What Must a School Report Include in England? The Legal Checklist
The statutory requirements for annual school reports in England, year group by year group: what the 2005 Regulations require, the end of summer term deadline, EYFS, phonics and KS2 results, and what the law does not require.
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By the School Reports UK team – built for teachers in England
Every June the same question does the rounds in staffrooms: what does a school report actually have to say? The answer is shorter than most report templates suggest. The legal requirements for schools in England fit on one page, and knowing them makes it much easier to decide where your limited writing time should go.
England only
Everything here applies to schools in England. Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own curricula and reporting rules.
Where the rules come from
For maintained schools, the requirements are in Schedule 1 of the Education (Pupil Information) (England) Regulations 2005. Academies are usually bound to the same requirements through their funding agreements, and independent schools must provide an annual written report under the Independent School Standards. In practice, almost every school in England works to Schedule 1.
The deadline
Headteachers must send parents a written report by the end of the summer term. That is why report writing peaks in June and early July. Exam results that arrive later are sent on separately.
What every annual report must include
For every pupil, the report must contain:
- brief particulars of achievements in all subjects and activities forming part of the school curriculum
- comments on general progress
- arrangements for discussing the report with the pupil’s teacher
- the pupil’s attendance record (not required in Reception, or in the sixth form once a student is past compulsory school age)
- results of any public examinations, by subject and grade
- details of any vocational qualifications or credits
- results of any national curriculum tests taken that year, by score
Items 1 and 2 are the part you write. The DfE’s own guide for headteachers summarises them as general progress and brief particulars of achievement, highlighting strengths and developmental needs. Notice the word “brief”. Nothing in the law requires a long comment for every subject.
Extra requirements by year group
Reception
Teachers must give parents their child’s EYFS profile results and offer the chance to discuss them. Each early learning goal is recorded as expected or emerging; there has been no “exceeding” judgement since 2021. The EYFS profile handbook also suggests teachers may add a short commentary on the characteristics of effective learning.
Year 1 (and Year 2 retakes)
Parents must be told their child’s phonics screening check result by the end of the summer term. The threshold is set each year after the check — it was 31 in 2026, not the 32 still quoted on many websites — so never promise a fixed pass mark in advance.
Year 2
Key stage 1 tests and teacher assessment have been optional since 2023/24, and the requirement to report them was removed from the Regulations. Your school may still use them, but the report does not legally need them.
Year 4
The multiplication tables check gives a score out of 25, and headteachers must report it to parents by the end of the summer term (or explain why there is no result). There is no pass mark, so avoid any wording that suggests a child passed or failed.
Year 6
End of key stage 2 reports carry the most statutory content: test scaled scores, teacher assessment outcomes, comparisons with pupils in the school and nationally, and a statement that results were reached under the statutory arrangements. Your MIS produces the data. Your job is the brief commentary, which should explain progress in words rather than repeat numbers.
Years 10 to 13
Reports include public examination and vocational qualification results by subject and grade. School leavers receive their report directly, no later than 30 September after they leave.
What the law does not require
- a set word count
- effort or attitude grades
- a comment for every foundation subject in the same depth as English and maths
- target grades or predicted grades
- national curriculum levels, which were abolished in 2014
These may be your school’s policy, and they can be genuinely useful to families. But it helps to know which parts are statutory when you are deciding where to spend a Sunday evening.
What never belongs in a report
Pupil premium or free school meals status, safeguarding information, diagnoses, suspensions, and comparisons with other pupils. A report is personal data under UK GDPR, and parents can request copies of their child’s educational record, so write every sentence as though it will be read closely — because it will.
A practical checklist
- Does every subject taught have at least a brief statement of achievement?
- Is there a comment on general progress?
- Does each comment name a strength and a next step?
- Are statutory results for this year group included (EYFS, phonics, KS2)?
- Is attendance included (except Reception)?
- Does the report tell parents how to discuss it?
- Will it reach families before the summer term ends?
Sources
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