Hello everyone, we hope you are having a good May.

What a month we are having so far!

After a long wait, we have had our Ofsted inspection and (subject to the usual checks) are proud to say that we have retained our grades – I am still outstanding and Nige is still good… but this time with an outstanding element to reflect the huge contribution he makes to our healthy living ethos!

We are absolutely delighted with the outcome and would like to thank the inspector who was lovely and made the whole experience very relaxed and almost easy! The children were totally brilliant on the day and we couldn’t have done it without any them.

I also have a new article in Child Care magazine … ‘Preparing for your Ofsted inspection’. It was so funny when the editor approached me to write the article and there I was, getting things ready for my own inspection. It is the first in a series of articles, featuring comments from other outstanding providers through the country as well as my own words of wisdom. I hope the articles will help all childminders to approach their inspections with confidence.

I have been working with Pauline, the owner of the Childminding Forum to set up a new competition to give away a copy of my latest e-book, ‘Inclusion and the EYFS’. It is my 50th e-book… which would never have been written but for the support of my family and customers, all of whom are wonderful. For more details of the competition and entry conditions, please see the Competitions section of the forum (members only). Closing date for entries is 5th June 2011.

We hope the rest of the month is uneventful… otherwise we will peak too early and be totally giddy by half term!

Chat soon, Sarah x