No more satisfactory label

[king]

It's on BBC news website today saying there making changes. Swapping satisfactory grading to requires improvement. What do you think?

[Natternic]

i dont like any of the grading titles, think theres a big gap of wording between good and outstanding. i do think they need to change them but cant think what to! not much help sorry!

[JCrakers]

Suppose it does sound better...There definitly needs to be something inbetween good and outstanding though.
3.5 yrs ago I recieved a good and had only just started minding. I know I have improved a lot but dont know if Im outstanding. A 'very good' would be a good idea

[Bananabrain]

Suppose it does sound better...There definitly needs to be something inbetween good and outstanding though.
3.5 yrs ago I recieved a good and had only just started minding. I know I have improved a lot but dont know if Im outstanding. A 'very good' would be a good idea

I agree, a 'very good' would be much better than things stand at the moment.
Not sure about 'requires improvement' though. Think it sounds worse than 'satisfactory'

[Tealady]

Hate it! This had better not be a sure thing

As a "Satisfactory" childminder myself I think my grade says that I am OK and that I meet all the requirements. Having a grade that says "Requires Improvement" almost sounds like "inadequate" to me and would suggest that there are things I'm not doing right even though my report states children are happy and well cared for.

Would you choose, to send your child to a Childminder that "Requires Improvement" or one that was "Satisfactory"?

[Penny1959]

There are 2 other threads on this already - but it is referring to schools at the moment.

Much discussion on other threads about the need to be standard across the board and the actual grades

Penny

[Chimps Childminding]

Hate it! This had better not be a sure thing

As a "Satisfactory" childminder myself I think my grade says that I am OK and that I meet all the requirements. Having a grade that says "Requires Improvement" almost sounds like "inadequate" to me and would suggest that there are things I'm not doing right even though my report states children are happy and well cared for.

Would you choose, to send your child to a Childminder that "Requires Improvement" or one that was "Satisfactory"?

I agree, I thinnk "requires improvement" sounds worse than Satisfactory!! I thik they would be better to leave it alone or come up with something better!!

[The Juggler]

Hate it! This had better not be a sure thing

As a "Satisfactory" childminder myself I think my grade says that I am OK and that I meet all the requirements. Having a grade that says "Requires Improvement" almost sounds like "inadequate" to me and would suggest that there are things I'm not doing right even though my report states children are happy and well cared for.

Would you choose, to send your child to a Childminder that "Requires Improvement" or one that was "Satisfactory"?

I agree. if satisfactory mean 'meets the standards' now changing it to mean requires improvement is totally different and very unfair for those currently graded satisfactory.

Inadequate is what requires improvement. If you meet standards you don't rqequire improvement - yes we should all strive to improve even outstanding minders but this indicates you require improvement to even meet standards.

Personally I think it should be inadequate/requires improvement, good, very good and outstanding

[HELEN10]

Hate it! This had better not be a sure thing

As a "Satisfactory" childminder myself I think my grade says that I am OK and that I meet all the requirements. Having a grade that says "Requires Improvement" almost sounds like "inadequate" to me and would suggest that there are things I'm not doing right even though my report states children are happy and well cared for.

Would you choose, to send your child to a Childminder that "Requires Improvement" or one that was "Satisfactory"?

I quite agree with you there is a big difference in the wording of the two! It is just schools at the moment though.

[MissTinkerbell]

Hate it! This had better not be a sure thing

As a "Satisfactory" childminder myself I think my grade says that I am OK and that I meet all the requirements. Having a grade that says "Requires Improvement" almost sounds like "inadequate" to me and would suggest that there are things I'm not doing right even though my report states children are happy and well cared for.

Would you choose, to send your child to a Childminder that "Requires Improvement" or one that was "Satisfactory"?

I agree with this too. I always thought that if a school/nursery/preschool or CM received a satisfactory (don't like that word either though) it meant that the provision was meeting all of the requirements set by Ofsted. Yes there would still be 'actions' so that a provision could improve but at the end of the day the provision was providing what it needed to provide. Children attending that setting were getting the required standard of care and learning.

To me 'requires improvement' suggests that all is not what it should be and not offering an adequate provision. I am all for raising standards and providing the best standard of care possible but is this the way to do it?

These 2 phrases mean entirely different things. Its moving the goal posts once again. Many settings have achieved a satisfactory grading and provide children with the required standard of care/learning - does this now mean that all these settings 'require improvement'? I mean at the end of the day EVERYONE can improve no matter how good they are but stating this on an inspection is going to cause an awful lot of confusion.

As parents we know the difference between 'satisfactory' and 'failing'. But what is the difference between 'requires improvement' and 'failing'. As you say what are parents going to choose - a CM with satisfactory or one with reuires improvement - they say 2 totally different things.

[merry]

I'm guessing teachers will be up in arms about this, including my daughter, who works in a 'satisfactory' school. It's satisfactory because attendance isn't great (parents with mental health issues, drug and alcohol problems and some plain too lazy to take their kids to school, Ofsted suggested solution, teachers to drive their own cars and collect children from home) Children under-perform and are below national standards (as they come into reception barely able to talk, not all are potty trained, most have never seen books, behaviour is at toddler level). School is underfunded, teachers pay for resources out of their own pockets and I have bought many books for my daughter's classroom. Ofsted solution to these problems, 'er, umm, just try harder' My daughter and her colleagues work their socks off for these children, and this will be very demoralising at a time when many of them are wondering if it wouldn't be worth considering another career anyway.
I would see 'requires improvement' as meaning 'not good enough'
Perhaps the schools will kick up such a fuss that it won't go ahead anyway, lets hope so!

[JCrakers]

Oops..read it wrong...getting mixed up with the gradings. Thought they were swapping the Inadequate for needs improvement.

No, it doesnt sound better...think it should be

needs improvement
good
very good or excellent
outstanding

And if its so bad and less than 'needs improvement' then should be closed like a health establishment should be until improvements have been made
Because it shouldnt be THAT bad.

[QualityCare]

I think they should do away with blunt one word statements for childminders and make them sound more personal ie, unsatisfactory, becomes a childminder who provides adequate care but would benefit from some areas of improvement, Satisfactory, a childminder providing a good standard of care but some areas could be better, Good becomes a childminder providing a high quality of care where minor improvements could be made, Outstanding, a childminder providing excellent care.

[stardust]

I think it should be
Needs improvement - people who are only meeting a few requirements.
Satisfactory- People meeting most but not all requirements
Good- Meeting all requirements
Excellent- Meeting all requirements and doing a bit more than required
Outstanding- Meets all requirements and goes above and beyond their job description.

Just out of interest if someone started a petition asking Ofsted to make all inspections fairer and All inspectors stick to the guild lines who would sign it??

[Chimps Childminding]

I think they should do away with blunt one word statements for childminders and make them sound more personal ie, unsatisfactory, becomes a childminder who provides adequate care but would benefit from some areas of improvement, Satisfactory, a childminder providing a good standard of care but some areas could be better, Good becomes a childminder providing a high quality of care where minor improvements could be made, Outstanding, a childminder providing excellent care.

Great ideas!!!

[mandy moo]

Hate it! This had better not be a sure thing

As a "Satisfactory" childminder myself I think my grade says that I am OK and that I meet all the requirements. Having a grade that says "Requires Improvement" almost sounds like "inadequate" to me and would suggest that there are things I'm not doing right even though my report states children are happy and well cared for.

Would you choose, to send your child to a Childminder that "Requires Improvement" or one that was "Satisfactory"?

Exactly!!!
I too am a 'Satisfactory' Childminder, what makes me a little cross, is that I worked so hard whilst becoming registered, to get things in place, talking to established childminders in the village, they helped me with policys and and loads of other stuff.
The day the inspector came to Grade me she was 10mins early, she told me 'I hope you dont mind but my manager is coming too and shes running a little late '
Well fine, but they were here just over 4 hours, they sat in my dining room and didnt move, I played with the 8mth old in there, fed him lunch in there, I brought my policies and profile folder etc in from the lounge, they never asked to look at them, and mainly spoke to each other, about the inspector who was supposed to be inspecting me, throwing me the odd question.


I didnt realise at the time but found out from the Forum a couple of years later that I could have challenged the outcome, but by then thought it was a bit late.

So I think, yes the outcomes need revising somehow, what Taralouise suggest is good. And yes I would sign a petition.

[zippy]

I think it should be
Needs improvement - people who are only meeting a few requirements.
Satisfactory- People meeting most but not all requirements
Good- Meeting all requirements
Excellent- Meeting all requirements and doing a bit more than required
Outstanding- Meets all requirements and goes above and beyond their job description.

Just out of interest if someone started a petition asking Ofsted to make all inspections fairer and All inspectors stick to the guild lines who would sign it??

I like your idea sounds good, and would def sign

[onceinabluemoon]

I think they should do away with blunt one word statements for childminders and make them sound more personal ie, unsatisfactory, becomes a childminder who provides adequate care but would benefit from some areas of improvement, Satisfactory, a childminder providing a good standard of care but some areas could be better, Good becomes a childminder providing a high quality of care where minor improvements could be made, Outstanding, a childminder providing excellent care.

But they already do this!! There is a grid on the report which says what all the grades mean:

grade 1 is outstanding: this aspect of the provision is exceptionally high quality
grade 2 is good: this aspect of the provision is strong
grade 3 is satisfactory: this aspect of the provision is sound
grade 4 is unsatisfactory: this aspect of the provision is not good enough

[rickysmiths]

I think it should be
Needs improvement - people who are only meeting a few requirements.
Satisfactory- People meeting most but not all requirements
Good- Meeting all requirements
Excellent- Meeting all requirements and doing a bit more than required
Outstanding- Meets all requirements and goes above and beyond their job description.

Just out of interest if someone started a petition asking Ofsted to make all inspections fairer and All inspectors stick to the guild lines who would sign it??

The trouble with this idea is that the meaning/definition of Satisfactory means that you have met all the requirements and how can you change the meaning of words in the English language. Satisfactory just does not mean what you are suggesting or what the powers that be are suggesting.

Fair enough add a grade that suggests you are not meeting all the requirements but isn't that what unsatisfactory means?

[LChurch]

TEaLady I am with you 100% I am actually quite happy with my satisfactory, in fact this is what I told my inspector as I want to be ahome from home atmosphere not a nursery atmosphere really!