Statutory Assessments Service

The Statutory Assessments Service is a statutory requirement that supports Birmingham City Council in discharging its legal responsibilities for the assessment and moderation of pupil attainment across Birmingham schools. The service provides quality assurance, compliance monitoring and moderation of national assessment processes, ensuring adherence to Department for Education requirements and maintaining the integrity, consistency and accuracy of assessment outcomes across the city.

A core element of the service involves the monitoring of Key Stage 2 SATs. This includes undertaking visits to selected schools during SATs week to ensure that assessments are administered in accordance with the statutory Assessment and Reporting Arrangements (ARA). The service is responsible for identifying and reporting any concerns, irregularities or instances of non-compliance to the Standards and Testing Agency (STA).

The service also delivers Key Stage 1 Phonics monitoring, carrying out compliance checks to ensure that schools are administering phonics assessments in line with national guidance and statutory requirements.

Additionally, the service coordinates and delivers Key Stage 2 Writing Moderation across Birmingham schools. This includes organising moderation visits, validating teacher assessment judgements against national standards, reviewing evidence where there are concerns regarding the accuracy of assessments, and confirming final outcomes. The service is responsible for recording and submitting moderation decisions through the appropriate national systems, ensuring that teacher assessments are robust, consistent and reliable.

The service plays a critical role in maintaining the integrity and consistency of statutory assessments across Birmingham and ensures that the Council meets its legal obligations as a Local Authority in relation to assessment, moderation and quality assurance.