School Inspections Act 1996 (repealed)

10 Inspection of certain schools by registered inspectors. E+W

(1) It shall be the duty of the Chief Inspector for England to secure that every school in England to which this section applies is inspected, at such intervals as may be prescribed, by an inspector registered under section 7(1).

(2) It shall be the duty of the Chief Inspector for Wales to secure that every school in Wales to which this section applies is inspected, at such intervals as may be prescribed, by an inspector registered under section 7(2).

(3) Subject to subsection (4) [F1 or (4A)], the schools to which this section applies are—

(a) county schools;

(b) voluntary schools;

(c) special schools;

(d) grant-maintained schools;

(e) independent schools approved by the Secretary of State under section 347(1) of the M1 Education Act 1996 (approval of independent schools as suitable for admitting children with statements);

(f) city technology colleges;

(g) city colleges for the technology of the arts; and

(h) maintained nursery schools.

(4) This section does not apply to any school conducted by an education association in accordance with Part II.

[F2 (4A) This section does not apply to any school—

(a) which is a closing school (as defined by subsection (4B)), and

(b) in respect of which the Chief Inspector has decided, having regard to the date on which the closure is to take effect, that no useful purpose would be served by the school being inspected under this section.

(4B) In subsection (4A) a “closing school means—

(a) a county, voluntary or maintained nursery school in respect of which the Secretary of State has under section 169 of the M2 Education Act 1996 approved proposals by the local education authority to cease to maintain the school;

(b) a voluntary school in respect of which the governing body have given notice of their intention to discontinue the school under section 173 of that Act;

(c) a grant-maintained school in respect of which—

(i) the Secretary of State has under section 269 of that Act approved proposals for the discontinuance of the school, or

(ii) the funding authority have made a determination under that section to adopt proposals for the discontinuance of the school;

(d) a maintained or grant-maintained special school in respect of which the Secretary of State has under section 340 of that Act approved proposals for the discontinuance of the school;

(e) a city technology college or city college for the technology of the arts in respect of which notice of termination of an agreement made under section 482 of that Act has been given; or

(f) an independent school falling within subsection (3)(e) which the proprietor has decided to close.]

(5) It shall be the general duty of any registered inspector conducting an inspection under this section to report on—

(a) the quality of the education provided by the school;

(b) the educational standards achieved in the school;

(c) whether the financial resources made available to the school are managed efficiently; and

(d) the spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of pupils at the school.

(6) In prescribing the intervals mentioned in subsections (1) and (2) the Secretary of State may make provision as to the period within which the first inspection of a school under this section is to begin.

(7) Subsections (1) and (2) have effect subject to section 12.

(8) An inspection which is required under this section shall not extend to—

(a) denominational education, or

(b) the content of collective worship which falls to be inspected under section 23.

(9) Schedule 3 to this Act makes further provision with respect to inspections under this section.

Textual Amendments

F1 Words in s. 10(3) inserted (1.9.1997) by 1997 c. 44, s. 42, Sch. 6 para. 6(2); S.I. 1997/1468, art. 2, Sch. 1 Pt.II

F2 S. 10(4A)(4B) inserted (1.9.1997) by 1997 c. 44, s. 42, Sch. 6 para. 6(3); S.I. 1997/1468, art. 2, Sch. 1 Pt.II

Modifications etc. (not altering text)

C1 S. 10 applied (with modifications)(1.9.1997) by S.I. 1994/2103, Sch. 1 Pt. I para. 3A (as substituted (1.9.1997) by S.I. 1997/1966, reg. 1(2), Sch. Pt. II(a))

Marginal Citations

M1 1996 c. 56.

M2 1996 c. 56.