Information for schools

As part of a school inspection carried out on behalf of the Office for Standards in Education (Ofsted) (www.ofsted.gov.uk), schools are assessed on the procedures they follow to identify and support gifted and talented pupils.

Inspections consider the following:

• how schools identify gifted and talented pupils;
• whether the school analyses the achievement of pupils in areas such as sport, physical education (PE) and the creative arts to identify its gifted and talented pupils and thereby identify those pupils who have the potential to reach high levels of performance;
• how schools meet the needs of gifted and talented pupils;
• how well pupils defined as gifted and talented are achieving;
• how well the needs of these pupils are met by the school in terms of their personal development.

These questions enable inspectors to focus on the achievement and experience of different groups of pupils and the effectiveness on the school's provision in promoting and protecting their interests.

Schools are evaluated on the extent to which:

• the school's procedures for identifying gifted and talented pupils are transparent , non discriminatory, flexible and effective;
• pupils' achievements match their potential ability and their progress is tracked;
• particular groups of pupils are under-represented and that the school's explanations are convincing and well-founded;
• the school's policy on teaching and learning promotes gifted and talented pupils as much as they can and takes account of the different needs of these pupils, including access to additional support such as learning mentors, out-of-school masterclasses or other schools and colleges;
• pupils' attitudes and behaviour are challenged to overcome negative stereotyped generalisations about gifted and talented pupils and the extent to which all pupils are supported to be positive about the achievements of everyone;
• the school provides support for pupils, staff and parents to ; develop pupils further.

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