Managers of a pre-school stripped of its Outstanding status after reported failings with mobile phone safeguarding claim that they had a formal policy with which parents were happy.
Cindy and Steve Fox, a married couple who together run Cherubs Pre-School from a village hall in Kent, are challenging Ofsted’s Inadequate rating, which seemingly resulted from the nursery sending photos of children to parents with their signed consent.
Cherubs has now referred the complaint to the Ofsted ombudsman after the decision was upheld at stage three of a four-stage complaints procedure.
The couple described suffering stress and ill-health as a result of the inspection, and said they are worried about how their business will survive the funding hit. The setting may not be able to open this September because the rating means they cannot apply for the free entitlement for children registering after December last year. They are due to lose 27 children to school in the summer, and said they cannot register replacements unless Ofsted re-inspects before Easter.
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