Ofsted Audit Tools Pack

The Ofsted Audit Tools Pack gives you a self-audit for every evaluation area in Ofsted's school inspection toolkit, so you can see your strengths and gaps while there's still time to act on them. Built by practising school leaders in the HeadteacherChat community.

2026/27 edition. Aligned with the toolkit for inspections from September 2026. Each audit follows the toolkit's own wording and uses the five-point scale (exceptional, strong standard, expected standard, needs attention, urgent improvement), with space for your evidence, a rating and a next step. The safeguarding audit uses met or not met, as the toolkit does.

What's inside

• How to use the pack: where to start and how to keep it low-workload
• Leadership and governance audit, plus a matching evaluation and improvement plan template
• Governors audit, so the board can test the school's own judgements
• Curriculum and teaching audit
• Achievement audit
• Inclusion audit, plus an inclusion evaluation and improvement plan
• Attendance and behaviour audit
• Personal development and wellbeing audit
• Early years audit
• Post-16 provision audit
• Safeguarding audit
• Professional development audit
• Evaluation and improvement plan for independent schools
• The Leadership Evidence Toolkit: evidence map, evidence ecosystem map, leadership narrative template, monitoring and evaluation cycle, three worked case studies and a one-hour staff meeting agenda

Delivered as one zip file of 24 documents: editable Word files, with PDF copies of the Leadership Evidence Toolkit. Adapt the wording to your own school, trust or local authority context, and check your judgements against the current toolkit on GOV.UK.

Part of the HeadteacherChat community library. Members get this pack, every other pack and every update when guidance changes, alongside live sessions and more than 1,400 fellow school leaders. Join the community.