Every child in Scotland has the right to an education that helps them thrive. To make sure inspections play their full part in achieving that, His Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education has launched a national consultation on the future of school inspections.

The consultation, ‘School inspections are changing: Shape what’s next’, invites everyone, from learners and parents and carers to educators, to share their views on how inspections can best support improvement in schools and provide public confidence in the quality of education.

Launching the consultation during a visit to St Charles’ Primary School and Language and Communication Resource (LCR) in Glasgow, HM Chief Inspector of Education, Janie McManus, said: 'School inspections must do more than measure performance; they should shine a light on what really makes learners thrive.

At their best, inspections amplify strengths, share effective practice, and support schools to improve. But we also have a duty to act when the system isn’t delivering what children and young people need. That’s why we want to gather a wide range of perspectives on the current inspection process. We want to hear directly from learners, parents, carers, and educators about how inspections should evolve, from how we carry out them out to how we share our findings.

'By contributing your views, you will help shape an inspection system that is responsive to the diverse needs and aspirations of learners and communities across Scotland.

'This is about trust, lived experience, and unwavering commitment. We want an inspection system that is fair, transparent, and firmly focused on making education better for every learner.'

The Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills joined the Chief Inspector during the visit to the Glasgow primary school and met with staff and pupils to discuss the future of school inspections. 

Education Secretary Jenny Gilruth said: 'We all want to ensure that every child and young person has access to high-quality learning experiences in Scotland’s schools. 

'High standards are fundamental to our education system and knowing what works well in our classrooms can, in turn, lead to improved performance. 

'This important consultation on school inspection will help us to raise standards and drive improvement in our schools.'

This consultation seeks views on several key areas, including:

• Who is involved in inspections and the value they bring.
• How often schools should be inspected, and whether all schools should be visited within a defined period.
• Whether inspection grades should continue, and if the current 6-point grading scale is the right approach.
• How inspection findings are reported, and whether the current approach meets the needs of different audiences.
• The notification period before inspections, and whether the current two-and-a-half weeks is appropriate.
• Pre-inspection activities, including self-evaluation and questionnaires.
• The inspection framework, including its format, purpose, and content.
• Inspecting nursery classes, and whether nursery classes should continue to receive separate grades when included in a school inspection
• Follow-up engagement with schools, and how HM Inspectors should support improvement after an inspection.

The consultation will also help shape how some of the new duties in the Education (Scotland) Act 2025 are implemented.

The consultation is open until 26 November 2025, and responses can be submitted online via Citizen Space.

Learn more about our engagement work where you can find further information on the consultation.