Investigating Ofsted’s inclusion of cultural capital in early years inspections

Wilson-Thomas, Juliette ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3722-4695 and Brooks, Ruby Juanita (2024) Investigating Ofsted’s inclusion of cultural capital in early years inspections. British Journal of Sociology of Education, 45 (3). pp. 381-401. ISSN 0142-5692

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Abstract

In 2019 Ofsted introduced cultural capital (CC) into the Early Years Inspection Handbook and defined it as ‘essential knowledge’ related to ‘educated citizenship’. This paper investigates Ofsted’s use of CC to critically examine the potential implications for early years work. Due to the feminised nature of early years work, a critical feminist approach is engaged to explore the potential impact of introducing CC into the regulation of the sector. This paper examines the differences between Ofsted’s use of CC, CC’s theoretical origins, and analyses sector responses. Our contention is that how Ofsted have employed CC may represent ‘symbolic violence’ against the working-class women working in the early years, by further devaluing their habitus and sustaining the stratification of society through forms of capital. This paper is the first to interrogate CC in Ofsted’s early years documentation, and will have an international impact for any countries following UK education practices.