School Website Governance Checklist

Every maintained school's website is checked against a set of statutory publication duties, but the harder problem for most governing boards is not knowing what to publish. It is knowing whether what is published is still current, who is responsible for it, and how you would prove that to a parent, auditor or Ofsted inspector who asks.

This checklist is for headteachers, school business managers (SBMs), governors and clerks who need to check, and keep checking, that the school website meets DfE statutory requirements and reflects live, well-governed decision-making rather than a one-off upload exercise. It is also useful for newly appointed governors running a governance review of their school for the first time.

How to use it: work through each section as a straightforward audit. Tick what is in place, flag what is not, and treat every unticked item as an action with a named owner and a date - not a note to revisit "at some point."

A note on currency: DfE statutory website requirements for maintained schools are updated periodically. This checklist reflects general good practice and covers both statutory publication requirements and governance best practice around them, but it is not a substitute for the current DfE guidance. Always check the live version of "What maintained schools must publish online" before relying on any single item here, and confirm any academy trust-specific requirements separately, as they can differ from maintained-school duties.

What "website governance" actually means

Most schools think of website compliance as a content question: is the safeguarding policy on the site, is the SEN report there, is the accessibility statement live. That is necessary, but it is only half the picture.

Website governance is the layer that sits behind the published content - who owns each section, how often it is reviewed, how versions are tracked, and how you can demonstrate, on demand, that what is published is current. A school can have every statutory document technically "on the website" and still have no governance behind it: no one owns it, no one knows when it was last checked, and the version live on the site may not even match what governors last approved.

Ofsted inspectors, auditors and parents do not just check that a document exists. They check whether it looks current and authoritative. A policy with no version number or review date raises exactly the kind of question a governing board does not want asked on the day of an inspection.

Website ownership and responsibilities

A named person is responsible for the overall accuracy of the school website.
Individual sections or policy areas have named owners, such as the safeguarding lead for safeguarding content or the SBM for financial information.
Website review is included in the school governance calendar, not done ad hoc.
The governing board has formally received a website compliance report at least once in the last 12 months.

Statutory policy publications for maintained schools

All statutory policies are published and accessible without requiring login.
Each published policy shows the version number and the date it was last reviewed or approved.
Policies on the website match the governor-approved version, not a draft.
Safeguarding or child protection policy is published, current, and shows review date and owner.
Behaviour policy is published, current, and updated to reflect current DfE guidance.
Exclusions or suspension policy is published and aligned with current DfE statutory guidance.
Special educational needs (SEN) information report is published and updated annually.
Accessibility plan is published.
Equality objectives and equality information are published and up to date.
Pupil premium strategy is published with current-year and previous-year information.
PE and sport premium information is published for primary schools, with current-year data.
Admissions information or a link to the LA admissions scheme is accessible from the website.
Complaints procedure is published and accessible.
Financial benchmarking link to the school's DfE benchmarking data is published.

Governance information on the website

Names of all current governors are published, including role, category, date of appointment, term of office and relevant business interests.
Name and contact details for the clerk to governors are published.
Governance structure is published, including the full governing board and any committees.
Names of the headteacher and members of the senior leadership team are published.
Register of governors' business interests is published, or the site confirms none have been declared.
Annual governors' report to parents, where applicable, is accessible.

Curriculum and educational information

School curriculum intent statement is published.
Information about the curriculum for each year group or subject is accessible.
RSE policy is published.
RE curriculum information is accessible where applicable.

Version control and document governance

All published policy documents show version number and approval date.
Out-of-date documents have been removed or clearly superseded.
There is a process for updating the website when a policy is governor-approved.
Website documents are named consistently, not with unclear draft labels or local file names.

Website review process

A full website review is conducted at least annually.
A term-by-term check is done for time-sensitive content such as admissions and pupil premium.
The website review is recorded: who reviewed, when, and what was updated.
Governors receive a summary of the website review at a full board meeting.
Any gaps or errors identified in a review are assigned to a named owner with a target date.

What to do with the gaps

Every unticked box above is an action, not a note. For each gap, assign a named owner, set a target date, log it in the governance action log, and confirm completion at the next review - the same discipline you would apply to any other governance action point. See policy governance best practice for school boards.

Do not treat website gaps as lower priority than internal governance gaps. The website is the public-facing evidence of your governance. It is often the first thing a parent, auditor or inspector checks, and an outdated document there undermines confidence in the governance behind it, even if the underlying decision-making was sound. Keep the same policy approval records that back up what is published, so you can show the paper trail if asked.

Common website governance failures

No named website owner, so accuracy is "everyone's job" and therefore no one's.
Policies published without a version number or approval date, so no one can tell if they are current.
Outdated governor information, with resigned governors still listed or new appointments missing.
Gaps discovered at inspection rather than at a scheduled review.
Website review never reported to governors, so the board has no oversight of a statutory duty.

FAQ

Do academy trusts have the same website requirements as maintained schools? Broadly similar in spirit, but the specific statutory basis differs. Academies work from their funding agreement and the Academy Trust Handbook rather than the School Information (England) Regulations that apply to maintained schools. Check your trust's specific obligations rather than assuming a maintained-school checklist transfers directly.

How often should a full website review happen? At least annually as a full review, with term-by-term checks for time-sensitive items such as admissions arrangements and pupil premium strategy, so nothing drifts for a full academic year before anyone notices.

Who should own website accuracy: the headteacher, the SBM, or governors? Day-to-day ownership usually sits with the SBM or an appointed website lead, with named owners for specific sections. Governors retain oversight and should receive a compliance report at least annually. Ownership and oversight are different roles and both need to be assigned.

What is the risk of publishing a policy without a version number or approval date? It is impossible to tell whether the published version reflects the current governor-approved policy or an old draft. This is one of the most common findings in governance reviews and inspection preparation, and it is straightforward to fix by adopting a consistent version and approval-date format across every published document.

Does Ofsted actually check the website during an inspection? Inspectors can and do check published information, particularly safeguarding, SEN information and governance details, as part of forming a view on how well the school is run. A website that is clearly current and version-controlled supports a stronger overall impression than one with visible gaps.

Keep your website a reflection of live governance, not a separate task

Website compliance should not be a scramble before an inspection or parent enquiry. Edvance helps schools maintain the governance records - version numbers, governor approval dates, review dates and ownership - that sit behind what is published, so your website reflects governance that is actually current. Book a governance readiness demo to see how it works, and pair this checklist with a board meeting preparation checklist, the school policy publication best practice guide, and the school governance evidence checklist for a fuller inspection-readiness review.

Jurisdiction note

This checklist applies to maintained schools in England. Academy trusts should check their own funding agreement and the Academy Trust Handbook for equivalent obligations, as these differ in legal basis from maintained-school duties. Statutory website requirements are reviewed and updated by the DfE from time to time. Always verify current requirements against the live "What maintained schools must publish online" guidance page rather than relying solely on this checklist.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do academy trusts have the same website requirements as maintained schools?

Broadly similar in spirit, but the specific statutory basis differs. Academies work from their funding agreement and the Academy Trust Handbook rather than the School Information (England) Regulations that apply to maintained schools.

How often should a full website review happen?

At least annually as a full review, with term-by-term checks for time-sensitive items such as admissions arrangements and pupil premium strategy, so nothing drifts for a full academic year before anyone notices.

Who should own website accuracy: the headteacher, the SBM, or governors?

Day-to-day ownership usually sits with the SBM or an appointed website lead, with named owners for specific sections. Governors retain oversight and should receive a compliance report at least annually.

What is the risk of publishing a policy without a version number or approval date?

It is impossible to tell whether the published version reflects the current governor-approved policy or an old draft. A consistent version and approval-date format fixes this common governance gap.

Does Ofsted actually check the website during an inspection?

Inspectors can and do check published information, particularly safeguarding, SEN information and governance details, as part of forming a view on how well the school is run.