Official Response to OpenEYE petition against EYFS

[Arfa]

The official response was issued today, more than 2 months since the petition was closed. Why did it take so long when other petitions get their response within days?

Anyway, for those who can't be bothered reading the full text, everything is great and everybody loves the EYFS (except that, of course, they don't). Also, there is no mention in the response of a review or downgrading the EYFS to professional guidelines, which was what the petition was actually asking for. When I was doing exams at school we would lose marks for not answering the question, but that probably doesn't apply to civil servants.

The best bit, though, is this: "The only statutory requirement to write anything down is that practitioners must complete an EYFS Profile for each child in the year in which they turn five ? reception class at primary school for most children. This is intended to help inform future policy, and to support teachers in understanding children?s needs when they enter Key Stage 1 of primary school". So why are Ofsted insisting on reams of observations and plans etc and all of the training courses telling you that that is the way it should be done?

Arfa - have a look

Katy, why are you sending me round and round in circles. Is it to simulate what Ofsted do?

I just thought you might like to talk to each other....you are certainly on the same track

Arfa - I got the email today as well and was also confused about the profile statement. If that's true it would certainly take some pressure off childminders.

If anyone, and especially those who have an impending Ofsted inspection, would like a copy of the response to the petition as a PDF document, please email me at arthur dot adams53 at tiscali dot co dot uk and I will email it back to you ASAP. I have highlighted the paragraph about not having to write anything down so that you can easily point it out to the inspector.

Ofsted want Evidence that providers know, understand and are delivering on the Requirements of EYFS. The Learning and Development Requirements ask for evidence that The Early Learning Goals are being worked towards; that there is a range of provision that will cover all the skills and knowledge in the six areas of Learning and Development; and that the provider knows each individual child well and can provide evidence (outcomes that show) that each child is progressing towards the ELGs. Ofsted are also asking for evidence that parents and other settings each child may attend are involved in the assessment and planning for each child.
The model used in the EYFS in Practice Evidence File (www.eyfs-in-practice.com) does provide all of this evidence and only takes minutes each week to complete. Childminders who have used this method report that it has made their recording simpler and more effective. Ofsted inspectors, where this method has been used, have been delighted with the system and the inspection reports reflect this.
I and a fellow childminder use this method and we both achieved outstanding overall. The recording does only take minutes to complete each week ? not reams of paperwork
Only trouble is you do have to buy the file, however, it does contain valuable info and a really comprehensive set of policies and procedures, risk assessments and parent permission slips which you can adapt to your own setting.

They say "The only statutory requirement to write anything down is that practitioners must complete an EYFS Profile for each child ..."

They mean "You have the legal right to refrain from putting pen to paper however you may jeopardise your ability to attain an inspection grade of higher than satisfactory if you are unable to provide the Ofsted Inspector with appropriate evidence that you comply with the requirements of EYFS at the time of the inspection "

In my experience parents want their children to be happy in the childminders home and to want to go back there often!! It just cant be that simple anymore can it.I also find claims such as everyone is happy with eyfs are rubbish on the whole.
How many schools branded failing by ofsted have had any parents celebrating.It is such a load of manipulation a local school soon to have ofsted have told year 11s they must go to extra classes suddenly provided after school or they will face detentions oh and the lessons where the teacher was hardly ever there dont worry an extra teacher has appeared .But not to worry the school is one expected to double in size soon do the of
sted reports fit the school not usually!!!

paperfreek, what file??

oh that!

A CM who posts on the Surestart forum was so annoyed by the petition response that she emailed Ofsted to ask for their comments. Within a day she had received this reply:

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I am sorry that you are concerned about the amount of paperwork childminders are expected to complete to deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS). The EYFS in general does not expect childminders to have written policies and procedures except where the specific legal requirements does not exclude them The EYFS profile is one such case, and there are a few others such as the need to keep a written record of medication administered; and a record of accidents and first aid treatment. This is no different to the previous National Standards.

It may be helpful if I set out that the EYFS is not Ofsted?s document but that of the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF). Our role is to register and inspect childminders and make sure they meet the requirements of the EYFS.

When we inspect childminders we do not expect them to have extensive written documents and records. We believe that the EYFS is flexible enough for childminders to deliver through a home-based play environment. Childminders do not have to provide additional documents to deliver the EYFS; indeed the requirement to have written policies and procedures does not apply to childminders other than some written records such as accidents records.

We have asked that childminders consider completing a self-evaluation form. This is not mandatory but we believe it is an important tool in helping childminders reflect on what they do and make improvements where necessary. We do not require childminders to have written plans or to make extensive written assessments about children. We do expect childminders to give parents some feedback in relation to their children?s learning and development, using the sort of methods many childminders have used for some time ? shared diaries, discussion and so on. We do not expect to see formalised structured learning but children learning through their play.

You may wish to forward your feedback to the DCSF as they are responsible for the EYFS and legislation. You can contact them via email on [email protected]

I hope this reply helps to reassure you about our role in relation to inspecting your childminder.

Regards

Ofsted
Children's Directorate Enquiries
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So, if that is what they are expecting it might be a good idea to tell their inspectors, don't you think? Also, notice how they try to shift the blame onto the DCSF. What's worse, though, is that many CMs have decided to give up after attending EYFS courses given by the NCMA. So, an organisation that is supposed to promote childminding has succeeded in causing a number of CMs to leave the job and all because the NCMA have misinterpreted what the EYFS expects of CMs.

would be interesting to see waht ncma have to say.

So what are we supposed to keep a reord of??? I got marked down in my inspection for not recording next steps, even though inspector could see I do this, she insisted I should have a written record of it.

Is that not formalised??

I think they make it up as they go along.....................

EYFS in Practice Evidence File
If a childminder wants an Ofsted grade that truly reflects the quality of their provision, they will need to show how they deliver all aspects of EYFS including the 6 areas of Learning and Development, observation, assessment and planning. They will also need to fill in a Self Evaluation Form and produce some evidence of meeting the Welfare Requirements and record keeping.

Childminders often report that while they have an understanding of the 'what', 'how' and 'why' of good practice, they sometimes struggle to put this into words and they have asked for examples of 'what it looks like'. Once seen, they readily set about writing their own evidence.

So....
EYFS in Practice Ltd has produced an Evidence File that explains what evidence a childminder will need to prepare, with a set of example Policies and Procedures that are mapped against the EYFS Welfare Requirements, written by an 'Outstanding' registered childminder, and already used in an Ofsted EYFS pilot inspection, where the provision was graded 'Outstanding'.
We have also provided example formats for risk assessments and a parent questionnaire together with very practical and sustainable examples of observation, assessment and planning.

Extract from the eyfs-in-practice.com site