How to organise your monitoring schedule

Find out how to monitor with purpose, so you don't overload staff with unnecessary monitoring. Plus, see examples of policies from other schools.

Last reviewed on 27 November 2025See updates
Ref: 44672
Contents
  1. Prioritise what to monitor 
  2. Choose your activities based on impact 
  3. Set your schedule for the year 
  4. Each term, review your plan and make any changes 
  5. If you're monitoring improvements to your curriculum, use our changes tracker
  6. See an example policy

In a primary school you'll usually decide your monitoring schedule and activities as a whole school, with input from the senior leadership team (SLT) and subject/phase leaders.

Depending on your school's size and structure, you might monitor differently, so follow the guidance that suits you.

For example, if you're a secondary school but you set your monitoring schedule as a whole school, follow the primary guidance.

Prioritise what to monitor 

SLT – use your school improvement plan (SIP) to choose your yearly monitoring priorities. Clear priorities help you avoid doing unnecessary monitoring. 

Some areas might not be on your SIP but they'll always be strategically monitored by governors (e.g. behaviour and special educational needs and/or disability (SEND)).

Check your governor school visits schedule to find out when they'll be monitoring these areas. 

You'll have developed these in line with your SIP, so