ALT When will my setting be inspected? Settings on the Early Years Register will be inspected at least once by March 2030. If already inspected under the previous 6-year window, you will move to the new 4-year window at your next routine inspection. The date for your 1st inspection depends on whether you registered on or after 1 April '26 – your first inspection will usually be within 18 months before 1 April '26 – your first inspection will usually be within 30 months

ALT Who can take on the role of nominee and what do they do? The nominee is a new, optional role in early years inspections and is someone working within your setting who acts as a link between staff and the inspector during an inspection. The nominee should be someone who knows the day-to-day of the setting well. We explain more in our inspection guidance. You don’t have to have a nominee; there is no disadvantage if you choose not to!

ALT How does case sampling work? To help us select children for a case sample, inspectors will ask you to provide a list of children who: are disadvantaged (including those who receive the early years pupil premium) have SEND are known or previously known to children’s social care face other barriers to their learning and/or wellbeing If there aren’t currently children on roll who fall into these categories, you’ll still need to show you have systems in place to support children who have these needs

ALT Can childminders be graded exceptional? Yes. We have heard there is a misconception that childminders cannot get exceptional. This is not true. All types of settings can be graded exceptional– this includes childminders, co-childminders, out-of-school settings and all other setting types registered on the Early Years Register. We encourage you to read the early years toolkit on gov.uk where we explain how we consider each evaluation area for different setting types, for all grades.