Quality Assurance
What does quality assurance really mean at Estyn?
‘Quality assurance’ at Estyn is central to everything we do. Put simply, it’s how we make sure our inspections are robust, fair and credible.
Estyn has a statutory duty to ensure that our inspection arrangements are fit for purpose and delivered to a consistently high standard. This means we must have rigorous systems in place to check, evaluate and continually improve how we inspect.
Why do we need strong quality assurance?
Estyn inspects a wide range of providers across Wales, from schools and pupil referral units to further education colleges and local government education services. Each inspection carries serious responsibility. Providers deserve an accurate picture of their strengths and areas for improvement. Learners, parents and carers, and the wider public rely on our evaluations.
That’s why our inspections are underpinned by robust quality assurance processes. They help us to remain impartial, evidence-led and consistent in our work – no matter where or what we inspect.
Our quality assurance work really matters. It helps us ensure public confidence in inspection and enables us to keep improving, so that we can support education providers across Wales to reflect, grow and deliver the best possible experiences for learners.
We embed quality assurance at every step of the inspection process:
| Before an inspection, lead inspectors (reporting inspectors) discuss the context and approach with their team. We expect all inspectors to work in line with key principles from our inspection guidance, including involving the provider fully in the process. Inspection guidance resources – Estyn | During an inspection, the team uses a range of approaches, tailored to the particular provider, to gather evidence and build a full picture of its work. The team compares evidence from different sources and perspectives to make sure its findings are fair and consistent. The reporting inspector manages and monitors the team’s work throughout. | After an inspection, the team’s evaluations are checked to ensure they match the evidence collected and that the findings are accurate and balanced. Before a report is published, another experienced inspector reviews it to make sure it’s written clearly and is easy to understand. At least one senior leader will also review the report to ensure it meets our standards and is consistent with others. |
To maintain the highest standards, while also supporting the professional growth of our inspectors, Estyn has three key quality assurance processes. Together, they help to ensure our approach to inspection is fair, consistent and continually improving.
| 1. Quality assurance of inspection (QAI): This process focuses on the inspection itself, while it’s happening. A senior inspector, usually His Majesty’s Inspector (HMI), assistant director or strategic director, visits the provider during the inspection to gather first-hand evidence of how the inspection is being carried out. They observe the inspection team at work, speak with the provider, and offer professional support and challenge to inspectors. This helps to ensure that inspections are fair, consistent and aligned with our framework. | 2. Quality assurance of reports (QAR): Once the inspection is over, another HMI (someone not involved in the inspection) reviews the report and the supporting evidence. Their role is to check that the report reflects the findings accurately, is written clearly following our agreed style, and meets our quality standards. They challenge, as appropriate. If any inspection finding or outcome is changed as a result of the quality assurance process, this is moderated by an assistant director or strategic director. Before the report is published, providers also have an opportunity to review the draft as part of a ‘factual accuracy check’ [Link to guidance on website]. | 3. Inspector Evaluation Forms (IEFs): We also use Inspector Evaluation Forms to support evaluation and professional learning. After every inspection, the reporting inspector evaluates the contribution of each external team member. Team members are encouraged to reflect on their own practice and performance, grading themselves against criteria, and identifying what went well and what could be improved. These reflections help inspectors to learn from every inspection and to improve over time. They also help us to plan ongoing professional learning to develop our external inspector workforce, whose expertise is vital to the quality of our work. |
Listening, learning and improving:
Quality assurance is about more than checking compliance; it’s about learning. Each year, we reflect on inspection outcomes, feedback from providers, and insights from our own evaluation activities.
We carry out spot checks, shadow inspections and conduct internal reviews to strengthen how we work. These findings feed directly into our inspection guidance and professional learning. When providers raise concerns or make complaints, we take these seriously treating each one as an opportunity to listen and improve.
Building trust through transparency:
Quality assurance is also about trust. When Estyn publishes a report, people need to have confidence in the process behind it: how the findings were reached, how evidence was gathered and how professional judgement was applied.
Our quality assurance guidance
We publish a series of guides that explain how our quality assurance system works: