SISTERS who run two out of school clubs have both earned Ofsted’s top accolade within days of one another.

Josie McVittie, 19, who manages the Out of School Experience club in Simonstone learned she had earned the ‘Outstanding’ grade following an inspection from Ofsted officials in June.

Two days later elder sister Charlie, 21, who manages the Osbaldeston club, which serves Osbaldeston and Balderstone, had her inspection and was also graded outstanding.

The double success is all the more remarkable as, according to Ofsted, less than one per cent of out of school clubs are graded as outstanding.

Jacqui Midgley, managing director of the Out of School Experience, runs five out of school clubs in Lancashire and now four of them have achieved the top mark while the fifth is awaiting the inspection result.

She was all the more delighted with the gradings as Josie and Charlie are her daughters.

She said: “It’s a real family business and we are all ecstatic that the hard work we put in each day has been recognized by the Ofsted inspectors. As well as running their respective clubs both Josie and Charlie are studying for degrees.

“The thing that makes our Out of School Experience clubs unique is that we focus on giving the children a voice in everything we do and this is something the inspectors have picked up on.

“Less than 1 in a 100 out of school clubs have achieved the Outstanding grade and so to have done it on all four of the clubs to date shows we are taking the right approach.”

Josie is based at the Out of School Experience at Simonstone and offers before, after and school holiday care to schools in Simonstone, Read and Sabden.

The Out of School Experience was established in 2001 and in addition to the clubs in Simonstone and Osbaldeston, currently has clubs in Colne and Knuzden both of which earned their Outstanding grade in 2011.

The other club at the Redeemer School in Blackburn is awaiting its inspection Jacqui said: “We will be hoping for a full house then - which will be absolutely remarkable.”