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Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Education (HMIe) was an executive agency of the Scottish Government, responsible for the inspection of public and independent, primary and
secondary Secondary may refer to: Science and nature * Secondary emission, of particles ** Secondary electrons, electrons generated as ionization products * The secondary winding, or the electrical or electronic circuit connected to the secondary winding i ...
schools, as well as further education
college A college (Latin: ''collegium'') is an educational institution or a constituent part of one. A college may be a degree-awarding tertiary educational institution, a part of a collegiate or federal university, an institution offering ...
s, community learning, Local Authority Education Departments and teacher education. HMIe and
Learning and Teaching Scotland Learning and Teaching Scotland (LTS or LT Scotland) was a non-departmental public body of the Scottish Government, formed by the merger of the Scottish Consultative Council on the Curriculum (SCCC) and the Scottish Council for Educational Technol ...
were merged in 2011 to create Education Scotland.


History

The first HM Inspector of Schools (HMI) was appointed in 1840. The rationale for the first appointments of HMI linked inspection to "the improvement of elementary education" and charged HMI to say "what improvements in the apparatus and internal management of schools, in school management and discipline, and in the methods of teaching have been sanctioned by the most extensive experience". The particular focus in Scotland on combining inspection with self-evaluation has been central to the drive to raise educational standards. HMIe was headed by Her Majesty's Senior Chief Inspector of Education. Its remit was far wider than its English counterpart, the Office for Standards in Education. HMIe's equivalent in Wales, Estyn, had a similar remit, including adult education. Following the Scotland Act 1998 the Inspectorate was made an Executive Agency of the Scottish Government in 2001, and HMIe was answerable to the Scottish Ministers for the running of the Inspectorate and the whole inspection system in Scotland. In 2003 it employed 178 staff who were based in Edinburgh,
Inverness Inverness (; from the gd, Inbhir Nis , meaning "Mouth of the River Ness"; sco, Innerness) is a city in the Scottish Highlands. It is the administrative centre for The Highland Council and is regarded as the capital of the Highlands. Histori ...
, Glasgow and Dundee. A policy to disperse public sector jobs then led to the relocation of the headquarters from Edinburgh to
Livingston, West Lothian Livingston ( sco, Leivinstoun, gd, Baile Dhunlèibhe) is the largest town in West Lothian, Scotland. Designated in 1962, it is the fourth post-war new town to be built in Scotland. Taking its name from a village of the same name incorporated ...
along with the opening of new offices in
Dunbartonshire Dunbartonshire ( gd, Siorrachd Dhùn Breatann) or the County of Dumbarton is a historic county, lieutenancy area and registration county in the west central Lowlands of Scotland lying to the north of the River Clyde. Dunbartonshire borders ...
and
Ayrshire Ayrshire ( gd, Siorrachd Inbhir Àir, ) is a historic county and registration county in south-west Scotland, located on the shores of the Firth of Clyde. Its principal towns include Ayr, Kilmarnock and Irvine and it borders the counties of R ...
. On 14 October 2010 the Cabinet Secretary for Education announced that HMIe would be brigaded with
Learning and Teaching Scotland Learning and Teaching Scotland (LTS or LT Scotland) was a non-departmental public body of the Scottish Government, formed by the merger of the Scottish Consultative Council on the Curriculum (SCCC) and the Scottish Council for Educational Technol ...
into a new executive agency of the Scottish Government to be known as the ''Scottish Education Quality and Improvement Agency''. This was later renamed Education Scotland, and came into existence on 30 June 2011. Senior Chief Inspector 1999 to 2002: Bill Clark
Senior Chief Inspector in 2009: Graham Donaldson
Senior Chief Inspector 2010 to 2017: Dr Bill Maxwell
Senior Chief Inspector from December 2017: Gayle Gorman


Remit

HMIe was charged with inspecting the quality of education in pre-school centres, primary schools, secondary schools, special schools, community learning and development,
further education colleges Further education (often abbreviated FE) in the United Kingdom and Ireland is education in addition to that received at secondary school, that is distinct from the higher education (HE) offered in universities and other academic institutions. I ...
, initial teacher education, residential educational provision and the education functions of
local authorities Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of public administration within a particular sovereign state. This particular usage of the word government refers specifically to a level of administration that is both geographically-loca ...
and services for children. Following the passing of the Standards in Scotland’s Schools etc. 2000 Act the focus of HMIe shifted to how this legislation is being implemented. It brought new statutory powers to inspect the education functions of local authorities.


See also

* Education Scotland * Education in the United Kingdom * Education in Scotland


References


External links

* {{authority control Education in Scotland Educational administration Executive agencies of the Scottish Government Public bodies of the Scottish Government 1840 establishments in Scotland Organisations based in West Lothian