Some of the schools in Sunderland Local Authority which have been judged outstanding by Ofsted.

Photographs: GoogleSome of the schools in Sunderland Local Authority which have been judged outstanding by Ofsted.

Photographs: Google
Some of the schools in Sunderland Local Authority which have been judged outstanding by Ofsted. Photographs: Google

The Sunderland schools judged outstanding by Ofsted

All parents want the best education for their children and Ofsted reports provide one of the most reliable indicators on which families can make judgements about which schools to apply for places.

Ofsted represents the Government’s independent watchdog for assessing the performance of schools and other children’s services with four categories of judgement; inadequate, requires improvement, good and outstanding.

Schools are graded on quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development and leadership and management before being given an overall judgement. Primary schools are also judged on the quality of their Early Years (nursery and Year R) provision.

Schools judged as outstanding or good will normally undergo a smaller Section 8 inspection “approximately every four years” to assess whether standards have been maintained. If inspectors feel there has been further improvement or a decline in standards then a full Section 5 inspection will take place with new judgements given.

This can also be triggered if data such as progress scores indicate a deterioration in performance or there are concerns over safeguarding.

There are currently 13 schools in Sunderland Local Authority which have an overall outstanding Ofsted judgement, although six of these schools have since converted to academies and are awaiting their first full Section 5 inspection since making this change.

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