Practical guides, data deep-dives, and tips for choosing the right school for your family.
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England's largest heads' union wants graded Ofsted inspections halted. Running a school is a senior public job, and every senior public job is judged by outsiders. Take away the grades and parents lose the one independent account of every school; Wales shows what replaces it.
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Ten months into Ofsted's biggest reform in a generation, we analysed every report card published so far. Inspectors are grading cautiously, the old Outstanding badge is fading, and two patterns the reform promised to fix are already back in the data.
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Open day season starts in September, and applications for September 2027 secondary places close on 31 October. Here is how visiting schools changed our family's decision, and why you should book more open days than you think you need.
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Results and Ofsted aren't everything. A school's demographics tell you who goes there and whether your child will fit in and be supported: here's how to read FSM, EAL, SEN and the ethnic mix.
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Being 'in catchment' doesn't guarantee a place, and being out doesn't always rule you out. How catchment areas, distance rules and 'last distance offered' really decide who gets in.
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An Ofsted rating is one snapshot, sometimes years old. Here's what it does and doesn't tell you, and what to look at alongside it before you choose a school.
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Choosing a school is one of the biggest decisions you'll make as a parent. Here's a practical guide to help you weigh up the options and find the best fit.
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In November 2025 Ofsted scrapped Outstanding, Good, Requires Improvement and Inadequate in favour of report cards. Here's what the new five-point scale means, and how to read schools while both systems are still in use.
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Progress 8 measures the value a school adds to its pupils. Here's why it's a better indicator of school quality than raw results.