Improvements to the school profile

ASCL has received confirmation from the DfES that ministers have adopted most of the association's recommendations for improving the school profile. We are delighted that the following changes are now being implemented.

Diagram of pupil progression: Ministers have agreed to replace the 'big arrow' with a diagram that is more accurate and reflects more carefully and precisely the performance of a school. There is a new narrative section beneath the progress chart which schools may, if they choose, use to explain their results in more detail.

Schools' exam data: From next academic year, schools will be able to enter their own 'early' exam results, should they wish to, without having to wait for the DfES to validate their data. Comparative local authority and national data will be provided by the DfES. Validated data will be added to profiles automatically when this is available later in the school year. Schools will be notified via email when this has happened. ASCL will continue to monitor progress with the DfES to ensure it happens smoothly.

Title of the document: The reference to a specific academic year will be removed and be replaced with a last published date. This should remove confusion and ensure that parents are clear about how up-to-date the information is. In addition, schools will be able to update their profile throughout the year, if they wish to. It will no longer be a locked document after publication.

Cycle of completion: From September, schools will be able to access their profile templates from the first day of the academic year, allowing them to complete and publish their profile at a time that fits better with their planning year.

Following the response from ministers, DfES officials have been working with software developers to ensure that the new version of the profile is available to schools as soon as possible.

ASCL first told members in the e-newsletter in early October that the profile was being redesigned and advised not to do further work to it. We will continue to update members on the school profile through the e-newsletter.