Nursery World reported yesterday that the iconic children’s centre in Corby, Northamptonshire had been downgraded from Outstanding to Inadequate – the first time in its history it has received the lowest inspection grade.
Reacting on Nursery World's Facebook, many people in the sector have said how surprised they are that the centre has been found to be Inadequate, calling the setting ‘amazing’ and ‘inspirational’.
Rachel Buckler, a trainer and consultant specialising in safeguarding, said, ‘So very sad. Like many others Pen Green provided such inspiration to me in the late 90’s early 2000’s particularly as a pre requisite to Sure Start Children Centres. Reading about their work made me change my career pathway. Something I’ve never regretted.’
Cheeky Cherubs Childcare said they are working with Pen Green on a research project and have found them to be ‘amazing’. Adding that ‘their dedication and knowledge is infectious.'
Another user, Sarah Connors Brady, that ‘If it can happen to them, it can happen to anyone. I visited there and found the place inspirational.’ She also criticised Ofsted’s inspection process, along with a number of other users on Facebook.
Early years support consultant, Emma Harris, said the fact that the inspector mentioned children putting things in their mouths that “society classes” as undesirable, disproves the fact that Ofsted says all their inspectors are practitioners. She questioned how the setting is Inadequate if, as the inspector noted, staff at the centre have good relationships with children.
However, one user, Zoe Wright, stressed that Pen Green Children’s Centre’s Ofsted report is a ‘bad’ one and ‘identifies some concerns’. She said that ‘just because a setting was once a setting of excellence, it doesn’t mean it still is’. She went on to say that ‘It’s possible this was just a rogue inspection, or they [the centre] had a bad day, or maybe there are problems that go deeper and need to be resolved.’