DfE removes Penta as BSO inspectorate after critical Ofsted reports

The Department for Education has removed Penta as an official inspectorate for British Schools Overseas (BSO) accreditation.

While the DfE issued no public confirmation of the change, an update to the official BSO page has removed mention of Penta, with only the Education Development Trust (EDT) and the Independent Schools Inspectorate (ISI) now listed as approved inspectorates.

However, in an email sent by the DfE to BSO schools, and seen by Tes, the DfE confirmed the move, saying it had “recently taken the decision to remove approval of Penta International as an approved BSO inspectorate”.

Confusingly, though, Penta will still be able to conduct inspections until 1 September 2026, the email states.

Tes contacted the DfE to ask why there was a delay in implementing the decision and if it knew whether this would mean BSO inspections would be carried out during this time frame. It had not replied at the time of publication.

The move comes after a report was published two months ago by Ofsted listing numerous concerns with Penta’s inspection process for international schools, and saying that it “continues to fail to meet the standards required of BSO inspectorates”.

‘Significant concerns’ over Penta inspections

This report followed one in March 2025 that raised “significant concerns” with Penta inspections, including around safeguarding and “grades [that] appear overly generous”.

The BSO is the only government-approved accreditation scheme for international schools and the accreditation carries several benefits, including the ability to deliver the early career teacher induction programme.

Responding to the development, Penta said it was “naturally disappointed by the decision”, and that it had “engaged fully with the oversight arrangements and worked extensively to strengthen our arrangements through enhanced training, quality assurance, governance and inspection practice”.

It said, though, that in light of the decision, it would now work “constructively with the Department for Education on transition arrangements and supporting schools, inspectors and partners through that process”.

Meanwhile, the Association of British Schools Overseas (AoBSO), which represents BSO schools, said it “fully supports” the decision, with chairman James McDonald adding that upholding the quality of the BSO had to be paramount.

“If difficult decisions are required to uphold those standards and protect the integrity of the BSO accreditation, then AoBSO supports those decisions unequivocally,” he said.

“We welcome the department’s continued commitment to ensuring that BSO status can only be awarded through inspectorates that have successfully met Ofsted’s rigorous quality assurance requirements.”

Mr McDonald also thanked the ISI and EDT, which he said have “confirmed that they have the capacity to undertake both the required re-inspections of existing schools and first-time BSO inspections”.

It is unclear whether Penta’s international qualified teacher status (iQTS) inspection remit remains in place after this decision. Tes contacted the DfE for confirmation but had received no reply at the time of publication.