New Ofsted Inspections Begin

New Ofsted Inspections Begin

Ofsted inspectors have been busy inspecting settings under the requirements of the Revised EYFS 2012 framework, since it was introduced in Spetember.  Several settings in Bristol (both early years and out of school settings) have now been inspected, although at the time of writing, most of the reports hadn’t been published.  Feedback from these Bristol settings, about their experience of the inspection process, has been fairly positive and we look forward to reading the inspection reports. 

Although we haven’t seen many Bristol inspection reports, inspections took place throughout England within a few days of the new framework being introduced and we have been reading the published reports with interest to identify any key points that might be useful to share with Bristol settings.

These reports clearly state what the inspectors focussed on during the inspections, for example:
The inspector observed activities in each of the playrooms, including joint observations with the provider.

• The inspector spoke to the provider, deputy manager, childcare staff throughout the day and recorded observations of their interactions with children.
• The inspector held a meeting with the manager, which included carrying out a joint observation of a story session.
• The inspector looked at children's assessment records, planning documentation, evidence of the suitability of practitioners working within the setting, the provider's self-evaluation form and a range of other documentation.
• The inspector took account of the views of parents and carers spoken to on the day and in information in the self-evaluation form.

The inspection reports give information about why the setting has been awarded a particular judgement and why it hasn't been awarded a higher grade.

Detailed information about the findings of the inspection is given under the headings:

How well the early years’ provision meets the needs of the range of children who attend.

• The contribution of the early years’ provision to the well-being of children.
• The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years’ provision. This section particularly focuses on how well practitioners understand and implement the safeguarding procedures, risk assessments, supervision, team work, staff’s  understanding of their roles and responsibilities, monitoring and observation of staff practice, staff appraisals and self evaluation.  

It is very clear that out of school settings are being inspected on the learning and development requirements of the EYFS.

 To see the new style Ofsted inspection reports visit www.ofsted.gov.uk and click on “inspection reports/find an inspection report”.

This post is the lead article from the Winter 2012 edition of BAND News which is due to be mailed out week commencing 10th December 2012 - for more information about this blog or the BAND newsletter please contact the office on 01179542128 or admin@bandltd.org.uk.