Nursery World - Ofsted delays return to early years assurance visits and on-site school inspections

Ofsted has paused assurance visits to early years settings, and will carry out school inspections remotely, until after February half term.

Ofsted has 'paused' early years assurance visits until after the February half term

Ofsted has reviewed plans for the inspections of schools, early years and further education, which were due to begin next week, in light of the Government's advice to 'act as if you have the virus'.

The inspectorate said that it was not possible to provide the necessary level of assurance of early years providers without an on-site inspection of the premises.

However, Ofsted said that it would continue regulatory work in early years and children’s social care.

‘This work will sometimes require on-site visits, which will be risk-assessed based on the nature of the premises and the urgency of the work.’

In a statement, Ofsted said, ‘In light of a change in emphasis from the Government and clear advice to “act as if you have the virus” over the next few weeks, we have decided that all planned inspection activity will be undertaken remotely until after the February half term.

Register now to continue reading

Thank you for visiting Nursery World and making use of our archive of more than 35,000 expert features, subject guides, case studies and policy updates. Why not register today and enjoy the following great benefits:

What's included