Pre-schools - Quality Assurance Schemes

'Aiming for Quality'
The Pre-School Learning Alliance's accreditation scheme - Aiming for Quality - was launched almost ten years ago and was the first of its kind. Supported by over 70 Early Years Development and Childcare Partnerships, more than 400 pre-schools (and day nurseries offering nursery education) nationally are currently accredited. Most find it a tool for development, helping them to focus on strengths and weaknesses and to make continuous improvements to their practice. Successful accreditation is associated with good OfSTED inspection outcomes and a more sustainable business base.

It builds upon the standards required for registration under the Children Act and provides an excellent preparation for OfSTED inspections. The pre-school group initially works on self assessment which involves accumulating evidence of standards and practice and usually takes between 4 and 9 months. When confident that all the required standards are being achieved, an external assessor is invited in to validate the pre-school's self-assessment.

Aiming for Quality is part of the government's Investors in Children scheme.