How do Ofsted inspect the teaching of the protected characteristics in schools?
Ofsted inspectors evaluate how schools promote equality and pupils’ understanding of the protected characteristics as part of their inspection framework. This assessment influences their judgements on three key areas:
- The personal development of pupils
- The effectiveness of leadership and management, including how the school meets the Department for Education (DfE)’s statutory guidance on relationships education, relationships and sex education, and health education
- For non-association independent schools, whether the school meets the Independent School Standards (ISS)
If inspectors find that a school is not teaching all nine protected characteristics (as outlined in the Equality Act 2010), they will always report this and explain any impact on the school’s inspection judgements.
Request our free protected characteristics assembly.
Personal Development in More Detail
According to the Education Inspection Framework (EIF) and the relevant handbooks, pupils’ understanding of the protected characteristics and the promotion of equality and diversity form part of the evidence inspectors use to judge a school’s personal development.
Schools are not required to teach all the 9 protected characteristics in every year group. Instead, schools should plan and deliver a curriculum that ensures children develop age-appropriate knowledge and understanding over time.
For example, primary schools might teach pupils about different family groups as part of teaching protected characteristics. As noted in the DfE’s statutory guidance, this teaching should be integrated into the wider curriculum rather than taught in one-off lessons.
Note on LGBTQ+ Content
Since summer term 2021, if a primary school does not explicitly teach about LGBT relationships, this does not automatically impact its leadership and management judgement provided the school can show it has fulfilled the DfE’s statutory guidance requirements (e.g. consulting with parents). If not, this will be considered during inspection.
Dispelling the Myths
There are some common misconceptions about teaching the nine protected characteristics:
- Myth 1: It’s an additional burden. actually, it can be integrated into existing lessons.
- Myth 2: It requires standalone lessons in, say, Year 6 – not true.
- Myth 3: Ofsted uses a checklist to grade schools based on the number of groups children can name – this is simply not the case.
Teaching the protected characteristics is not limited to PSHE lessons; it can also be integrated into subjects like RE or history. For example, teaching about how Spartans treated babies with disabilities in ancient Greece (and why that would be considered cruel today) can support children’s understanding of disability and discrimination.
Embedding Teaching of Protected Characteristics
Effective teaching about the protected characteristics in the Equality Act means:
- Explaining different types of family and relationships.
- Teaching pupils about gender inequality, disability, race, and LGBT+ issues where appropriate.
- Helping pupils develop empathy, respect, and understanding of all groups.
This is not about adding extra lessons but about intentional, incremental development of pupils’ understanding. From the earliest years, children can start learning about differences and treating others kindly this is teaching about the protected characteristics.
Older pupils (Year 5 and 6) might even use the term ‘prejudice’ and recognise historical injustices, such as women not having the right to vote.
Supporting Schools with 1decision
At 1decision, we support schools to teach the protected characteristics through our kite-marked PSHE framework, which also includes content on British Values, protective behaviours, and statutory Relationships and Health Education.
We understand that promoting equality is essential for creating a safe, respectful, and inclusive environment for all children.
Request Our Free Support Pack
If you’d like to strengthen your school’s approach to teaching the protected characteristics,
Plus, don’t forget to visit our teacher zone to access our latest Protected Characteristics poster a great visual resource to enhance your classroom.
