Inspection questions

[helenlc]

Okay, so I have Ofsted coming this Friday for my Inpsection as i have now been registered for almost 7 months. I am sorting out my cupboards and paper work as we speak (well, i have now stopped for lunch!).

Some questions, answers gratefully received:

1. My folders ie portfolio, accident book, register etc are all in my cupboard under the stairs. To get them all out is going to take a few minutes, so should I just get them out before and put them on the dining table and say "I took the liberty of getting these out ready for you"? I am concerned about how much i wil be seen to not be supervising the 3 yr old i have if i am buried in my cupbard!!

2. The little girl i will be having on Friday during my inspection, loves Play Doh and nearly always asks for it out. So i was going to get that out and then have her help me wash up the cutters etc (in a washing up bowl on the kitchen floor) as a way of extending the activity. But should i plan something or let her choose what she wants to do (within reason obviously!). Also thinking if its this sunny on Friday, we could pehaps do this outside?

3. I have a little girl start today that only comes for an hour in the morning - i then drop her at nursery. When mum looke through my portfolio etc she seemed really impressed. Do I get her to do a parental survery or is it too early?

4. I have drawers in my front room that are full of rubbish ie the post that hasnt been sorted (!), ear phones for DSs etc. The children i have had so far havent taken any notice of the drawers and certainly havent gone in them. Should i put catches on just in case? I have the catches on the appropriate kitchen cupboards and drawers.

5. One last one, I have a gate at the bottom of the stairs which will be closed, obviously. I have another gate that i can place on the kitchen, shoudl i wish to do so. The little girl i will be having is 3 1/2 and doesnt wander in there by herself. I will not be cooking while she is here, so the oven will not be hot. Should i put it on to look good or just explain to the Inspector that i have it to put on when i am cooking and / or if i have a young child/baby that doesnt understand a given instruction not to go in the kitchen?

Oh God Help!!!! Lol

Thanks:o

[mrsb]

oohh good luck, my best advice is to stay calm, it;s not as bad as you think it's going to be lol.

Yes I would have all your paperwork available on the table, she may ask you where you keep it though for confidentiality etc but you can just tell her it;s normally in the cupboard :)

Play doh is definately a good one to do, I did it on my inspection to, you can talk about the shapes, colour, how it feels etc. Definately make use of the outside space if it is dry, if you have a water table you could put the cutters in there

I'd wait until the end of this week then ask the mum to do the survey thing, just explain to her that you have your inspection next week and it would be good to show all the parents opinions :)

Is there anything in the drawers that could harm the children? if there isn't then I wouldn't worry about catches, they do after all need to learn that they aren't allowed to go in some drawers, if she asks you could say to the inspector that there is nothing in there that causes harm and you've deliberatley not put catches on to teach them what to do when you say no lol

leave the gate off, you need to have an answer if she asks what you do when you are cooking though, she'll say can you keep an eye on the child if you are cooking and have the gate shut though :)

Goooood luck!!!!:)

[Jinx]

I think Mrsb has answered everything :) ....totally agree, have your paperwork out ready etc.

Good luck on friday.

It's not that bad....really.:thumbsup:

Jinx x

[katickles]

For all your panicing - you do sound very aware/organised. Mrsb has answerd all your q's so nothing to add other than just wanting to say good luck!

I had my first graded inspection last week & it went so well. I'm sure you'll be fine :)

[mum2three]

Yes I agree, I had my first inspection last week too.. keep calm and do what you normally do. Lots of luck :)

[angeldelight]

Good luck for Friday

Angel xx

[helenlc]

Thank you for the encouraging words!!!

One more question - how much do i need to know about Birth to Three?

I am a qualified nursery nurse and have 12 yrs experience working with young children, so i am not ignorant. I am familiar with Foundation Stage as used it when i worked in pre-school.

However, i am not too clued up on the BT3 ins and outs. I also figured, with EYFS coming in in Sept that it wasnt worth me going to town on knowledge of BT3 but now i am panicking that i may be marked down on my lack of knowledge.

I have some print outs with the categories etc and activities to do within some of them, but thats about it.

Have one day to cram it in if i need to !!! Lol

[Spangles]

I think that your questions have been answered but just thought that you could always write up a 'first impressions' questionnaire for the new mum to answer?

You could ask things like

What was your first impression of my home? Did you think it was welcoming to children?

Were you aware of my certificates on the wall?

How did you find information I provided for you on your first few visits?

Were you happy with the way I gathered information about your child?

Did you find my forms easy to complete and self-explanatory?

Are you happy with the precautions I have in place to keep your child safe?

Are you happy with the way I plan to keep your child healthy?

Were the settling in periods helpful for you?

Have you any suggestions to improving first impressions?

Bla, bla, bla?

Just an idea.

[sarah707]

So long as you have an awareness of birth to 3 and a working knowledge of children's activities I wouldn't say you'd have a problem :D

[helenlc]

So I had my inspection and i came out Good!!

I got Outstanding in 2 areas and good in the other 3.

She was only here about hour and a half and none of the questions were too taxing!!

But she annoyed me in that she didnt move from her chair at all. I had put up posters around my trampoline for rules, moved things around so it was extra safe (my hubby also worked hard getting the garden ready too!), i put up hand washing posters and songs in the down stairs loo, a reminder to wash hands in the upstairs bathroom, multicultural diet thing in kitchen and hot drink sonly to be drunk in kitchen etc. And she didnt see any of it as she didnt get off her a**e.

But hey ho. She did say some very good things though so i cant complain really!!

Thanks for your advice and help!

[son77]

Well done, thats an excellent grade. :clapping: :clapping:

[crazybones]

Congratulations. Well done. :clapping:

[jmoff]

excellent well done you!

Jx

[Spangles]

Well done, that's brilliant AND you've got three years before you have to go through it again!

I understand what you mean about being annoyed because she didn't move when she got there! I'd be peeved too if I'd put all that effort in!

Oh well, excellent grade all the same!

[mrsb]

Yay well done you:clapping:

I know what you mean about annoying as well though. When I had my inspection, I spent the month before tarting up the kids shed - not really a shed more like a garage in the garden lol, but anyway we painted the floor with non slip paint, made the walls look like hills and sky and painted fairies, trains etc on, I even made signs and lamiated them to put on the boxes of bubbles, water play etc. She never even went in there:angry: oh well I know it looks lovely lol

[Mollymop]

Congratulations!!!! Yippeeee

[kerry]

well done :clapping:

[emler]

:clapping: congratulations :clapping:

Emler x

[Splish Splosh]

well done congratulations:thumbsup:

[mumtodaniel]

well done, I had my inpsection recenlty and she sat on the sofa practically all the time in my play room. I had most things on the wall there so she could see them. She did go in the garden though to check it out.

Now you can relax and enjoy your weekend.

maureen

[Pudding Girl]

Well done Helen! you worked really hard for it, and I knew you'd be fine :)

[miffy]

Congratulations Helen - hope you're enjoying your weekend

miffy xx

[helenlc]

Thanks fro your congratulations!

Yes, I am enjoying my weekend. I got out of bed about 9 o'clock this morning!! Lazed in the garden yesterday and intend to do the same today (apart from coming indoors to watch the Grand Prix).

X

[helenlc]

Another question. I am more than a little hacked off that she didnt move around my house and take notice of things I had put an effort into ie:
-the hand washing songs and signs in downstairs toilet
-the individual towels and flannels in downstairs toilet
-the gloves for nappy changing or other hygiene reasons ie clearing up sick
-the Keep hot drinks in kitchen sign and multicultural diet sheet on dislay in kitchen (and our fledgling plants!!)
-the trampoline safety posters around the trampoline
-the inside of my playhouse which could have been a torture dungeon but was actually lovely inside with Little Tikes kitchen and food items
-my resources ie disability and multicultural books, my Little People with the wheel chair in the bus and woman dressed as mechanic
-the hooks i put on my cupboard under the stairs that i keep my files in and a hook on my master bedroom so they cant get in - i now have little hole sin my doors for no reason!!
These are some things that I have put in place to make my home safe and look extra child friendly and yet none of it was taken notice of. She asked me about my diversity etc resources so i told her about the little people and books etc but she didnt bother to look herself.
I dont necessarily want my result changed but i am going to be a tad miffed if nothing of the above is mentioned as i worked damned hard to get it into place.
Having said that, i am happy with my overall grade and dont want to have to go through another inspection just yet!! But my report isnt yet online and i dont want to sound like sour grapes if i complain once it has been issued.
Should i just let it go? Do i sound really petty? Please be honest as i dont want to ring Ofsted and sound like a twit!! Lol

[sarah707]

You don't sound petty and the things you are talking about are important... I just think inspectors get sidetracked sometimes...

For mine, I wrote it all down for her to take away, so she could refer to things if she didn't pick up on different things I do during the inspection. even then when she'd gone I remembered things I'd forgotten to show her.

At least you know you exceed the standards in every way and when you come to doing your SEF (Self Evaluation Form) in September, you will be able to include all those things on it and make sure you shine! :D

[angeldelight]

I dont think you sound a twit at all and you sound like you have heaps of good things in place in your setting

Its not acceptable either is it for your inspector to get sidetracked if that was the reason she did not notice all these things

If you feel you should call them then do it - you have nothing to lose after all

Keep us posted

Angel xx

[helenlc]

I am not sure whether she did notice these things, some she could not have done as she didnt go near them. But do i wait for the inspection report to see if she mentions some of my efforts and if she doesnt, and i ring up afterwards, are they just thinking i am grabbing at straws to make my report sound better?

Like i said before, i dont necesaarily want my grading changed, but having read some other reports, i would liek my efforts to have been recorded.

[helenlc]

I just phoned Ofsted. The advisor i spoke to said that i could either wait for my report to be published then write in with any concerns if i feel i have been misrepresented. Or I could write in now before its even published.

She said they have up to 15 days to publish their report - I thought it went online within a few days?

I said that they were not major gripes but i had made big efforts to put things in place that i didnt think she was able to see as she didnt move from her chair. I sai d that some of them were things that had been mentioned in other reports that I had looked at online.

I said that if I am to show my inpsection to prospective parents, or even current parents, I want it to be a true reflection of everything I offer.

I said that i was happy with the grading I got, and that i wasnt seeking to have that changed.

Anyway, I am now going to think a little more to decide what to do next.

Sorry to keep on and sorry if anyone feels I am not happy with or grateful for my Good grading, I am over the monn. Just peeved that all my efforts went un-noticed by someone who couldnt be bothered to get off her chair. She was only here an hour and a half also, so she obviously had somewhere better to be!! Lol