This weeks announcement from the UK Government about plans to ban social media for children under 16 is, in my opinion, a really positive step. It is something I welcome completely. A Perspective from Working in Childcare As Director of Childcare at Kickstart, this is something I feel strongly about, because we have to be honest about the impact this is having on children. For those of us working with children every day, this has been building for a long time. We are seeing children exposed to things far too young, and in many cases it is shaping their friendships, their confidence, and the way they see themselves before they are emotionally ready to deal with any of it. The Reality Children Are Facing Online Children are being drawn into online spaces that were never designed with them in mind. Spaces that are fast, intense, and full of pressure. What […]
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How to Prepare for Ofsted in Wraparound Care
If you work in wraparound or out of school care, you will probably recognise this feeling. You know the value of what you do, but it is not always clear how that fits into Ofsted language or the inspection framework. Because wraparound sits around the school day rather than inside it, inspection can sometimes feel unclear or uncomfortable, as though you are trying to translate your work into someone else’s system. Over the past few months, I have been directly involved in two Ofsted inspections across our wraparound provisions. I am still very hands on in the day to day running of all of our settings, so what I am sharing here is not theory or second-hand advice. It is based on real inspections, real conversations, and what genuinely mattered on the ground. I wanted to share a few reflections, not as a checklist or a guide, but as reassurance. Wraparound care plays a vital role for children, […]