Methodology & data sources
Schoolchecker.uk combines official open data for research. We are not part of the Department for Education, Ofsted, or any local council. Figures can lag the latest government release — always confirm admissions and places with the school and your local authority.
What we do not do
- We do not publish parent reviews or a single “best school” score.
- We do not guarantee admission or imply a postcode is in catchment.
- We do not give neighbourhoods an overall score — crime, deprivation and school inspections are shown separately on each district page.
Datasets
| Domain | Source | Geography | Typical refresh |
|---|---|---|---|
| School identity & governance Name, address, phase, type, trust, age range, capacity, website. | GIAS / Get Information about Schools | School (URN) | Monthly (when GIAS publishes) |
| Inspection Latest graded or ungraded outcomes, inspection dates, report links. | Ofsted — state-funded school outcomes | School (URN) | Monthly or when Ofsted updates MI |
| Performance & attainment KS2, KS4 headlines where published for the school. | DfE Explore Education Statistics / performance tables | School (URN) | Annual releases (school year labelled on site) |
| Pupil characteristics FSM %, EAL %, roll where published. | Schools, pupils and their characteristics | School (URN) | Annual (2024/25 on site where shown) |
| Attendance & absence Attendance % and persistent absence %. | Pupil absence in schools in England | School (URN) | Annual / termly (autumn + spring on cards) |
| SEN SEN % and provision labels from GIAS. | Special educational needs in England | School (URN) | Annual |
| Admissions pressure (indicative) Historic demand indicator only — not a catchment guarantee. | GIAS capacity + published roll; future: applications & offers | School (URN) | Annual when expanded |
| Local context Population, ethnicity, crime, house prices, flood, broadband — scope shown on each row. | ONS Census 2021, IMD 2019, police/crime APIs, Land Registry, Ofcom, EA, councils | Postcode district and/or local council (LAD) — labelled per metric | Varies by dataset |
| Maps & distance Straight-line miles — not walking or driving time unless stated otherwise. | Postcodes.io, school coordinates from GIAS | Your postcode (optional) vs school | On each visit |
Missing data (–)
A dash usually means one of: not published by DfE/Ofsted for that school, suppressed for small cohorts, not applicable (e.g. KS2 at a first school), or not yet imported after an academy change of URN.
Corrections
If something looks wrong, see our contact page with the school URN, the field, and a link to the official source. We correct pipeline or display issues; we do not edit government statistics without labelling.
Data refresh log — when sources were last checked.