The CEEDA survey, launched by research company RSUK, is helping nurseries to collect and benchmark the views of parents, providing evidence they can then use for the Ofsted self-evaluation form. These views can also be used for marketing purposes, to highlight how well they are doing in the context of providers at a national and local level.
Settings purchase a questionnaire pack which they distribute to parents themselves. Parents respond either by freepost, online or by telephone to RSUK. Results are posted on a CEEDA link accessible with a password.
RSUK managing director Jo Verill says, 'Subscribers can pull off a benchmark report and gauge their results in the context of all nurseries taking part. It enables them to see what is being achieved in the context of the wider sector.'
RSUK says it has been working with the childcare sector for over ten years and has developed CEEDA in response to the new challenges of self-evaluation. The service was trialled in County Durham and Darlington and is steadily gaining subscribers nationwide.
The questionnaire is divided into a number of sections. These include safety and the environment, looking at how spaces are used; caring and learning, covering resources and how staff interact with the children; keeping in touch with parents and making them feel involved; and planning and flexibility of care. There is also space for feedback and parents are encouraged to outline what they particularly value.
Current subscribers to CEEDA include children's centres, private day nurseries, pre-schools and playgroups.
Wheatley Hill Community Nursery in Durham says the survey has helped it to make improvements at its centre. 'These have ranged from developing our menus to the types of activities we do with the children. It has also helped with our long-term strategy,' reports Jayne Dinsdale, nursery manager.
'By using an independent supplier, we have found that parents taking part were more at ease with providing honest answers. It has saved me a lot of time, allowing me to focus on other areas, such as our marketing plan, which will benefit from the feedback.'
She adds, 'The benchmark is great for showing how well we are doing compared with our peers, and we have shared the results with senior staff and partners.'
Jo Verill is consulting with the sector on the potential to expand the service. 'We need to strike a balance between how much information is publicly available and the types of data that are appropriate. Eventually there could be an online searchable map for those settings which are CEEDA registered, or it could work as a database tool where users could put in a postcode to generate information.'
www.ceeda.co.uk, tel: 0845 6800631