Despite recent concerns about standards at some nurserys in the City a report says that local standards are generally higher than can be found elsewhere in the country.

A recent Ofsted report has placed York’s Early Years and childcare providers and Children’s Centres significantly above both the national and regional averages. The report also demonstrates an improvement when compared to last years statistics.

Jill Hodges, Assistant Director for Education and Skills said, ‘In York, 77% of Early Years providers were rated as “good” or “outstanding”, an improvement on the 2011 figures. York’s performance was above the national average of 74% and above the regional average in Yorkshire and the Humber where 70% of Early Learning providers were rated as “good” or “outstanding”.

Staff at Quackers, a pre-school playgroup, who were rated as outstanding by Ofsted, were praised for providing children with a “wonderfully resourced, stimulating and highly accessible environment”. Ofsted also praised the “motivated and dedicated staff” who were seen to provide a “fun and stimulating learning experience”. Staff were also praised for their handling of the curriculum and were told that areas of their teaching benefitted social, physical and communication skills amongst the pupils, they were also commended for helping teach the children independence.

York’s Children’s Centres were also rated highly by Ofsted with 83% being rated as “good” or “outstanding”. This is well above both national figures of 71% and regional figures of 69%.Clifton Children’s Centre was inspected recently and received really positive feedback from Ofsted. The comments included responses from parents who called the Centre “warm and homely” and a “lively and bustling centre” which is “a hub in the community”.The report also praised the providers for being welcoming and valuing diversity.

Ken McArthur, Chair of the National Day Nurseries Association (NDNA) and a local provider said: “We work very closely with the City of York Council’s Early Years department and we are well supported by an excellent team of early years support advisors who visit our settings on a very regular basis, offering advice, sup port and training opportunities which help settings improve their quality as well as advice on best practice. I am glad that this hard work has been recognised by Ofsted”