Code: E06000013
Director of Children's Services: Rachel Smith


Summary of Ofsted findings

Summary of Ofsted findings

Inspection of North Lincolnshire’s local authority children’s services

These inspections focus on the effectiveness of local authority services and arrangements:

  • to help and protect children, and enable families to stay together and get the help they need
  • the experiences and progress of children in care wherever they live, including those children who return home
  • the arrangements for permanence for children who are looked after, in stable, loving homes, including adoption
  • the experiences and progress of care leavers.
Inspection type Inspection start date Overall effectiveness Impact of leaders Help and protection Children in care Care leavers
ILACS Short Inspection 16 March 2026 Outstanding Outstanding Outstanding Outstanding Good

Data source

Area SEND inspection of North Lincolnshire Local Area Partnership

The purpose of an area SEND inspection is to:

  • provide an independent, external evaluation of the effectiveness of the local area partnership’s arrangements for children and young people with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND)
  • where appropriate, recommend what the local area partnership should do to improve the arrangements.
Inspection outcome

North Lincolnshire local area partnership has not yet been inspected under the current Area SEND framework.

Data source

Joint targeted area inspection of North Lincolnshire local authority

The agencies for these inspections can include the police, children’s social care, probation services, education and relevant health services. Inspectors will also evaluate how local agencies work with education and childcare providers. The focus of these inspections is how effectively the local safeguarding partners work together at the practice and strategic levels.

Theme Inspection start date Link
There have been no JTAI inspections for this local authority.

Data source

Ofsted inspection reports and tools


Local authority context

Population 18 and under Number %
North Lincolnshire 36,636 21.4%
National 12,869,368 22.0%

Data source

Children looked after Number Rate per 10,000
North Lincolnshire 215 62
National 81,770 67

Data source

School-age pupils eligible for free school meals Number %
North Lincolnshire 7,262 31.1%
National 2,085,168 26.7%

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School-age pupils eligible for extra funding (pupil premium) Number %
North Lincolnshire 7,729 33.1%
National 2,266,608 29.3%

Data source

Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) in state-funded settings Number %
North Lincolnshire 4,885 19.9%
National 1,766,924 19.6%

Data source

School-age pupils with English as an additional language Number %
North Lincolnshire 3,339 13.9%
National 1,806,029 21.4%

Data source

% of children in income-deprived families (IDACI) Average %
North Lincolnshire 39.0%
National 38.0%
Health Index (children and young people) Health Index score
North Lincolnshire 98.3
National 100.8
More details about the health index metric

Indicates the health of an area measured in three domains: Healthy People, Health Lives and Healthy Places.

A score of 100 represents health in England in 2015. A higher number means better health and a lower number means worse health.

Data source

Remit overview

Contents

Early years

Population Number in North Lincolnshire % in North Lincolnshire % National
Aged 0 to 5 years 10,145 5.9% 6.4%
Aged 0 1,487 0.9% 1.0%
Aged 1 1,610 0.9% 1.0%
Aged 2 1,742 1.0% 1.1%
Aged 3 1,736 1.0% 1.1%
Aged 4 1,810 1.1% 1.1%
Aged 5 1,760 1.0% 1.1%

Data source

Disadvantaged Number in North Lincolnshire % in North Lincolnshire % National
Early years pupil premium 509 5.0% 3.3%
Children looked after (under 1 year) 18 1.2% 0.6%
Children looked after (1 to 4 years) 30 0.4% 0.4%

Data sources:

Special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) /
Education, health and care plans (EHCP)
Number in North Lincolnshire % in North Lincolnshire % National
SEN support in state-funded settings (age 2 and under) 1 0.0% 0.3%
SEN support in state-funded settings (age 3) 47 2.7% 3.7%
SEN support in state-funded settings (age 4) 165 9.1% 9.4%
SEN support in state-funded settings (age 5) 225 12.8% 12.1%
Total: SEN support in state-funded settings (age 5 and under) 438 4.3% 4.5%
Children with an EHCP (age 2 and under) 0 0.0% 0.0%
Children with an EHCP (age 3) 7 0.4% 0.7%
Children with an EHCP (age 4) 84 4.6% 3.5%
Children with an EHCP (age 5) 78 4.4% 4.7%
Total: Children with an EHCP (age 5 and under) 169 1.7% 1.6%

Data sources:

Funded early years places for 2-year-olds Population aged 2-years-old Number of eligible 2-year-olds % of population aged 2 % take-up of funded places
North Lincolnshire 1,742 445 25.6% 60.2%
National 630,059 145,824 23.1% 65.2%

Data source

Funded early years places for 3-year-olds Population aged 3-years-old Number of eligible 3-year-olds % of population aged 3 % take-up of funded places
North Lincolnshire 1,736 All 3-year olds are eligible 96.0%
National 625,948 90.6%
The 2 and 3-year-old funded places tables look different because they measure different things; funded places for 2-year-olds are only for children considered to be disadvantaged, while for 3-year-olds everyone is entitled to a funded place.

Data source

Children's overweight and obesity Number in North Lincolnshire % in North Lincolnshire % National
Children's overweight and obesity (reception-age children) 425 27.2% 23.5%

Data source

Oral health Number examined in North Lincolnshire % examined in North Lincolnshire % in North Lincolnshire % National
Oral health (visible tooth decay in 5-year-olds) 246 13.3% 25.4% 22.4%

Schools

Population Number in North Lincolnshire % in North Lincolnshire1 % National1
Primary-age pupils (ages 5 to 11) 13,646 8.0% 8.2%
Secondary-age pupils (ages 12 to 16) 10,604 6.2% 6.2%

Data source

Population of looked-after-children Number in North Lincolnshire % in North Lincolnshire1 % National1
Ages 5 to 9 37 0.4% 0.4%
Ages 10 to 15 72 0.6% 0.7%

Data source

Pupils eligible for free schools meals Number in North Lincolnshire % in North Lincolnshire2 % National2
Primary 3,912 30.5% 25.3%
Secondary 3,193 31.4% 27.5%
Alternative provision 2 20.0% 64.6%
Special 155 44.5% 49.5%
Non-maintained special 31.0%

Data source

Pupils eligible for pupil premium Number in North Lincolnshire % in North Lincolnshire2 % National2
Primary 3,751 29.4% 25.1%
Secondary 3,366 31.8% 28.9%

Data source

Pupils with SEND Number in North Lincolnshire % in North Lincolnshire2 % National2
Primary 2,293 17.3% 18.2%
Secondary 1,921 18.5% 16.5%
Alternative provision 11 100.0% 83.4%
Special 393 100.0% 99.9%
Non-maintained special 99.7%
Independent schools 267 62.4% 24.1%

Data source

Pupils with English as an additional language Number in North Lincolnshire % in North Lincolnshire2 % National2
Primary 2,078 15.6% 23.4%
Secondary 1,230 11.9% 19.2%
Alternative provision 0 0.0% 7.6%
Special 31 7.9% 14.5%
Non-maintained special 11.0%
Attendance of all pupils up to week 4 of calendar year % in North Lincolnshire2 % National2
Primary 94.8% 95.0%
Secondary 92.1% 91.8%
Special 92.6% 87.1%

Data source

Attendance of pupils eligible for free school meals (summer term 2024/25) % in North Lincolnshire2 % National2
Primary 92.4% 91.9%
Secondary 84.5% 85.2%
Special 90.0% 85.1%

Data source

Attendance of pupils with SEND (summer term 2024/25) % in North Lincolnshire2 % National2
Primary 92.8% 92.1%
Secondary 83.9% 84.3%
Special 87.3%

Data source

Primary attainment: Year 1 phonics screening pass Number in North Lincolnshire % in North Lincolnshire2 % National2
All pupils 1,311 76.7% 79.8%
Pupils eligible for free school meals 286 64.3% 66.6%
Pupils with SEND 114 38.3% 43.4%
Pupils with English as an additional language 179 73.4% 79.5%
Primary attainment: Year 4 times table check (full marks) Number in North Lincolnshire % in North Lincolnshire2 % National2
All pupils 743 38.3% 36.8%
Pupils eligible for free school meals 198 30.0% 27.4%
Pupils with SEND 57 14.9% 16.5%
Pupils with English as an additional language 132 45.1% 45.2%

Data source

Primary attainment: Key stage 2 reading, writing, maths combined (met the expected standard) Number in North Lincolnshire % in North Lincolnshire2 % National2
All pupils 1,185 61.8% 62.6%
Pupils eligible for free school meals 332 48.7% 47.7%
Pupils with SEND 99 24.0% 23.8%
Pupils with English as an additional language 175 61.8% 66.2%

Data source

Secondary attainment: Attainment 8 Average in North Lincolnshire2 National average2
All pupils 43.1 45.9
Pupils eligible for free school meals 34.8 35.0
Pupils with SEND 24.9 28.1

Data source

Population receiving education outside of their local authority Number outside of North Lincolnshire % outside of North Lincolnshire2 % National2
Primary 188 1.5% 4.1%
Secondary 426 4.3% 8.7%
Special 19 5.4% 9.0%
Children being home educated Number in North Lincolnshire % in North Lincolnshire1 % National1
Primary 90 0.7% 0.8%
Secondary 320 3.0% 2.5%
Total 410 1.7% 1.5%
More details about the children being home educated numbers
Local authority data in the source dataset has been rounded to the nearest 10. As a result totals may not equal the sum of their component parts.

Data source

Suspensions (from primary school) Number in North Lincolnshire Rate per 100 pupils in North Lincolnshire3 Rate per 100 pupils National3
Total number of suspensions 110 0.8 0.9
Total pupils with one or more suspensions 59 0.5 0.5
Pupils with one or more suspensions who are eligible for free school meals 45 1.2 (in group) 1.2 (in group)
Pupils with one or more suspensions with SEND 47 2.2 (in group) 2.4 (in group)
More details about suspensions from state-funded primary schools and totals not summing
Suspensions data on total number of pupils may not match, as a change in a pupil’s category within the same term results in them being counted separately under each category. For example, if a pupil receives multiple suspensions while classified as not having SEN, and then receives additional suspensions after being reclassified as receiving SEN support during the same term, they will be recorded as two separate enrolments in the data.

Data source

Suspensions (from secondary school) Number in North Lincolnshire Rate per 100 pupils in North Lincolnshire3 Rate per 100 pupils National3
Total number of suspensions 1,490 14.3 7.8
Total pupils with one or more suspensions 608 5.8 3.8
Pupils with one or more suspensions who are eligible for free school meals 378 11.7 (in group) 8.2 (in group)
Pupils with one or more suspensions with SEND 264 13.4 (in group) 9.1 (in group)
More details about suspensions from state-funded secondary schools and totals not summing
Suspensions data on total number of pupils may not match, as a change in a pupil’s category within the same term results in them being counted separately under each category. For example, if a pupil receives multiple suspensions while classified as not having SEN, and then receives additional suspensions after being reclassified as receiving SEN support during the same term, they will be recorded as two separate enrolments in the data.

Data source

Suspensions (from special school) Number in North Lincolnshire Rate per 100 pupils in North Lincolnshire3 Rate per 100 pupils National3
Total number of suspensions 5 1.3 5.1
Total pupils with one or more suspensions 5 1.3 2.9
Pupils with one or more suspensions who are eligible for free school meals 3 1.7 (in group) 4.1 (in group)
Pupils with one or more suspensions with SEND 5 1.3 (in group) 2.9 (in group)
More details about suspensions from state-funded special schools and totals not summing
Suspensions data on total number of pupils may not match, as a change in a pupil’s category within the same term results in them being counted separately under each category. For example, if a pupil receives multiple suspensions while classified as not having SEN, and then receives additional suspensions after being reclassified as receiving SEN support during the same term, they will be recorded as two separate enrolments in the data.

Data source

Exclusions (from primary school) Number in North Lincolnshire % in North Lincolnshire2 % National2
Total number of pupils excluded 2 0.0% 0.0%
Pupils eligible for free school meals 2 0.1% 0.0%
Pupils with SEND 2 0.1% 0.1%

Data source

Exclusions (from secondary school) Number in North Lincolnshire % in North Lincolnshire2 % National2
Total number of pupils excluded 16 0.2% 0.1%
Pupils eligible for free school meals 11 0.3% 0.2%
Pupils with SEND 8 0.4% 0.3%

Data source

Exclusions (from special school) Number in North Lincolnshire % in North Lincolnshire2 % National2
Total number of pupils excluded 0 0.0% 0.0%
Pupils eligible for free school meals 0 0.0% 0.0%
Pupils with SEND 0 0.0% 0.0%

1. % of all children in North Lincolnshire / England.

2. % of all pupils in state-funded settings across North Lincolnshire / England.

3. Rate per 100 pupils in state-funded settings across North Lincolnshire / England.

Further education and skills

Population Number in North Lincolnshire % in North Lincolnshire % National
Aged 16 to 18 years 6,135 3.6% 3.6%
Aged 19 to 21 years 4,184 2.4% 3.6%
Aged 22 to 24 years 4,765 2.8% 3.6%
Aged 25 years and over 125,751 73.4% 70.8%

Data source

Not in Education, Employment or Training (NEET) Number in North Lincolnshire % in North Lincolnshire % National
16- to 17-year-olds known to LA 4,276 2.4% 2.4%
NEET 75 1.8% 3.4%
Activity not known 417 9.7% 2.2%
Total NEET or activity not known 492 11.5% 5.6%

Data source

16 to 18 progression to higher education or training % in North Lincolnshire % National
Degrees (all) 46.0% 66.0%
Degrees at top third higher education institutions 12.0% 24.0%
Higher apprenticeships 2.0% 2.0%
Other study at level 4 and 5 5.0% 3.0%
Progressing to higher education or training 52.0% 70.0%
More details about the further education and skills destinations data

This data reflects the destinations of pupils based on the number on roll when they were aged 16 to 18, tracking where they progressed after completing their studies.

Degree destinations include any study at level 6 or higher such as bachelor degrees, graduate diplomas, and post-graduate degrees. The top third higher education institutions when ranked by average UCAS tariff score of entrants across their best 3 A levels.

Higher apprenticeships are those from level 4 to 7 and are equivalent to a foundation degree and above. Degree apprenticeships are available at levels 6 and 7.

Other study at level 4 or 5 destinations include those students studying qualifications such as foundation degrees, Higher National Certificates (HNCs) and Higher National Diplomas (HNDs).

Data source

Social care

Explore the findings from Ofsted's local authority inspections.

Explore population characteristics for this local authority.