Hope you can help.

I am just into my first three weeks on childminding and I know my first graded inspection will be due around Sept but I am a worrier and I am wanting to be prepared as much as possible.

Can you tell me about the inspections, what happens?

Paperwork what do i need to make sure I have?

Also I have read on here that you are graded against 17 areas, what are these?

I need to get on and look at my SEF too.

Thanks c x

just a quick reply as i am on here while mindee is asleep.

my first inspection was 8 weeks after i started so be careful as they may come earlier than you expect hun.

sorry i cant help you further but once iv fininshed working ill log back on and give you some advise etc xxx

Oh my goodness, I best be prepared. I have a couple of days spare this week as my mindee is poorly so I will try and make sure everything is sorted !!

Did they give you much notice?

c x

I thought your first graded inspection is within 6 months of registration (not within 6 months of when you start minding) so Ofsted may be around sooner than you think.

Miffy xx

arrrggghh i am such a worrier !!

You will be fine. Just have everything listed down and work through your list ticking things off as you go. If your inspection is then earlier rather than later you can show the inspector your list and she will be able to see that you are 'work in progress' and that you have a plan in place.

I got about 2-3 days notice for mine, so you will still have a little breathing space before she lands, unlike when i managed nurseries and she would just arrive on the doorstep at 7.30am and want to see everything!!!

If i can help, i will!! feel free to pm me hunny xxxx

I have just had mine at about 5 months and I was lucky to get 3 weeks notice (Mrs Ofsted kept cancelling and postponing!).

She did spend a long time going through my paperwork so just make sure you have it all in place from the beginning and you will be fine. Things she really looked at were my policies, accident forms, risk assessments, information from parents and the learning journey. She also asked me in detail about safeguarding so good to keep up to date on that too. She was pleased I had done my SEF so prob best to atleast start that sooner rather than later.

The main thing they are looking for is how you interact with the children so just develop a good bond with the kids and have confidence in your activities and routines - I think as long as you can justify everything you do they are fine.

At the end of the day just be yourself - I got so stressed about it and it turned out she was lovely!

Thanks, I am going to make use of the long weekends we have coming up.

I am sure I will have lots of questions. I tend to over worry, i was like a headless chicken at my pre-inspection and the inspector was lovley. She said she wanted to be the insepctor to come back to do my graded inspection becuase she was impressed (please let it be her that comes back !!)

c x

When people say 'doing my SEF - what do you mean?!!? Do you mean writing a policy about special educational needs and inclusion or are you talking about going through some kind of process or something purely related to SEF????? sorry, just didn't want to think that there's something I should be doing that i haven't!!

SEF is your self evaluation form - Ofsted send you all the passwords for the online one soon after you are registered. It is just one way in which you can constantly evaluate and improve on what you do within you setting (but is very time consuming!)