This is a significant improvement on the previous inspection cycle from 2003 to 2005, when 22 per cent of childcare provision did not meet some of the standards.
Mrl Hart told Nursery World, 'What I want to emphasise is that only 3 per cent of childcare settings were found to be inadequate. Most importantly, provision is good across the three years, with 97 per cent satisfactory or better.'
Mr Hart stressed that for the 3 per cent of providers that were found inadequate, Ofsted used enforcement action or re-inspected them within a year, and that in 95 per cent of re-inspections, settings were rated satisfactory or better. 'Once it is pointed out to providers where they are going wrong, most of them have the capacity to improve quickly.'
But he said it was a concern that 'rather more childminders had been found to be inadequate' in 2007-08. 'It could be related to the fact that in initial years we tend not to inspect childminders that don't have any children on the roll, and they could be less experienced childminders.'
The review compared overall quality of provision across the country and found it varied widely. Childcare was generally poorer in the 30 most deprived local authorities, with some notable exceptions.
'At the end of the three years we decided to look at the spread of judgements and found quite a range across local authorities. Overall there is good provision in every local authority and there's still more than 53 per cent that is good or outstanding in more disadvantaged areas. It's 60 per cent in the rest of the country, but we are concerned about the 7 per cent difference.'
At best, he said, this meant that in some local authorities more than 80 per cent of providers were good or outstanding, but that at the other extreme, this was only 26 per cent. 'You can't say automatically that because a local authority is in a deprived area, quality is poorer.'
Commenting on the rise in outstanding grades in early education in 2007-08, from 4 per cent to 8 per cent, Mr Hart said, 'There has been a lot more emphasis on early education. It's a cumulative process.'
There has been a major training programme for early years inspectors for the new inspections, which start on 1 September.
'Most of it builds on the previous framework. There's a greater emphasis on self-evaluation by providers themselves and we've produced a form that early years settings can use. We're encouraging providers to use it throughout the year to look at their strengths and areas for improvement.'
The updated guide, How to prepare for your inspection, has been sent to all providers.