An honest picture
117 expectations drawn from the renewed framework, the independent school standards and DfE guidance, matched to your type of school and the phases you teach. Each line asks for evidence, not opinion.
Why it exists
Our intention
Inspection should never be a surprise. Evalu8 Compass gives schools a calm, structured way to look at themselves the way an inspector would, well before anyone arrives, so energy goes into improving rather than performing.
Every voice counts
Teachers, teaching assistants, support staff, leaders and governors rate the school anonymously. Where views differ, you find out where practice isn't yet consistent: the conversations worth having.
From findings to action
Gaps become priorities with owners, timescales and the evidence each one will produce. Optional AI suggestions help you draft; your professional judgement decides.
Co-creation
What we ask of you
Evalu8 Compass works best as something you build with your staff, and something we keep building with schools.
In your school
- Be honest, not hopeful. "Partly" and "Not yet" are useful answers. A self-evaluation that's all green helps nobody.
- Bring evidence. Note what you'd show an inspector for each line. If you can't find it, that's a finding too.
- Involve everyone. Run a workshop so every role is heard, not only senior leaders.
- Protect anonymity. Never try to work out who said what. Role breakdowns only appear for groups of three or more.
- Keep people out of comments. Describe what happens, not who. Never name pupils or colleagues.
- Lead with judgement. AI suggestions are a starting point. Leaders decide what goes in the plan.
With us
- This is an early version. It will change as schools use it, and some features below are still being built.
- Tell us what's missing. A line that doesn't fit your setting, a report you need, wording that confuses staff: your feedback shapes the next version.
- Check what matters. Statutory guidance changes, especially each September. Treat references as a guide and check the current version.
- We're not Ofsted. Nothing here is an inspection judgement or predicts one.
How to use it
Six steps, at your own pace
Set up your school
Open the checklist, add your school's name and logo, choose your school type and the phases you teach. The checklist adjusts to fit.
Rate each expectation
Mark each line Met, Partly, Not yet or N/A and add your evidence. Your progress and area scores update as you go.
Bring your staff in
Start a staff workshop, pick two or three areas and share the code. Staff answer on their phones in 20–30 minutes.
Share and agree
Show staff the collated findings, discuss where views differ, and record the school's agreed rating for each line.
Plan improvements
Turn gaps into actions with an owner, a deadline and what success looks like. Ask the AI inspector for suggestions only if you want them.
Keep the record
Download your evaluation report as a PDF or Word document, track your action plan, and repeat each term to show how far you've come.
What you'll get
Outputs, now and next
Everything marked Ready now works today. Items marked Coming next are being built.
Self-evaluation
- Ready nowRated checklist with evidence notesfor every expectation that applies to your school
- Ready nowProgress overviewoverall % met and a status for each evaluation area
- Ready nowAI improvement ideas per line3–4 activities with a lead, timescale and the evidence each produces (optional)
- Ready nowAI readiness reviewindicative grades on the five-point scale, priorities and strengths (optional)
- Ready nowAction plan as textgaps, notes and suggestions to paste into your improvement plan
- Ready nowDownloadable evaluation reporta formatted PDF or Word report with your logo, scores, evidence and action plan
Staff workshop
- Ready nowLive collated findingshow staff rated each line, by role, with anonymous comments
- Ready nowSplits and gapsflags where staff disagree or leaders rate higher than staff
- Ready nowFindings shared to every devicein one click, plus present mode for the projector
- Ready nowOfsted report readinggrades, next steps and concerns mapped to the checklist (AI)
- Ready nowComment themes and improvement planpriorities tagged by source, quick wins and a message for staff (AI)
- Ready nowAgreed ratings and plan into the checklistso the workshop becomes your official self-evaluation and action plan
- Ready nowWorkshop reportparticipation, findings, where views differ and the improvement plan, as PDF or Word
Planning and tracking
- Ready nowAction plan builderowners, deadlines, success criteria and progress for each action, with AI suggestions only if you ask for them
- Coming nextTermly snapshotsre-run the evaluation and see what moved from Not yet to Met
- Ready nowSchool access codesleaders enter their school's code once; staff joining a workshop never need one
- Coming nextIndividual sign-insa personal sign-in for each member of the leadership team
- Coming nextTrust and group viewcompare schools across a trust or group
AI is your choice
Everything works without AI. Switch AI suggestions off in your school settings and every AI button disappears. When it's on, AI only runs when you press an AI button, and it never changes your ratings or adds actions you haven't accepted.
- Its suggestions are advisory and are never an Ofsted judgement.
- When you use it, the relevant lines and notes are sent to our AI provider (Anthropic) to produce the answer.
- Keep names and personal details out of notes and comments.
Your data
- Checklist: your answers are saved in your own browser, not on our server. Use Save / load to keep a copy.
- Workshops: staff join with a code and a role only, with no names or accounts. Workshop records are deleted 90 days after they were last used.
- Exports contain collated findings only, never individual responses.