What academies, free schools and colleges must publish online

Academies, free schools and colleges are required by the School Information (England) Regulations (2008 and subsequent amendments 2012 and 2016) as well as Equality Act 2010 and Children and Families Act 2014 to comply to a set of Statutory Requirements. We look at these in detail.

Statutory Requirements for Academy, Free School and College Websites 2023

What academies, including free schools and colleges and any educational institution with academy arrangements must or should publish online according to Statutory Requirements for Academies, Free Schools and Colleges.

Regulation: The School Information (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2012 came into force 1^st September 2012. The Secretary of State for Education made the following Regulations in exercise of the powers conferred by sections 537 and 569(4) of the Education Act 1996(1), and section 92 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998(2).

Extracted from Guidance last updated April 2023

In summary, schools now have to provide the following information on their website:

Key Information for School’s Website

1. Contact details
2. Admission arrangements or where they may be found (community and voluntary controlled schools only)
3. School Uniforms
4. Link to Ofsted report
5. Test, exam and assessment results
   • Most recent key stage 2 results
   • Most recent key stage 4 results
   • Most recent key stage 5 results
6. Performance measures website
7. School opening hours
8. Curriculum
9. Remote education
10. Behaviour policy
11. Pupil premium and recovery premium – allocation, use and impact on attainment
12. PE and sport premium for primary schools
13. Public sector equality duty
14. Special educational needs and disabilities SEND information
15. Careers programme information
16. Complaints policy
17. Annual reports and accounts
18. Executive pay
19. Trustees’ information and duties
20. Charging and remissions policy
21. Values and ethos
22. Requests for paper copies

The key information is separated into must be published and should be published. We highly recommend that the school aim to provide all required key information.

Download the PDF Version

1. Contact Details

Contact details on the website should include

• School name
• Postal address
• Telephone number
• Member of staff who deals with queries
• Name of the headteacher
• Name and Contact details of Chair of the governing body (if you have one)
• Name and Contact details of SEN Co-ordinator (SENCO) unless you’re a special academy or sixth form orFE college

2. Admission Arrangements

Admission arrangements must be published on school websites by 15 March and must be available for the whole of the year on offer.

The admission arrangements must explain:

• how applications for incoming year group are considered
• information for parents on how to apply
• selection criteria (if a selective school)
• your over-subscription criteria,
• how in-year applications will be dealt with for your schools by 31 August at the latest
  • If the Academy Trust manages, link to application form and supplementary information.
  • If the school is of the Local Authority’s (LA) in-year scheme, provide information and relevant details.

Admission appeals must be published

• timetable for organising and hearing admission appeals for your schools by 28 February

This must:

• include a deadline for appeals at least 20 school days from the date of notification of unsuccessful application
• include reasonable deadlines for:
  • submiting additional evidence
  • admission authorities to submit their evidence
  • the clerk to send appeal papers to the panel and parties
• ensure that those making an appeal receive at least 10 school days’ notice of their appeal hearing
• ensure that decision letters are sent within 5 school days of the hearing wherever possible

16-19 academies and colleges should publish

• details of admission arrangements a year in advance
  • include details of open days
  • process for applying
  • details of priority give to pupils from particular schools (if applicable)

3. School Uniform

School Uniform policy must be published (guidance from https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cost-of-school-uniforms/cost-of-school-uniforms)

Details should

• state if an item is optional or required
• state if the item will only be worn at certain times of the year (E.g. summer or winter uniform)
• state if a generic item will be accepted or if a branded item is required
• state whether an item can only be purchased from a specific retailer or if it can be purchased more widely, including from second-hand retailers

4. Offed Report

Ofsted report must be published or linked to the report on Ofsted website https://reports.ofsted.gov.uk/

5. Test, Exam and Assessment Results

Test, exam and assessment results

a. Key stage 2 (end of primary school) results

Do not need to publish 2021-2022 results. Need to display most recent performance measures as published by the Secretary of State (2018-2019 academic year)

Find your school data here: https://www.find-school-performance-data.service.gov.uk/#SearchMats

Recommended statement to add:

“The government will not publish KS2 school level data for the 2021 to 2022 academic year. The last available public data is from the 2018 to 2019 academic year. It is important to note that the data from that year may no longer reflect current performance.”

b. Key stage 4 (secondary school) results

Key stage 4 and 16-18 performance measures for 2021 to 2022 obtained from the Secretary of State should be published.

Find your school data here: https://www.find-school-performance-data.service.gov.uk/#SearchMats

Recommended statement to add:

“Given the uneven impact of the pandemic on school and college performance data, the government has said you should not make direct comparisons between the performance data for one school or college and another, or to data from previous years.”

These should include

• Progress 8 score
• Attainment in English and maths (percentage pupils achieving grade 5 and above
• Attainement 8 score
• English Baccalaureate (EBacc) average point score (APS)

Schools should also publish

• Percentage pupils that enter EBacc
• Percentage pupils staying in education or going in to employment (pupil destinations)

c. Key stage 5 (16-18) information, where applicable

Should publish most recent performance measures as published by Secretary of State.

Find your school data here: https://www.find-school-performance-data.service.gov.uk/#SearchMats

These should include

• attainment
• retention
• destinations

Progress performance measures

• do not need to display progress measures (level 3 value added), or an English and mathematics progress measure, on your website.
• These measures will not be published for the 2021 to 2022 academic year.

6. Performance Measures Website

Performance measures website should include a link to school performance tables on https://www.gov.uk/school-performance-tables

• Link to school performance tables on education.gov.uk

7. School Opening Hours

School opening hours should be published

• Opening and closing times and
• Total time in a typical week (eg 32.5 hours)

8. Curriculum Academies

Curriculum Academies should publish

Primary schools

• the names of any phonics or reading schemes you are using in key stage 1

Secondary schools

• curriculum content for every subject
• information on school curriculum
• a list of the courses available to pupils at key stage 4, includingGCSEs

Sixth form

• the 16 to 19 qualifications offered, if relevant
• how 16 to 19 study programme requirements are met

9. Remote Education

Remote education details should be published

• information about your school’sremote education provision on your website.
• An optionaltemplate is available to support schools with this.

10. Behaviour Policy

Behaviour policy should be published

• details of the school’s behaviour policy, including their anti-bullying strategy. Readguidance on developing and publishing your school’s behaviour policy.

11. Pupil Premium and Recovery Premium

Pupil premium and recovery premium must be published if the school receives it

• Must use the DfE template to produce your statement https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pupil-premium

• Recommended to plan pupil premium use over 3 years

• update your statement each year to reflect your spending activity for that academic year and the impact of pupil premium in the previous academic year.

12. PE and Sport Premium for Primary Schools

If your school receives PE and sport premium funding, you must publish:

• the amount of premium received
• a full breakdown of how it has been spent (or will be spent)
• what impact the school has seen on pupils’ PEand sport participation and attainment
• how the improvements will be sustainable in the future

Primary Schools:

You must publish by 31 July, the percentage of pupils within your year 6 cohort who met the national curriculum requirement to:

• swim competently, confidently, and proficiently over a distance of at least 25 metres
• use a range of strokes effectively (for example front crawl, backstroke, and breaststroke)
• perform safe self-rescue in different water-based situations

13. Public Sector Equality Duty

Public sector equality duty must be published

• details of how your school complies with the public sector equality duty – you must update this every year
• your school’s equality objectives – you must update this at least once every 4 years

14. SEND Information

Special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) information must be published

Academy schools (but not FE colleges and 16 to 19 academies) must publish an information report (updated annually) on the implementation of your school’s policy for pupils with SEN.

The report must comply with section 69 of the Children and Families Act 2014, and must contain:

• the ‘SENinformation’ specified in schedule 1 to the Special Educational Needs and Disability Regulations 2014. Details here: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2014/1530/schedule/1/made
• Statutory guidance on this is contained in paragraphs 6.79 to 6.82 of thespecial educational needs and disability code of practice: 0 to 25 years;
• information on:
  • the arrangements for the admission of disabled pupils
  • the steps you have taken to prevent disabled pupils from being treated less favourably than other pupils
  • the facilities you provide to help disabled pupils to access the school
  • the plan prepared underparagraph 3 of schedule 10 to the Equality Act 2010 (accessibility plan) for:
    • increasing the extent to which disabled pupils can participate in the school’s curriculum
    • improving the physical environment of the school for the purpose of increasing the extent to which disabled pupils are able to take advantage of education and benefits, facilities or services provided or offered by the school
    • improving the delivery to disabled pupils of information which is readily accessible to pupils who are not disabled
  • You must also set out how over time you will increase the extent to which disabled pupils participate in the school’s curriculum, as part of your school’s accessibility plan. There are more details in thespecial educational needs and disabilities section.

Download our pro-forma guide for your academy SEND report

15. Careers Programme

Careers programme information should be published

• the delivery of careers guidance to pupils from years 7 to 13 (11 to 18-year olds)
• requirement set out in your funding agreement to deliver careers guidance.

For the current academic year, you should include:

• careers leader’s name, email address and telephone number
• a summary of the careers programme, including details of how pupils, parents, teachers and employers may access information on the programme
• how the school or college measures and assesses the careers programme’s impact on pupils
• the date of the school or college’s next review of the information published

Read the statutory guidance for schools and colleges on careers guidance and access for education and training providers, for more information.

The statutory guidance for schools also contains further information about a policy statement that academies must publish to comply with section 42B of the Education Act 1997, known as the ‘provider access legislation’. The policy statement must set out the circumstances in which providers of technical education and apprenticeships will be given access to year 8 to 13 pupils.

16. Complaints Policy

Complaints policy should be published

• complaints policy should be published online
• whistleblowing policy should be published online

17. Annual Reports and Accounts

Annual reports and accounts should be published

• audited annual report and accounts
• memorandum of association
• articles of association
• names of charity trustees and members
• funding agreement

You can find more guidance about these in the Academy Trust Handbook.

FE and sixth-form colleges should publish their

• instruments and articles of government on their website.
• annual members’ report
• audited financial statement every year.

18. Executive Pay

Executive pay must be published

• number of employees who have a gross annual salary and benefits of £100,000 or more
  • publish figures in £10,000 increments.

More details are included in paragraph 2.32 of the Academy Trust Handbook.

19. Trustees’ Information and Duties

Trustees’ information and duties must be publisehd

• accessible and up to date details of governance arrangements

details in the Academy Trust Handbook (paragraphs 2.49 to 2.50).

• Collecting and publishing governing board diversity data

Academy trust boards are should

• collect and publish diversity data about the board and any local committees.
• ensure that individuals cannot be identified through the publication of data, particularly when board member levels are low. Read more about this in thedata protection toolkit for schools and Equality Act 2010: advice for schools.

FE and sixth-form colleges should publish

• the governing body’s structure and responsibilities
• details of any committees
• the names of all governors, including the chair

You may wish to simply publish your governors’ handbook, which should include all this information.

20. Charging and Remissions Policy

Charging and remissions policy should be published

The policies must include details of:

• the activities or cases where your school will charge pupils’ parents
• the circumstances where your school will make an exception on a payment you would normally expect to receive under your charging policy

21. Values and Ethos

Values and ethos should be published

Academies and colleges should publish a statement of their ethos and values.

22. Requests for Paper Copies

A paper copy of the information on your website should be available if a parent requests one.