Are you a Ofsted nanny?

[Shoshe]

May I ask what you were asked for at your inspection please

Been registered on the various schemes now for 8 years. Never had an inspection.

Have you been told that you are being visited?

Hi Nick, I was inspected today, on the Voluntary Reg (used to be on full with full inspection)

The inspector insisted that I should have a complete written policy document (H&s, safeguarding, permissions, medical etc.)

I should have a register, and a child profile for each child.

She was adamant I should have prior written permission for medicines (and was aghast at taking them to the Dr) surely this is part of a nannys' duties, everything is written down in a diary.

Biggest ting was tho the Family dont like the front door locked. (yes child can get out, onto a communal green, no road,) she did for the first the this week

I have spoken to BM about it, but BD is not happy because of the fire risk, anyway apparently I HAVE to tell them to comply with locking it as a Ofsted Reg.

I dont feel I can tell somebody who employs me what they HAVE to do in there own house.

Anyway I got three actions.

1 for the child getting out
2 for somebody getting in (this is on a secure Army Base)
3 for the Register.

How she is going topolice the action I have no idea as I finish this job next friday!

As I understand it, it is your job as a nanny to 'advise' the family about any health and safety problems, but it's not up to you to make any changes as it's not your house obviously! So as long as you can show that you told them that keeping the door unlocked was unsafe then you've done your job. Whether they act on what you told them or not is up to them and nothing to do with Ofsted. Do you communicate with the family via email? I find that the best way, as it's very easy to record what you've said and what their response was.

We only had the conversation this morning as it was the first time the child had done it. I have put it in the diary tho

Do you know, when I posted on your other thread the other day I nearly posted about the fact that some Ofsted inspectors do not know the difference between a CM and a nanny. I have no experience of this myself - just what I have read on the nannyjob chat boards.

If you read through all the stuff to do with the voluntary register you will see that you actually don't need to do any of the paperwork that she has asked of you and that you can only advise the parents of safety issues within their home. How you get this across to Ofsted and individual inspectors I don't know

She kept insisting that it was on the standards. I read them four times tonight and I cant see where.

I start a new job in september, where the new Mum wasnt bothered if I was Registered or not (she is a teacher and is used to Ofsted), so I may well not renew next year.

Requirements for Childcare Register - Home Childcarers

CR1.1 Childminders and home childcarers must ensure that children receiving childcare are kept safe from harm.

It does not state that the doors must be locked. The doors at my work are certainly not locked as we are often in and out of the garden.

CR5.2 Childminders must ensure that a child is unable to leave the premises unsupervised.
This DOES NOT apply to Home Childcarers

CR5.6 Home childcarers must advise parents/guardians/carers of any health and safety risks.

Does not say how parents are to be advised, or what is and is not a health and safety risk. It would be up to individuals concerned as to what poses a risk - the ability to open a door is potentially a risk if a child has not been brought up with that situation - but in this case, the children are used to it, so it's not a risk... is it? I'd better advise my boss that leaving the doors unlocked is a ricks

Thank You Nick, I argued the point but she was not having it.

What about the Register bit Nick, I cant find anything that says I should have one.

Did she show you where it says it on the 'standards'?

Complaints about Ofsted
Raise a complaint about the things you are unhappy about, so that Ofsted can investigate the inspectors report. Doubt it will make much difference but you never know.

The inspector insisted that I should have a complete written policy document (H&s, safeguarding, permissions, medical etc.)
I should have a register, and a child profile for each child.

I wonder where the inspector is referring to when they say you have to have that. A register of the children you nanny, seems rather odd. A list of the children's names and their dob sounds more reasonable - that may well be on the employment contract, or other correspondence (including e-mail) between the parents and nanny.

Conducting Childcare Register Inspections does mention some of these things but as far as I can see, it excludes Home Childcarers.

Shoshe - I wonder if your having been a childminder has confused the inspector.
You are just a nanny now aren't you... just caring for the children from one family, at the home of those children?

She had a list (which she said I could download but for the life of me cant find it on the Ofsted site) which she said I should have.

She kept referring to it as law.

Have asked my Home Based Childminding Advisor and she is not aware of any changes to the requirements.

Are you able to contact the inspector to obtain evidence that it is really in the requirements?

Just a thought, the children you carr for are not all aged 8+ are they?

No there mostly under 5 Nick.

I did say to her that, but she said it made no difference, it was her insistence that I had to tell the parents that they comply to the locked door.

To make it worse I lived in the same style of house as a CM, the door was never locked and was passed by Ofsted everytime.

This is what she used am I reading it wrong.

Does it mean where it says BOTH PARTS, but calls the carer CHILDMINDER, that a homecarer should adhere to it as well.

I read it as a Childminder on both registers needs to adhere to it.

I was complying with the parts that said homecarers or stating VR.

That's why I asked about the age of the children - some childminders are only on the voluntary part of the register due to caring for children aged 8+.

As I read that document, it's only the parts that specifically say Home Childcarer that applies to nannies.

Where something applies to both, the wording is like this:
CR1.10 Childminders and home childcarers must be aged 18 or
over and childminders must ensure that any person aged
under 18 caring for children is supervised at all times by a
person who has attained the age of 18.

It also has things that only apply to home childcarers, which are worded like:
CR5.6 Home childcarers must advise parents/guardians/carers of
any health and safety risks.

Thats how I read it, she was reading it that all parts that say both Nannies must adhere to.

As a Home Childcarer, you only have to comply with items where it says Home Childcarer in the "Requirement" column. The "On which part of the childcare register" column only applies to Childminders: Home Childcarers can only be registered in the Voluntary Part of the register.

The person that inspected you is clearly incompetant - you must complain to Ofsted to help both yourself and others.

It seems that it would be a good idea for any nanny to have a copy of the factsheet with the relevant parts highlighted to hand when being inspected.

It seems that it would be a good idea for any nanny to have a copy of the factsheet with the relevant parts highlighted to hand when being inspected.

Yes, I agree if I am ever inspected I intend to have that and make it very clear to the inspector that they can not ask about anything that is not on that list.

Here is one I made earlier .

Thank you Mr A, I am going to contact Ofsted this morning.

I have never had an action, in fact my last CM report was an OS.

I am furious.

Can I just ask, Iv heard you can just say that your family don't authorise an inspection as in their home, and there are no implications? Is this correct? Current family wouldn't mind but just wondered

I have also never been inspected in 5 years I have been registered, however I am often travelling with work etc, would I just say I'm not availiable and they would rebook for a later date? ( where potentially could need to travel abroad last min)