Day Nursery Availability & Website to Check Ofsted Ratings – heads up to UK ladies!!

[Tracyface]

Hi all

Just a quick heads up for those of you who are thinking of sending your little one(s) to day nursery.

I am looking to put bubba into nursery (he will be 5 months old) in October this year when I return to work part time and have called three nurseries so far in my local area – all which have ‘Excellent’ Ofsted ratings, to enquire about placement availability.

I have been told by all three that there is a waiting list as long as 2013 - and here was me thinking I was being too premature looking now!!

Having said that, people are putting names down over 12 months in advance, so it may be that they are not even pregnant yet and a place may be available for bubba in October, but I will not know until May/June this year!

So, I suggest you lovely ladies need to start thinking about this ASAP if you haven’t already! Especially if you want to get into an Excellent/Good graded Ofsted one!

The Ofsted inspection reports are available for public viewing and I have included the link below - It states the inspection and what was found, including any complaints they have may have received - quite good really (and I have read some shocking ones too!!).

https://www.ofsted.gov.uk/inspection-reports/find-inspection-report

Good luck!!

 

[beth_terri]

Wow. I went to visit a day nursery last christmas. 2 weeks later he started. (changed from childminder) There were no issues with booking places. And its the best nursery in the area.
As for school nursery, I got his name down for that last september and he will be starting this september.
xx

 

[baby_mama87]

Thanks for posting this hun! was actually going to ask when I should start looking, Im same as you will be going to nursery in Oct so best get looking now!

xxx

 

[Tracyface]

I'm based in Solihull in the West Midlands and there are only a handful of nurseries with the 'Excellent'/'Good' grade, the rest have 'Satisfactory' or 'Poor'. I called one with a 'Poor' rating out of interest and they do have places, which is not surprising...

Someone at work gave me the heads up and I thought they were joking... turns out they're not!!

I didn't know about the grading and would have looked at some of the ones classed as 'Poor' without realising, so the website above is a godsend!! Especially when I read that some of them had complaints against them about health and safety issues!

 

[NuKe]

i think that's really unfair that people who aren't even pregnant yet are allowed to hold a place!!

 

[lozza1uk]

Popping in from 3rd Tri as the heading caught my eye - i've just been on the phone booking appointments to view!
It's the same in my area, earliest availability at the better nurseries can be January 2013 so hoping i've not already left it too late - people apparently get their names down from 12 weeks! I didn't believe it when the first person told me, but i've just started antenatal classes and everyone was telling me.

 

[beth_terri]

I'm based in Solihull in the West Midlands and there are only a handful of nurseries with the 'Excellent'/'Good' grade, the rest have 'Satisfactory' or 'Poor'. I called one with a 'Poor' rating out of interest and they do have places, which is not surprising...

Someone at work gave me the heads up and I thought they were joking... turns out they're not!!

I didn't know about the grading and would have looked at some of the ones classed as 'Poor' without realising, so the website above is a godsend!! Especially when I read that some of them had complaints against them about health and safety issues!

It must totally depend on the area then. I only put my son in his because a friends son went there, didnt check offsted first. There were places available immediately so he started 2 weeks later. Ive just checked offsted nosw and it got outstanding on every part! Guess I was just lucky! Ill be putting this baby in too

 

[beccad]

That's bonkers! You might find that people have put their names on waiting lists at several different places, so the waiting list might not be as bad as it first seems.

Otherwise if there's such a shortage of good places, surely there's a business opportunity calling for someone! (Setting up their own nursery, I mean!)

 

[Tracyface]

That's bonkers! You might find that people have put their names on waiting lists at several different places, so the waiting list might not be as bad as it first seems.

That's what the lady said, that they have probably put their names down at other nurseries as well (which I am hoping) - What a nightmare!

Otherwise if there's such a shortage of good places, surely there's a business opportunity calling for someone! (Setting up their own nursery, I mean!)

My husband has already said this to me lol!! However apparently the owners MUST to be qualified childminders etc (well that's what I have heard?), so that leaves me out!

 

[biliboi2]

I would just say that as a teacher (although in Wales, so we have Estyn instead of Ofsted) that just because a place has an "excellent" rating by Ofsted, that only means excellent in terms of what they were looking for during the last inspection, and may be greatly different to what you what want as a parent.

I would say go by word of mouth, look around nurseries and ask lots of questions about their policies on various issues.

 

[Tink84]

That's bonkers! You might find that people have put their names on waiting lists at several different places, so the waiting list might not be as bad as it first seems.

That's what the lady said, that they have probably put their names down at other nurseries as well (which I am hoping) - What a nightmare!

Otherwise if there's such a shortage of good places, surely there's a business opportunity calling for someone! (Setting up their own nursery, I mean!)

My husband has already said this to me lol!! However apparently the owners MUST to be qualified childminders etc (well that's what I have heard?), so that leaves me out!

Surprisingly the Owner does not need to be qualified. The manager who has the over all responsibility and day to day running does need to be though. These do not need to be the same person however it's another wage to factor in and there is a lot of regulations including manager needing to have a min of 2 years experience etc.

There are some fab nurseries out there and the grading is only a one day view of a setting!! I run a setting (playgroup/pre-school) and we are only graded a satisfactory! However we were expected 1 week into me being in post and a lot of the statutory guidelines were missing and a week wasn't long enough for me to get things up to date and in place!!

My personal recommendation is go and get a feel for the place and staff before making your mind up. Some settings focus on the children and therefore do only the minumn paperwork required which would grade them satisfactory even though the kids have the best times ever.

A nursery/setting graded poor will go into special measures and will only be given a time scale to turn things around. Ofsted might not do a full report again though and might just provide an inspection to see if they have done what they were required to do. Also inspections are every 3 years and if a setting is graded Outstanding 3 years is a long time for things to lag and slip.

Make a list and go out and visit and find one that your child and you are happy with!!!

 

[beccad]

Oftsed is just one opinion too. I mean if they flag up practices that are definitely unsafe then you have to consider that, but if you read some stuff that they consider to be bad, but you wouldn't give it a second thought (for example, not having the correct paperwork available, not teaching the two year olds their times tables or whatever ridiculous standards they expect these days) then definitely don't dismiss somewhere just because it's not rated as excellent.

 

[amore]

There are some really good points in this thread. I had the same problem with ds1 hun I thought that I could just walk into a nursery and ask for a place, but ended up having to wait over a year to get ds1 in the nursery I wanted! As others have said ofsted can be a good indicator on the setting and give you some info on it -ie. set up, number of children etc but it also needs to be considered that nurseries often go to great lengths to ensure a good inspection report. I know one nursery that I was planning on sending ds1 to were graded 'good', however when I spoke to my PCT trainers (did nvq's in childrens care) who are often at the different settings assessing students on placements they told me they would not even allow their students to train there anymore due to many cases of poor practice they had observed in the setting (not cleaning sick up properly, poor interaction with children, undermet staff - child ratios, students doing activities they were untrained to do etc etc) - I was lucky to have the heads up but if I was just going by the ofted report it would have seemed great. So as others have said make sure you go and see the nursery in advance and follow your gut instincts - once your child is there turn up early to pick them up sometimes when they dont expect you etc. Good luck its such a hard decision x

 

[Tink84]

Ask friends and family where they would recommend is probs one of the best ways to get a few places to visit.

Personally I am so lucky to have my mum who has agreed to have our LO. I only work 8:45 till 12:45 and it's a 30 min drive in the morning and only 15 on an afternoon. If I had to pick a nursery I'd be too fussy lol.

Happy to give anyone any advice on things to check/ask about etc if anyone needs it. Can be quite intimadating at first lol?

I always say to my parents, go home and have a think about it, any more question feel free to pop in or ring up and ask.

On the plus side at present 16 and 17 year olds can be counted in child:staff ratios and some nurseries stock up on young staff as it increases there profit margins!!! However the new EYFS framework (currently under review) is hinting towards on those aged 18 years and above can be counted in ratios

 

[broodybelle]

Take OFSTED reports with a pinch of salt. I am a teacher and couldn't care less about whether a school or early years setting has a good or outstanding. There are so many factors to take into consideration and I know plenty of outstanding practioners and/or schools/nurseries that have been deemed good or satisfactory and vice versa. Gut instinct is the best way to get a feel for a place, along with asking around for reviews.

I am looking at childminders for my baby, I will be going back to work part time when he/she is 10 months old. I personally prefer the more personal approach of a childminder as have worked in day nurseries where I was horrified by the practices of some of the staff. I want to keep my child's time away from me as much like home as I can- lots of adult talk, baking and going to local playgroups and toddler sessions etc.

Some of the OFSTED reports on the website were done under the previous inspection framework and many were done when the new Early Years Learning Framework has just been brought in for practioners to follow. Most were given satisfactory as they were learning a new way of working and may well get a good or outstanding judgement now.

All food for thought.

xx

 

[Tink84]

Take OFSTED reports with a pinch of salt. I am a teacher and couldn't care less about whether a school or early years setting has a good or outstanding. There are so many factors to take into consideration and I know plenty of outstanding practioners and/or schools/nurseries that have been deemed good or satisfactory and vice versa. Gut instinct is the best way to get a feel for a place, along with asking around for reviews.

I am looking at childminders for my baby, I will be going back to work part time when he/she is 10 months old. I personally prefer the more personal approach of a childminder as have worked in day nurseries where I was horrified by the practices of some of the staff. I want to keep my child's time away from me as much like home as I can- lots of adult talk, baking and going to local playgroups and toddler sessions etc.

Some of the OFSTED reports on the website were done under the previous inspection framework and many were done when the new Early Years Learning Framework has just been brought in for practioners to follow. Most were given satisfactory as they were learning a new way of working and may well get a good or outstanding judgement now.

All food for thought.

xx

So true

I know some fab childminders who do bare min paperwork etc and loads of teachers use them too.

 

[Tracyface]

Thanks for the advice ladies! Wish I could ask others in my area but unfortunately we've not lived here long so dont know anybody!

If you have a list of questions (and a list of good answers in respect of ratios etc!), I'd be much appreciated!

 

[Tracyface]

Oh and with ref to childminders, how on earth can you find one which you can trust? I don't want to just go to the yellow pages!!

Is there a kind of agency with references?

 

[Tink84]

Oh and with ref to childminders, how on earth can you find one which you can trust? I don't want to just go to the yellow pages!!

Is there a kind of agency with references?

Any work collegues you can ask? Or OH can ask?

Most would ask you to pop along for a visit. Just like settings Childminders are inspected too. Sadly the industry is lossing some fab childminders due to the lack of support compared to what staff in settings get.

Try netmums for your area - ask for recommendations. As mums we only want what is best for our children so I am sure someone will be able to recommend some to you hun.

You can get some agencies for the likes of nannies etc not 100% sure about childminders as most are self employed and go by word of mouth etc hun - might be worth investigating for your area as the nanny would have sole care for your child unless you agree to nanny share etc.

Thanks for the advice ladies! Wish I could ask others in my area but unfortunately we've not lived here long so dont know anybody!

If you have a list of questions (and a list of good answers in respect of ratios etc!), I'd be much appreciated!

Ok...

Ratios should be....
Babies and children aged under 2 years are a ratio of 1 adult to 3 children.
Children aged 2 years to 3 years are a ratio of 1 adult to 4 children.
Children aged 3 and above are a ratio of 1 adult to 8 children. (This can be flexible if the setting has a staff member who has an Early Years Professional Status (EYPS) and the ratio in this case during 9 to 3 is 1 adult to 13 children)

Ask how many qualified and unqualified staff do they have? Hopefully there is a good mixture and the requirements are 2/3 of the staff in each room must be qualified to level 3 or above.

Ask if children have keyworkers and how as a setting they implement this. Some settings will swap staff rooms on daily bases. However others will have set staff in each room - this is better as it helps children settle better.

Ask will they follow the routine that you and your LO have established? Or do they have set nap times and feeding times? Hopefully with babies they say yours!!!

Ask how do they record your child's development.

How do they work to develop partnership with parents? - this is a massive chunk of the EYFS and a requirement for all settings. For example do they provide you with termly/yearly opportunities to meet up with your child's key worker.

Ask what access they have to an outdoor area and how often the children access this. Hopefully should be daily even babies and toddlers can get out.

Ask about sickness/Illness policy and Holidays. Most settings require you to take 4 weeks holiday over the year and usually you pay half fees during this week to secure your place. Some offer this free so worth asking.

Do they have trips or outings into the local community?

As to see there menu!! Does your child have to eat what they offer or can you provide your own? Especially useful when weaning.

I am sure there are plenty more and will come back when I have them in my mind lol.

Please feel free to pm if you have any queries/questions etc. Can be a lot to take in in one go and digest.

 

[Tracyface]

Tink, your a star! Thank you so much for all the help, I will put it to good use!! Xx