Statutory Inspection for Anglican and Methodist Schools (SIAMS)

The national SIAMS Information for Schools document (September 2021) makes the purpose of Self-evaluation clear: 

SIAMS SELF-EVALUATION 

3.1. Although self-evaluation is not a statutory element of the SIAMS process, it makes a significant contribution to enabling the inspector to understand the life and work of the school.  
3.2. It is, therefore, to the school’s benefit to share a summary of their self-evaluation with the inspector. 
3.3. Ongoing self-evaluation is a process that is for the benefit of the school community. It provides a context for their reflection, evaluation, and future planning. It can refer to provision but should have an overwhelmingly evaluative focus on impact in order to be of maximum use to the school.  
3.4. Such self-evaluation can result in lengthy, ‘live’, and often-changing documentation. This does not need to be shared with an inspector. In fact, an inspector is unlikely to have time to read it. 
3.5. A non-statutory summary, no longer than two sides of A4, is helpful for the purposes of inspection. With an emphasis on vision, impact, and transformation it will help an inspector to use the limited time available to them to gain an accurate picture of the school.  
3.6. Inspectors will ask schools if they have such a document during the initial conversation. If they do, the inspector will request it. 

Therefore, you are encouraged to maintain a ‘shorter style’ SIAMS SEF, as per the templates below, as a working document to support your ongoing self-evaluation and future planning. Such a document will enable school leaders and governor to determine how the school’s distinctive Christian vision enables pupils and adults to flourish. 

In addition to this and to support the SIAMS process, we recommend that schools prepare a 2 page summary that lifts highlights from the ‘shorter style’ SEF to share with the SIAMS inspector. You are welcome to present your key highlights of vision led flourishing in any way across 2 pages of A4. A file that could be adapted and used is available below – this is a working document that will be reviewed and updated as we work with schools. At this stage it is not a template to adopt but a starting point for your own development.