Today (3 September), the inspectorate has announced a number of reforms to inspection and regulation following feedback from its Big Listen consultation. Changes for the early years sector include a move from one word judgements to a new report card from September 2025, a new early years inspection framework and the introduction of an Ofsted Academy to train inspectors.
In response, the sector has urged Ofsted to engage with the sector when making any changes.
Neil Leitch, chief executive of the Early Years Alliance said, ‘Today must mark the start, not the end, of Ofsted’s engagement with the sector.
‘Let’s not be under any illusion: there is a long way to go to transform the relationship between the inspectorate and early years providers, but we are hopeful that today marks the first step in a renewed approach.’
Purnima Tanuku, chief executive of the National Day Nurseries Association (NDNA), said, ‘Ofsted now needs to re-engage with the sector to develop a fair system built on mutual respect.
‘Now is the time for Ofsted to restore trust among the early years workforce and parents who need accurate and accessible information to make informed choices. We look forward to working with the Department for Education and Ofsted to get this right for the early years sector and children.’
June O’Sullivan, chief executive of the London Early Years Foundation (LEYF), who set-up the Ofsted Big Conversation (OBC) in 2013 after becoming frustrated by the inspectorate’s attitude towards the sector, urged caution not to ‘throw out what the sector has started to shape into a more workable partnership’.
Writing on Linkedin, she went on to say, ‘Let's start a proper deep intelligent conversation about what change we want, how it will strengthen our compliance but most of all what we can do together to make the service better for children. Now is the time for a big OBC.’
The National Federation for Educational Research (NFER) said it looked forward to hearing more details from Ofsted about the new reforms, however.
But, it did stress how important it is that report cards do not become overly complex and that any steps to reform the system are carefully designed to consider the potential wider and longer-term implications.’
