Yesterday was a very hard day, in school for just over 11 hours, and feeling on the edge all the time, not knowing when the inspectors were going to catch me in the corridor and ask a question, off the cuff - would I have the right answers for them? Having them ask for documents at random times, and not always knowing where they were kept in school, and people who would know not being available to get them....I came home last night with a banging headache and a very empty tum, as I had not really been able to eat all day!
We had a meeting between the lead inspector and a selection of governors late yesterday afternoon, and we did impress her with the number of us who went to the meeting, and we had a very valuable meeting with her. I have reflected on it overnight and realised that she has come with the children at the core of her interests, and she wants to make jolly sure that we are doing the best for them that we can, and actually she was talking with us, and advising us of ways we could do things better. Last time Ofsted came to the school, I felt very differently about the inspector, but this time, I get it!
For relaxation (!), I made some crab apple jelly last night - well, I had to! The juice had been straining since Monday night and I was worried about leaving it a minute longer as that was far, far longer than it should have been left. It was worth the effort, though, as this morning I have five jars of glistening, ruby red jelly and it looks lovely...I can't wait to roast a chicken on Sunday for UJ's birthday and then we can try some.
I hope you are all having a good week. This inspection has wiped out my plans for two days, but I am going to get some washing on the line now, at least, and I'll just have to do the shopping tomorrow - Ofsted is great for No Spend Days, at least :)
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8 comments:
An a stressful day. Hope you have a relaxing weekend. X
So glad Ofsted are being helpful and supportive - that seems a change from recent times when it was widely known that Ofsted couldn't be "the coach and the referee" and harks back to the much more school friendly and supportive pre-Ofsted HMI inspections. Good luck, I'm sure all your school's hard work and your own in particular will shine through. A stressful time for all your school staff. So many important things including ethos, pupil skills and attitudes to learning and investigation are invaluable but difficult to quantify, which reduces education and it's inspections to a tick box mentality of the things that are easy to quantify if we are not all very, very careful.
Good luck, enjoy a restful weekend and being able to relax and eat again! xx
PS Sorry if that sounds like a rant, but it's from the heart, x
Hi
It's great what you do for that school, especially as you aren't staff!
The governors at our primary school don't get involved with Ofsted at all - it's all down to the headteacher.
Donna
The apple jelly sounds like the beginnings of a frugal and productive weekend, so here's hoping you can relax and enjoy that roast chicken. :)
I hope you are able to have a very restful time over the weekend. Relax and breathe!!
So glad for you that it is over. Hope results are positive- and especially pleased you had an inspector with a realistic approach, and a concern for the children.
Now relax!! Crab apple jelly sounds fab
You must be exhausted after such a busy time! As the others have mentioned - try to enjoy the weekend and relax. Your crab apple jelly sounds lovely - I am tempted to try to make some myself this weekend! As well as chicken do you eat it with any other foods? Hope hubby is doing well x
@Donna - in my experience here, Ofsted always want to speak with Governors, and the role of Governors within the school is becoming a high profile part of the inspection. The buck stops with us, and so it is key that we have a good understanding of what is going on, and where the school is going. In the past, though, I was part of a group of three who spoke with them before I became chair, and last time when they came, I had just become chair, and took two more in with me, but this time, the inspectors specifically asked for "as many as can come" so there were 6 of us!
@Corrina - the crab apple jelly is something I enjoy particularly with chicken but we also eat it with cold meats. I am very sparing with it, and don't being a new jar out very often because you don't get that much from the batch - I got three 454g jars and two smaller jars this time.
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