The IPPR report, Early Developments, concludes that ‘Ofsted is not always the best judge of early years quality, particularly for the youngest children, and functions primarily as an inspector rather than a supporter of quality improvement’. These flaws in the current system could further undermine quality if, as proposed, the local authority duty to provide training is cut, leaving ‘Ofsted as the sole arbiter of quality’.
‘Weakening local authorities will leave a gap which Ofsted cannot comfortably fill,’ notes the report. Such a gap ‘risks stalling or even derailing the continuing improvement of the workforce, as boosting quality will require training, development and professional interaction as well as monitoring.’
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