How to read a six-area report card
31 March 2026
Six areas: inclusion, curriculum and teaching, achievement, attendance and behaviour, personal development and well-being, leadership and governance. And what exceptional, strong standard, expected standard, needs attention and urgent improvement actually mean.
A report card is read area by area, not as a single verdict. Each of the six areas carries its own judgement, so a school can be strong in one area and need attention in another.
The five points run from exceptional, through strong standard and expected standard, to needs attention and urgent improvement. Safeguarding sits outside the scale and is recorded as met or not met.
For anyone selling into schools, the area-level detail is the useful part: it tells you where the pressure is, rather than giving you one word for the whole school.