Updated: Updated the methodology note for good and outstanding maintained schools and academies to reflect our risk assessment approach from April 2019. Changes from last year’s methodology relate to the
additional risk information used (see the ‘Additional risk information’ section).
Ofsted uses statistical models to make sure that we are allocating our inspection resources where they are needed most. This is known as our risk assessment process. We look at published data about each provider together with a wide range of information to give us a selection of providers that we will inspect that year.
This process is not used to pre-judge inspection outcomes; inspectors do not have access to the risk assessments when they are inspecting providers.
You can find out more about our approach in the school inspection handbook and the further education and skills inspection handbook.
You can also read a blog about our approach to risk assessing good and outstanding schools.