Getting Outstanding

[icklehels]

I know Im always asking for help, but you guys are so great at giving me ideas.

 

We are due an inspection and really want to at least improve on our satisfactory grade.

 

Does anyone want to share any ideas!?

[jennac]

Do you have help from your Early Years Advisor? It can take years to achieve outstanding most settings make in about 10 years I have been told... Our inspection was carried out in 2008, so we should be due quite soon, with the previous manager and inspection were were given 6 satisfactorys and 7 goods. All I can say is most inspectors look at how happy the children are, thier behaviour, how settled they are, independence as well as your planning, learning journals, environment, parent partnerships and all the rest. Look at your last inspection report and make sure you have completed thier recommendations and shown evidence of this somewhere in a file. I have a quality improvement folder which I put everything in.

[Guest]

We were graded outstanding last year - but it didn't come easily!!

 

There were a couple of outstanding settings locally, and we knew we were at least as good as them (and did feel we were better than one!). The best advice I can give is if you think you are good/outstanding then don't be afraid to tell the inspector why. At feedback were given good overall with some outstanding aspects and when the inspector turned her laptop round thinking we would be over the moon she saw our faces drop! She asked why we thought we deserved outstanding so we told her - in no uncertin terms!!

 

It is so hard when they say "Is there anything else you want to show me" because you don't know what they have seen, or not seen.

 

I spent time going through the inspection guidance and could confidently say we did all the outstanding things. That might be a good place to start.

 

Sorry - on reflection that doesn't seem very helpful!! I'll try and think of somethings more specific!

[eyfs1966]

Best advice for Ofsted I was ever given was to go through the EYFS statutory framework and look at every statement. For those that said MUST I made sure that I could prove we did, and for those that said SHOULD I also ensured that we did....hope that makes sense!!! A tedious job, but well worth it!

[Guest]

i agree with eyfs1966. i got outstanding in 2006 and again in 2009 and it is far from easy. i hope to get outstanding again in 2012 but i have taken my eye off the ball in recent years with doing the early years foundation degree, PGCE and now the BA Hons in Education. I'm using the school summer hols this year to do exactly what eyfs1966 has suggested and i will review this at least twice before my inspection. for me, it really is the only way because it makes me focus my attention. it's the best way to be sure you haven't missed out anything important. THEN, i research recent innovations in childcare and education, share the ideas with parents, try them out and, if they work for my setting, they are good evidence for my continuing personal and professional development and working in partnership with parents. works for me.

[Guest]

Have a look at the Ofsted site, too .... they have a "what the inspectors look for?" guide, comments from Outstanding providers and a section on how to meet the standards

 

http://www.ofsted.gov.uk/Ofsted-home/Leadi...and-regulations

 

this shows what inadequate settings failed on and how to improve.

 

I also read recent Inspection reports for other settings locally to get a feel for what the inspector is looking for, they all seem to have a particular favourite area, i.e. safeguarding, inclusion.

 

Good Luck!

 

Nona

[Guest]

I developed a SEF file. It was basically split into the OFSTED SEF sections with an action plan for each section and evidence for how we met each section. It also gave me somewhere to put all those letters we send to parents, swine flu info etc, that you always forget about when the inspector says "so what do you do about...."!!