Scottish Government

Increase the proportion of pre-school centres receiving positive inspection reports

DESCRIPTION:

This indicator measures the percentage of pre-school centres receiving a positive inspection report. This is defined as receiving a positive evaluation in all three Reference Quality Indicators used by Education Scotland (formerly HM Inspectorate of Education (HMIE)).

SOURCE:

The data for this indicator are based on the evaluation reports of the inspections carried out by Education Scotland (formerly HM Inspectors of Education). The latest publication is available from the link below:

http://www.educationscotland.gov.uk/resources/s/genericresource_tcm4831249.asp?strReferringChannel=inspectionandreview&strReferringPageID=tcm:4-682710-64&class=l1+d147706

Those receiving a positive inspection report are evaluated as satisfactory or better in all three of the Reference Quality Indicators. These indicators evaluate the pre-school centres on improvements in performance in terms of the outcomes for children across the full range of achievement.

The current figures refer to the first completed post-baseline sample results. This sample provides a representative sample of the pre-school centres in Scotland inspected between March 2011 and March 2014 for the selected sample pre-school centres only.

DEFINITIONS:

Pre-school centres include all local authority (including nursery classes in primary schools and stand alone nursery schools and family centres), and all private and voluntary pre-school centres which are in partnership with Local Authorities to provide pre-school education for children.

A positive inspection report is achieved when an evaluation of satisfactory or better is achieved in all three of the Reference Quality Indicators.  If a pre-school centre receives an evaluation of weak or unsatisfactory in any one of the three Reference Quality Indicators, it is categorised as positive criteria not met.

The  three Reference Quality Indicators are defined in Appendix One of The Child at the Centre http://www.educationscotland.gov.uk/inspectionandreview/Images/catcseey_tcm4-712692.pdf

The Reference Quality Indicators (QI)s are:

• 1.1 Improvements in performance
• 2.1 Children's experiences
• 5.3 Meeting learning needs

More information on these can also be found on pages 23-24 of the above publication.

BASELINE AND PAST TRENDS:

Education Scotland evaluate pre-school centres in relation to three Reference Quality Indicators which inform the indicators in the National Performance Framework.  To provide a nationally representative measure of performance for pre-school centres Education Scotland defined a sample beginning in April 2008.  The evaluations for the baseline sample were published in 2012.  The evaluation of pre-school centres in the first post-baseline sample is now complete. The samples do not cover discrete time periods.

The first post-baseline sample of pre-school centres inspected accounted for 16 per cent of all private, public and voluntary pre-school centres open at September 2013. Of those inspected, 94 per cent were evaluated as satisfactory or better in all of the three Reference Quality Indicators, 74 per cent were evaluated as good or better and 32 per cent as very good or better in all three Reference Quality Indicators. Positive criteria were not met in 6 per cent of pre-school centres inspected.

CRITERIA FOR RECENT CHANGE ARROW:

The direction of travel arrow remains as “Performance maintaining” as there has been no statistically significant change in the proportion of pre-school centres receiving an evaluation of satisfactory or better from the baseline.

Two tailed significance tests (Barnard’s exact test) are used to assess the statistical significance of the comparisons made. In line with statistical convention significance has been assessed at a ninety-five  per cent level of confidence.

For information on general methodoligical approach, please click here.

FUTURE ISSUES OR REVIEWS:

The next update will take place when the next full sample of pre-school centres has been completed.

ASSOCIATED TARGET:

No associated target.