Ofsted 'losing early years experience'

The vast majority of nursery education inspectors are self-employed and work for contractors such as Nord Anglia, Wessex Associates and Kinderquest, who are shutting down their nursery inspection divisions this summer. The education inspectors will not be transferring to the Early Years Directorate when local authority inspection and registration officers become Ofsted employees under the new regime.

Some local authority inspectors are also registered nursery education inspectors. However, they may have done relatively few education inspections. There are 700 registered nursery education inspectors in England and Wales; around 300 work full-time and some have inspected hundreds of settings.

Last week Ann Hutchinson, a registered nursery inspector from Clapton in Somerset, wrote in Nursery World that 'it seems illogical to dispose of a pool of experienced people who have so much to offer'. Her point has been echoed by a number of others working either as inspectors or inspection administrators, who asked not to be named. One described it as 'a wicked waste', and another said that Ofsted might well 'get a few months down and hold their hands up in despair'. Another expressed concern that plans for the Ofsted childcare inspectors to carry out an 'augmented' inspection covering both care and education every four years would lead to a 'watering-down' of the nursery education inspection process.