To receive a list of daycare providers which have been inspected since the last meeting and the judgements awarded and to consider the main themes arising from the inspections.

The Subgroup received a list of all Manchester daycare providers which had been inspected since the last meeting and the judgements awarded.

The Early Years Quality Assurance Lead provided Members with an overview of the inspections which had taken place since the last meeting.  She informed the Subgroup that 95.5% of settings in Manchester were judged to be good or outstanding.  In response to a Member’s question about Kids Allowed MFT, she reported that this setting had previously been judged to be outstanding but had been judged to be requires improvement at its most recent inspection.  She reported that there had been a number of changes in managers at the setting and that consistency of staffing was an issue, informing Members that recruitment and retention of staff was particularly challenging in Wythenshawe.  She informed Members that, once the Quality Assurance team had been made aware of the judgement, the setting had been put on their requires improvement pathway and they were working with and providing support to the setting to address the areas of concern highlighted in the report.  In response to a Member’s question, she highlighted how Dingley’s Promise training supported staff to work with children with SEND, advising that her team was sharing some elements of the training through their forums and encouraging managers in Early Years settings to break it down into smaller segments to share through their team meetings, if staff did not have time to complete the training course.

The Subgroup discussed the reasons for recruitment and retention issues, in Wythenshawe specifically and in the Early Years sector more broadly, and how to address these.  A Member expressed concern about the sector being able to cope with the increased demand due to the expansion of the free childcare entitlement, advising that pay in the sector needed to be reviewed.  The Early Years Quality Assurance Lead informed Members about new government initiatives to recruit to the sector.  She reported that the level of pay was a key issue, as people were able to earn more working in a coffee shop, as well as the working hours and a preference for jobs where it was possible to work from home.  She informed Members about a recruitment event at The Manchester College to attract more people into the sector and about a low-cost recruitment agency which had been set up funded through the Greater Manchester Innovation Fund.  A Member commented that childcare workers would also be eligible for the free childcare entitlement which would make working in the sector more financially viable and that this could be promoted to them. 

The Early Years Quality Assurance Lead reported that changes to Ofsted inspections also affected the Early Years sector and that childminders and settings were being encouraged to identify to someone to support them during their inspection.  She informed Members about positive feedback from settings which had been inspected recently, including that the process was more transparent.  In response to a Member’s question, she reported that new settings were inspected within 30 months of opening.  She reported that challenges for the sector included recruitment and retention of staff, rising costs in comparison to income, and the number of children with additional needs or vulnerabilities.  She informed Members that, in recent inspections, safeguarding had been less likely to be raised as a concern and that education and the curriculum were the main issues now for those judged to be below good.  She outlined the work taking place to address this, including supporting Early Years leaders to focus on the continuing professional development of staff.  She highlighted the training which was available from the Department for Education (DfE) including free online child development training which all staff could access and the Early Years Professional Development Programme (PDP) Phase 3.  A Member requested that a link to the training referred to be circulated to the Subgroup Members. 

Decisions

1.             To note the reports.

2.             To request that the information on the DfE training be circulated to Subgroup Members.