Ofsted Inspection Grades

[emma04]

Without disrespecting any childminder awarding oustanding at their inspection. I want to rant if i may!!

I was graded Good in 3 areas and Outstanding in the remaining 2 areas. When i asked my inspector how i could improve and get an overall outstanding i was told:

'Outstanding is a wow factor and Good is an excellent grade'
'To be honest there is nothing you can improve as you are already a high quality setting'

How flippin helpful is that!!:angry:

[Mouse]

I've heard this so many times, inspectors tell the childminder they are looking for that 'wow factor', but can't give any idea as to what it actually is!

I do wonder how much of this 'wow factor' comes from how confident the childminder is, their personality etc. It does seem unfair to be graded on something that can't be quantified or even explained.

[SmartKids]

Me too - I've heard that - what is a WOW factor for a childminder - we can all spot a WOW factor within our children we mind - so may be that goes for an inspector inspecting - but like she said a good is doing an excellent job.

[mama2three]

youre not disrespecting anyone. we all know that inspections depend on a whole range of factors , many outside our control , one persons opinion of a snapshot day.
mine did say she thought wow when she walked in - probably because im a new minder and she had lower expectations , who knows?
Whilst i am proud of my outstanding - Im not unaware that there are far better minders out there with goods and even satisfactories. I was lucky.

[doodles]

Without disrespecting any childminder awarding oustanding at their inspection. I want to rant if i may!!

I was graded Good in 3 areas and Outstanding in the remaining 2 areas. When i asked my inspector how i could improve and get an overall outstanding i was told:

'Outstanding is a wow factor and Good is an excellent grade'
'To be honest there is nothing you can improve as you are already a high quality setting'

How flippin helpful is that!!:angry:

Well if there is nothing you can improve on then surely you should be graded outstanding??!! Confusing :(

[sfox2003]

Although Ive not yet had my first grading inspection, I am very nervous about it. I strive to be as good as I possibly can. I think i invest a lot into trying to achieve this, however I believe due to a lack of consistancy, i believe my grade will be 'potluck' depending on the inspector.

I feel this is extremely unfair. I know plenty of people who have got outstanding at their first inspection. But then a freind of mine was told as soon as the inspector arrived as it was her first she would never be given outstanding. WHY NOT????

Makes me angry & a little nervous about my own inspection. If they give you grade, they should HAVE to tell you how to improve to achieve better next time. Otherwise if theres nothing to improve on then surely you should have been given the highest grade?

Sorry - rant over :)

[Blaze]

I too am aware that I was lucky & may not keep my outstanding (despite always striving to be the best that I can be & contantly looking at ways I can improve myself & my setting / service / what I offer the LO's in my care), as it seems to me that if the wind is blowing in the wrong direction you won't get it!:rolleyes:

[Winnie]

It’s a mystery, I can say that is has nothing to do with confidence as my inspector commented that I was a worrier :o
I think it can be like when you view a house, sometimes you have decided its not the one even before stepping in through the front door, with others sometimes you look around and it grows on you- but the previous one you saw gave you a warmer feeling or had the WOW factor (you might think the rooms were bigger in the last one even if they are not). It grabs you. Does that make sense?
I’ve always wondered if there was a quota of different grading to be achieved, but last year there was a higher proportion of OS so it can not be true. But I’m sure there are inspectors who give out more OS’s….:rolleyes:
We all can improve and that is what drives me, its not about being OS (but i had hoped to hold on to it) it about providing quality childcare :thumbsup:

[TheBTeam]

Well my inspector stood on my doorstep and said hello I dont give outstanding and i very rarely give goods and i have already given one this week!

Wonder what was not wow about my front garden!:laughing: :laughing: Due again this year and my front garden is the same!

[Ripeberry]

I've just had my inspection today and was graded outstanding, when the best I was thinking about was satisfactory. The paperwork definately helped a LOT as she kept going on about it, also showing that you have made contact with other settings and keep in touch with parents via diaries, questionaires, phone, e-mail and newsletters.
A lot also depends on their mood, but if you treat them as a person and ask about what it's like to be an inspector then they seem more human.
She ended up talking to me about how much training THEY have to do, have to make sure they safeguard themselves (had a security call ) and the fact that they must still nit-pick on something (I've got to show planning more clearly).
But in the end, I think it's the children in the setting and the way you keep their interest.
Sunshine might have had a part in it as well, but she mentioned that she liked the fact that if it was raining, I brought some sand into the sun room or got some of the small outdoor toys in.

It's still not sunk in yet and I can't wait to tell the parents.

[Ripeberry]

Although Ive not yet had my first grading inspection, I am very nervous about it. I strive to be as good as I possibly can. I think i invest a lot into trying to achieve this, however I believe due to a lack of consistancy, i believe my grade will be 'potluck' depending on the inspector.

I feel this is extremely unfair. I know plenty of people who have got outstanding at their first inspection. But then a freind of mine was told as soon as the inspector arrived as it was her first she would never be given outstanding. WHY NOT????

Makes me angry & a little nervous about my own inspection. If they give you grade, they should HAVE to tell you how to improve to achieve better next time. Otherwise if theres nothing to improve on then surely you should have been given the highest grade?

Sorry - rant over :)

Before she gave my feedback and grades, she mentioned that although I had contacted the local pre-school, I should make sure they fill in a form just like the parent questionaire and I would do likewise for them.
She also said, that I should not have too much information on my "I'm with my childminder" emergency cards, maybe just have a card for me, with my next of kin and emergency numbers then my husband could find the info for the children. (not sure about that one :rolleyes: )
It can be pot luck on the mood of the inspector, but in the end I knew that my paperwork was watertight and my learning journeys...I did not know how much more to cram into them.
Good luck to all of you who have an inspection looming. Smile and talk to them as if they were potential customers. :thumbsup:

[Winnie]

Well my inspector stood on my doorstep and said hello I dont give outstanding and i very rarely give goods and i have already given one this week!

Wonder what was not wow about my front garden!:laughing: :laughing: Due again this year and my front garden is the same!


:laughing: hope you get a different inspector this time round :thumbsup:

[The Juggler]

Without disrespecting any childminder awarding oustanding at their inspection. I want to rant if i may!!

I was graded Good in 3 areas and Outstanding in the remaining 2 areas. When i asked my inspector how i could improve and get an overall outstanding i was told:

'Outstanding is a wow factor and Good is an excellent grade'
'To be honest there is nothing you can improve as you are already a high quality setting'

How flippin helpful is that!!:angry:

that's exactly what I was told. Mine was pre the change of categories, I got 5 outstanding areas and 7 good. She told me just keep doing what you're doing...... then I know someone who doesn't actually do any of what she says she does and she did get outstanding:angry: