Scotland’s education Inspectorate has committed to focusing on stakeholder engagement as part of new development work.

The Inspectorate is prioritising engagement to ensure that voices across the education landscape are heard and valued. This approach aims to enhance transparency, foster continuous improvement, and ensure that inspection work remains purposeful and impactful for children, young people, and adult learners.

To achieve this, the Inspectorate has adopted a phased approach to stakeholder engagement as part of several key projects:

• Phase 1 - Listening and Understanding: We will gather key insights to identify challenges and opportunities.
• Phase 2 - Drafting and Developing: We will use these insights, balanced with our responsibilities, to develop practical solutions and proposals.
• Phase 3 - Refinement through Feedback: We will consider stakeholder feedback to make adjustments, enhancing relevance and effectiveness.
• Phase 4 - Finalising and Communicating: The final products are communicated clearly, explaining the extent to which stakeholder feedback has informed outcomes, as appropriate.

The Inspectorate already engages with a wide range of stakeholders across the education system, and recognises the importance of tailoring engagement to meet the diverse needs and expectations of different groups. Whether through project-based discussions, or broader public engagement, the Inspectorate has committed to maintaining regular, meaningful two-way communication.

HM Chief Inspector Janie McManus highlighted this approach when announcing the review of school inspections. She said: 'Scotland’s learners have always been at the heart of inspection, and they will be at the heart of this review. Our goal is to ensure that the voices of all stakeholders are heard – learners, teachers, parents, and carers. Their views are invaluable to foster an environment of continuous improvement that benefits children and young people.'

This webpage will be regularly updated with details of opportunities to get involved in this work.

Further details on the stakeholder engagement approach and the different phases are below.