pupils with SEN and update it annually. You should update any changes occurring during the year as soon as possible. You should update any changes occurring during the year as soon as possible. The report must comply with section 69 of the Children and Families Act 2014.

Requirements

What all schools and academies must publish

  • Schools must publish an SEN information report. It should be updated annually and any changes to the information occurring during the year should be updated as soon as possible.

To comply with section 69 of the Children and Families Act 2014, the report must contain:

additional information about the:

  • Arrangements for the admission of disabled pupils
  • Steps the school has taken to prevent disabled pupils from being treated less favourably than other pupils
  • Facilities it provides to help disabled pupils access the school

accessibility plan it has prepared under paragraph 3 of Schedule 10 to the Equality Act 2010 to:

  • Increase the extent to which disabled pupils can participate in the curriculum
  • Improve the physical environment to increase the extent to which disabled pupils can take advantage of the educational benefits, facilities or services provided or offered
  • Improve the way disabled pupils can access information that is easily accessible to pupils who are not disabled

Schudio Tips

If you’re a mainstream school make this page about the students by talking about them and celebrating them like all the other students. Have a page with more than just some reports!
Make sure you reference legislation in your reports.

Section 22

Test, Exam And Assessment Result

We have combined the requirements below and worked on the basis that where some requirements for academies are marked as ‘should’ by DfE, we have marked these as ‘must’ for ease of understanding and implementation. So, all requirements below should be understood to be mandatory for all schools, where the key stage is applicable.

Requirements

What all schools, academies and college must publish

Key stage 2

  • All maintained primary schools with key stage 2 pupils must, while all academies should publish their most recent key stage 2 performance measures, as published by the Secretary of State, comprising:
    • The percentage of their pupils who achieved the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (combined)
    • The percentage of their pupils who achieved a higher standard in reading, writing and maths (combined)

their pupils’ average scaled score in:

    • Reading
    • Maths

It will not be possible to calculate key stage 1 to key stage 2 progress measures for the 2023 to 2024 or 2024 to 2025 academic years. There is no key stage 1 baseline available to calculate primary progress measures for these years because of Covid-19 disruption.

For the 2023 to 2024 academic year, academies do not have to publish progress scores in reading, writing or maths, as the Secretary of State is not publishing these.

Key stage 4

  • All maintained schools with key stage 4 pupils must publish their most recent key stage 4 performance measures, as published by the Secretary of State, comprising:
  • They should also publish:
    • The percentage of their pupils staying in education or going into employment after key stage 4
    • The percentage of their pupils who were entered for the English Baccalaureate (EBacc)
    • Their EBacc average point score (APS)
  • Academies with key stage 4 pupils should publish their most recent key stage 4 performance measures, as published by the Secretary of State, comprising:
    • The percentage of their pupils staying in education or going into employment after key stage 4
    • The percentage of their pupils who were entered for the English Baccalaureate (EBacc)
    • Their EBacc average point score (APS)

Key stage 5 (16 to 18)

  • Secondary Schools with Sixth Forms must, while academies and FE colleges with students aged 16 to 18 and secondary schools with sixth forms should publish their most recent 16 to 18 performance measures, as published by the Secretary of State, comprising their students’ headline:
    • Progress (Value Added) Measures
    • Attainment measures
    • Retention measures
    • Destination measures

They do not have to publish value added measures for the 2022 to 2023 academic year, as the Secretary of State is not publishing these.

They do not have to publish English and maths progress measures for the 2022 to 2023 or 2023 to 2024 academic years, as the Secretary of State is not publishing these.

Schudio Tips

Provide your most recent assessment results on your website and alongside it your comments on the results. This is your opportunity to explain the data your results show.
Make sure you use the language of the requirements in your documents.

Bring this content to life by including or linking to News stories on your site talking about the success of your students. You might want to link to your results day news stories or similar.

Section 23

Safeguarding

This list of requirements is NOT published on the main requirements pages currently but as of September 2019 the guidelines around Keeping Children Safe in Education makes specific mention of the requirement to publish safeguarding information on the school website.

In an inspection, the lead inspector will prepare for the inspection by gaining an overview of the school’s recent performance, and any changes since the last inspection. There is also a requirement around making some of your safeguarding information available publicly, with your website being the specific medium mentioned to do this.

Requirements

Pre-inspection planning will be informed by analysis of information on the school’s website including the presence and suitability of the safeguarding guidance

  • Include suitable safeguarding guidance on your school website. The child protection policy should describe procedures which are in accordance with government guidance and refer to locally agreed multi-agency safeguarding arrangements put in place by the three safeguarding partners.
  • Individual schools and colleges should ensure they have an effective child protection policy. This should be updated annually (as a minimum), and be available publicly either via the school or college website or by other means.

Schudio Tips

Inspectors will consider three key areas:

  • Identify the right children. How does the school do that?
  • Help: what timely action do staff within the school take, and how well do they work with other agencies?
  • Manage: how do governors and staff manage their statutory responsibilities, and, in particular, how do they respond to allegations about staff and other adults?

Include specific information and evidence where possible as to how you meet these areas.

School Website Compliance Services

We would love to train you and  provide you with the tools you need to keep your website compliant all year round. We have audited  1000s of UK school websites and are the leading experts in keeping your website compliant. Use the link below to find out more about our services.