Are your children’s vaccines up to date?

Set a reminder

Please or to access all these features

Paid childcare

Discuss everything related to paid childcare here, including childminders, nannies, nurseries and au pairs.

CM Ofsted inspection tomorrow or Thursday....

14 replies

Runoutofideas · 09/10/2012 16:33

Feel pretty on top of everything but what vital things could I have forgotten.......?

OP posts:
Are your children’s vaccines up to date?
moogstera1 · 09/10/2012 17:44

Bottle of wine for after?

HSMM · 09/10/2012 18:01

Somewhere for inspector to sit where they won't get in your way? (Wine suggestion is a good one)

Italiana · 09/10/2012 18:35

Good luck you sound confident....SEF done? inspectors will now have to follow and question on activities provided, why and outcome plus remeber your discussion with her...so no sitting down like before..not that mine ever did...thank God
Let us know how it goes!!!

Runoutofideas · 09/10/2012 20:06

I haven't done the Ofsted SEF as I haven't been able to get into it online. I have however done my own version, on advice from my network co-ordinator, so I'm hoping that'll be ok....?

Wine is definitely at the ready - am supposed to be going to the theatre tomorrow night, so hopefully she will have turned up and gone and i'll be able to enjoy myself. If not, then I'll have to come home early to get ready for her again on Thursday!

I'm planning bubbly water play for outside alongside slide, swings, football, playballs etc, playdoh for inside, animals and farm out as well as garage with cars and dolls buggies etc - plenty of other things are accessible to the children if they choose them. I have planned these because I know the children will enjoy them and it will enable me to stretch their vocabulary, their physical skills and their co-operation, while keeping them busy enough for me to deal with the inspector too... Does that sound ok? (Tomorrow I will have a 16 month old and a 24 month old - Thursday is the 24 month old plus a particularly able 28 month old.....)

OP posts:
Italiana · 09/10/2012 22:23

Good plan...make sure you also have your 'progress check at age 2' to show her so she knows how you would do the assessment when you decide to complete that...again good luck!

Runoutofideas · 10/10/2012 07:50

Yep - got that. Have done 2 already to show her.

Thanks everyone - hope she turns up today and doesn't make me hang on til tomorrow now!

OP posts:
Runoutofideas · 11/10/2012 13:24

.......and breathe! It is all over!

OP posts:
HSMM · 11/10/2012 13:25

You survived then :)

Runoutofideas · 11/10/2012 13:40

Yes - brain feels a bit frazzled, but all went well Grin

OP posts:
Italiana · 12/10/2012 12:19

Do give us some feedback..are you happy and was it as you expected it?

Runoutofideas · 12/10/2012 14:00

It was pretty much as I expected - the same inspector also did my pre-reg visit and she seemed very reasonable. My unofficial rating was, in her words, "top end of good with outstanding features" so I am very pleased. She was mainly interested in my learning diaries and finding out what I had been doing with the children, as well as observing my interaction with them.

She checked my policies had been amended to take into account the new requirements. She was very interested in my partnership with parents and she liked my parent satisfaction questionnaires and daily diaries. She liked the way I linked the appropriate "development matters" learning points to each child's planning and saw that I had noted any gaps. She would have liked me to have gained more information from parents initially about their child's starting point and development, rather than just their likes and dislikes. I think there is more emphasis on showing progression, which is hard at a first inspection if you have no identified starting point.

The only suggestions she made were that she wanted me to gain more feedback from parents in the learning diaries, even though I have a section for them to complete if they wish, no-one had.... She also suggested sending story sacks home with the children for them to use with the parents at home and ask for feedback on that. I was a bit uncomfortable with that idea as none of the children I look after come from homes lacking in books and resources, and I thought the parents may not appreciate me telling them what to do with their own children at home... I didn't say that to the inspector though - just said "ok!"

She watched me give them their lunch - and I was very careful re food hygiene, hand washing etc but she made no comment on that.

She was here until the children went for their naps, so about 2.5 hours in total. She said I'd receive the report in about 3 weeks.

OP posts:
GrimAndHumourless · 12/10/2012 14:08

well done you, and thank you for sharing

Italiana · 12/10/2012 18:33

Yes well done indeed...I have a friend who had the same recommendation...so remember when you do your learning journey feedback 'make' the parents do their own in writing and put it in the folder !!
thank you for your feedback

HSMM · 12/10/2012 18:52

Thanks for that ... you've given me an idea what to ask a new parent for, before her son starts next week. Thanks.

New posts on this thread. Refresh page