Ofsted: Gaps for poorest children in Yorkshire and the Humber too wide

Nurseries in Yorkshire and the Humber are improving but gaps for the poorest children remains too wide, new figures warn.

Ofsted, an official body for inspecting schools, published a report today on early years and childcare registered provider inspections and outcomes, which includes statistics about inspections that took place between July and August this year.

In Yorkshire and the Humber, a total of 311 early years registered providers were inspected.

Of these, Ofsted judged 21 (7%) to be outstanding, 215 (69%) to be good, 45 (14%) to require improvement, and 30 (10%) as inadequate.

An Ofsted spokesperson said: “Nurseries and other early years providers are getting better. These statistics show that four-fifths have been judged to be good or outstanding at their most recent inspection.

“However, the gaps for the poorest children are still too wide.

“We are clear that good teaching is essential to help more young children, particularly those from poorer areas, be ready to learn when they begin primary school. We are working with those providers judged to require improvement to help them provide a better service for young children and their parents.

“We are currently consulting on the future of education inspection, which includes early years, and would urge nurseries and other providers to consider our consultation carefully.”

According to the statistics, the Yorkshire and the Humber region had the highest proportion of nurseries and other early year providers judged as inadequate in England.