Questions Ofsted might ask headteachers and the SLT

Download our lists of questions Ofsted inspectors might ask. You'll find questions related to COVID-19, how your school delivered remote learning, your approach to sexual harassment and how you've supported staff wellbeing

Last reviewed on 8 July 2022
School types: All · School phases: All
Ref: 6300
Contents
  1. Questions about your curriculum
  2. Questions on other areas
  3. How inspectors decide what to ask

Questions about your curriculum

As the headteacher or senior leader, be prepared for inspectors to ask you a few top-level questions about:

  • Your vision
  • Curriculum intent
  • Strengths and weaknesses of your curriculum provision 

Inspectors won't ask you most of the questions on our list if you have middle leaders who are in charge of subjects, phases, departments and/or classes – most of these questions will be aimed at your middle leaders instead. However, if subject leadership responsibilities sit with you, expect inspectors to ask you more of the questions on this list. 

This resource is based on:

  • Questions Ofsted asked leaders in 8 schools about their curriculum (for the 'quality of education' measure) under the 2019 Ofsted framework
  • Advice from our associate education expert. 

Once you've familiarised yourself with these, you can use our subject-specific questions to help you prepare for the more detailed questions you might be asked if your subject is chosen for a ‘deep dive’.

This resource