FOI release

Free Schools pre-registration inspection

Published 20 January 2012

Applies to England

  • Date requested: 16 November 2011
  • Publish date: 20 January 2012
  • Updated: 26 April 2012

1. Request

Can the department provide the reports of the pre-registration inspections made by Ofsted inspectors to the 24 free schools that opened in autumn 2011?

2. Release

Under the Education and Skills Act 2008, an Ofsted pre-registration inspection is required to inform the Secretary of State’s decision whether to register an institution as an independent school.

Following the pre-registration inspection, the Ofsted inspector produces an advice note for the department. The advice notes for the free schools that opened in 2011 are available to download.

Please note, existing independent schools that convert to become free schools are not required to undergo a pre-registration inspection because they are already registered. As such, in autumn 2011 five independent schools converted; therefore, there are 19 advice notes rather than 24.