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Warning to parents as Ofsted slams standard of childcare in London
Tim Ross, Evening Standard27.08.08
Parents were today warned to check nurseries, childminders and after-school clubs after a damning Ofsted report into standards.
The education watchdog said childcare in London was much less satisfactory than the rest of the country and claimed children were at risk of harm or neglect.
In Hackney, fewer than one in three childminders was providing a good standard of care. One in four playgroups failed their inspections in Islington and have been ordered to make urgent improvements.
Critics seized on the report as evidence that the Prime Minister's flagship childcare policy was in trouble and questioned why billions had been spent on failing nurseries.
The latest Ofsted inspection figures found:
• The failure rate among childminders, nurseries, playgroups, crèches and after-school clubs was at least twice as high in inner London and much of the suburbs as the average for the rest of England.
• In inner London, double the proportion of childminders were rated "inadequate" as the national average.
• Only 31.1 per cent of childminders in Newham were judged to be providing a good standard of care. In Lambeth the figure was 35.9 per cent.
• Across inner London boroughs, half of childminders failed to reach a good standard.
• Among nurseries, standards of education and childcare varied widely, with fewer than half of centres rated good or better in Wandsworth, Newham, Lambeth, Haringey, Hackney and Brent. But in areas such as Havering, City of London, Westminster and Kingston upon Thames, about eight out of 10 nurseries and children's centres were judged "good or outstanding".
Ofsted's director of children Michael Hart told the Standard: "Parents should look very critically before they place their child anywhere. They should look at reports published on our website."
He said too many after-school clubs were inadequate, with more than one in 20 failing their inspections across London: "That figure is too high. We want to see it lower."
Many out-of-school clubs struggled because they could not recruit regular staff, Mr Hart said.
He warned that the poorest areas often experienced the greatest problems, adding: "The more deprived areas of the country tend to have fewer providers who are either good or outstanding. This difficulty does affect London. Our worry is obviously that those who start off living in a more disadvantaged area have a double whammy in a sense of also finding fewer [good] providers."
But he stressed that there was some "good or outstanding" childcare to be found in every local area. Ofsted said the quality of childcare had improved overall but standards among childminders had fallen over the past three years.
The Conservatives said the report represented a blow to Gordon Brown's childcare strategy.
Shadow families minister Maria Miller said: "Despite spending £3billion a year on early years, the Government has failed to ensure that children from the most disadvantaged backgrounds consistently have access to a choice of high quality childcare."
The Government insisted standards were improving.
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On two levels, EYFS must be one of the most preposterous pieces of legislation by this government.It is quite incredulous that a group of apparent experts in their field could produce such a complex and largely unattainable policy and set of targets. Some of the 69 so-called Early Learning Goals are, quite frankly, laughable; well, they would be if this weren's such a crucial subject. Who has the right to enforce 'learning' on newborns? And for them to say it's all through play is to miss the point, whether it is or not.
And what about the undervalued and oft-maligned childminding profession? Numbers are consistently falling and it's no surprise. To require childminders to somehow work out from the scores of pages of instruction how they are supposed to record and 'teach' at the same time as carrying out the caring bit, and all that entails, is, frankly, ludicrous. There simply aren't enough hours in the day, even supposing they were appropriately qualified.
- Jan, Colchester
Couldn't agree more with Kevin and Brian. The demands placed on childminders by the new Early Years nonsense is wholly unacceptable, bordering on criminal. Are Ofsted giving all childminders a year's paid leave while they take a degree in the 69 goals, the 6 this, 13 that, goodness knows what other? Perhaps they expect the minding of the child - the caring bit - to be neglected while minders get their heads into the thick pile of paperwork and try to make sense of it all. Or, perhaps, like Brian's wife, they expect these dedicated people to stay up until 11pm every night writing up this, that and the other at the expense of their sanity and family life. It truly beggars belief and if Brian is cross I'm thoroughly appalled and incensed by it all.
- John, London
Ofcom is about education,while child minding is about caring for a children in a loving home environment. Ofcom really have not got a clue,the hours that childminders put in, and their amazing commitment,all for less than £3.00 per hour. I doubt that the Ofsted inspectors would work at a rate of pay below the minimum wage.
All Ofsted can do is put on the pressure, make unreasonable demands, expect lots of paperwork, to the point that childminders lose heart, and wonder why they bother. Childcare is as good as ever, there is just no heart to do all the paperwork to prove it.
An excellent childminders husband!
- Kevin W, Staffordshire
