Is it normal for private pre-school to choose not be OFSTED registered so we can't get any nursery funding

[Tapster]

Looked at pre-school today which has a pre-prep for girls up to age 7. I was really impressed by the pre-prep/reception classes but less impressed by the pre-school.

Is it odd that I can't receive any funding for the pre-school/nursery from age 3. They said that they didn't want to comply with OFSTED, but we are looking also at a Montessori school that also says that but go along with OFSTED to an extent so that the parents can get some funding. It is £300 less a term which is quite a lot off the fees.

May send DH off to see the school to ask more detailed questions as I was running around trying to make sure DD didn't get cause havoc.

Should I be wary or is this normal for private schools with a pre-school?

oh so somewhere only open 4 days a week wouldn't get funding?

Well, theoretically they still could.

They could offer more than one session in a day as long as there is at least an hours gap between the sessions. eg, monday morning and monday afternoon are two seperate sessions.

But yes, if they operated 4 mornings a week only then they wouldn't be fulfilling the criteria ...

All Early Years settings, whether attached to schools or not, are registered with and inspected by Ofsted. There are two types of Ofsted inspections - one to determine that the setting meets the 14 National Standards, and one to determine that it delivers the National (Foundation Stage) Curriculum in a way that is acceptable to the government. All settings have to meet the National Standards; however only those who offer the Early Years Grant have to follow the Founation Stage Curriculum.

It's quite hard for a pre-prep to deliver the Foundation Stage in a way that would be deemed acceptable by an Ofsted inspector. The majority of pre-preps are hothouses - they exist to get kids through prep school entry exams at age 7. To do this successfully, the environment has to be pushy from the start. The kids might play a bit in the nursery classes, but in ain't play like what Ofsted inspectors want to see.

Then there's the all-important issue of top-up fees. No setting offering the funding is supposed to charge them anymore, thus enabling parents to get three hours of free education for their kids. Great in theory, but what school can afford to employ qualified teachers, pay rent and business rates and buy equipment for 3 quid per kid per hour? Certaintly no school in the state sector where it costs something like 6 grand per year to educate each child.

Most local authorities don't enforce this 'no top-up fee' rule, but apparently they are all going to be forced to do so. When that happens, no Early Years setting will be inspectd by the Ofsted curriculum team because no Early Years setting will offer the funding. Why should they? Free education for 3 and 4 year olds already exists in the form of state nursery provision.

My ds is starting pre school next week at the school my dd goes too, she went to a differant pre school. They are not offering the funding for 3/4 year olds and it is a state school, it's £7 a session but due to not being able to be in 2 places at once it is the only nursery he can go to.

If your school is set up to provide pre-school funding, it is immenseley onerous for them, not only to administer, but financially it can be burdensome due to the top-up situation raised by bobby's mum above.

In addition to this, it is extremely difficult to properly manage a class if you allow parents to breeze in when they wish, as is the requirement for funded places...think about maintaining ratios, organising outings etc.

It is a nightmare that the government is going to have to rethink!

My ds is in reception at private school. We get LEA funding up and including the term in which he is 5 and I can also use childcare vouchers towards fees, again up until he is 5 and then for wraparound care after that. It is Ofsted registered for holiday club but the school itself isn't.