Setting

Inspection report for early years provision

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EY271801 Unique Reference Number 18 December 2007 Inspection date Sarah Elizabeth Howell Inspector

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Childcare Type of inspection Childminding Type of care

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This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000

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ABOUT THIS INSPECTION

The purpose of this inspection is to assure government, parents and the public of the quality of childcare and, if applicable, of nursery education. The inspection was carried out under Part XA Children Act 1989 as introduced by the Care Standards Act 2000 and, where nursery education is provided, under Schedule 26 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998. This report details the main strengths and any areas for improvement identified during the inspection. The judgements included in the report are made in relation to the outcomes for children set out in the Children Act 2004; the National Standards for under 8s day care and childminding; and, where nursery education is provided, the Curriculum guidance for the foundation stage. The report includes information on any complaints about the childcare provision which Ofsted has received since the last inspection or registration or 1 April 2004 whichever is the later.

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The key inspection judgements and what they mean

Outstanding: this aspect of the provision is of exceptionally high quality Good: this aspect of the provision is strong Satisfactory: this aspect of the provision is sound Inadequate: this aspect of the provision is not good enough

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The key inspection judgements and what they mean

For more information about early years inspections, please see the booklet Are you ready for your inspection? which is available from Ofsted's website: www.ofsted.gov.uk.

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE

On the basis of the evidence collected on this inspection:

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE

The quality and standards of the care are outstanding. The registered person meets the National Standards for under 8s day care and childminding.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

The childminder lives with her husband and two daughters in the Brookvale area of Runcorn. She has been registered since 2003 and is registered to provide care for six children under eight years and currently has three children on roll. The childminder also provides care for children aged eight and over. Children are taken and collected from the local primary school. Areas used for childminding include the lounge, dining room and kitchen under the childminder's supervision. The bathroom is on the first floor. There is an enclosed garden for outside play. The childminder helps to run a local childminder's support group and has close links with her local Surestart centre.

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Helping children to be healthy

The provision is outstanding. Children's healthy development is very effectively promoted within the setting. The childminder employs a wide range of strategies to keep children healthy and minimise opportunities for cross infection. Children of all ages understand the importance of good hand washing routines and the childminder provides individual face wipes and paper towels to prevent germs spreading.

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Helping children to be healthy

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000 Table tops, high chairs and changing mats are wiped down before and after use with anti-bacterial wipes.

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Helping children to be healthy

Children quickly learn about the role that good hygiene plays in keeping them well, both through their everyday routine, planned activities and through story books which explore these issues. In the summer, the childminder involves them in putting on their own sunscreen to help them understand how this keeps them safe and well. Clear, detailed health and safety policies are provided for parents which give lots of information about the childminder's approach to promoting children's good health. For example, the childminder provides a comprehensive list of infectious and contagious illnesses and their exclusion periods so that parents are well informed about when children can and cannot attend due to illness. Excellent procedures are in place for dealing with medical emergencies.

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Helping children to be healthy

Children's healthy development is very effectively supported through the provision of healthy meals and snacks and through the childminder's proactive approach to helping children learn about the role healthy eating plays in keeping them fit and well. Children are involved in food preparation and baking activities which regularly promote discussion about food and the role it plays in their growth and development. The childminder also explains that children are more willing to explore and try new foods if they have been involved in preparing and cooking them. Children have excellent access to fruit as the childminder encourages children to help themselves to the fruit bowl as and when they want to and by keeping it well stocked with a range of fruit she knows children like. Children have very good access to drinks including water as and when they want it and the childminder regularly reminds younger children to have a drink.

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Helping children to be healthy

The childminder also skilfully promotes children's physical development by her imaginative approach to making being active fun for children of all ages. She provides a wide range of indoor and outside play opportunities which challenge children's physical abilities and skill development. In the winter, she plans ahead and books the soft play room at the local Surestart centre so that all the children can enjoy having fun and exerting themselves together in safe environment. In the school holidays, children explore the variety of equipment provided at their local parks, rambles around the nature reserve and trips to the swimming baths. In addition, children take great delight in being allowed to bring outside toys inside to enjoy a greater range of fun physical play.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is outstanding. The childminder makes very good use of the space available in her home to promote children's enjoyment, for example, rooms are organised to maximise floor space which means lots of space for movement and even for riding a tricycle around indoors. An excellent range of verbal and written information is provided about the childminder's services and the activities provided for children to enable parents to make informed decisions about their child's care. In addition, the childminder provides opportunities for children to take pride in their achievements through providing a display board for their art work in the dining room.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Resources are very wide-ranging and provide excellent choice and stimulation for children of all ages who attend. All equipment is maintained to a high standard. The childminder explains that she continually looks to develop her provision of toys and equipment both through discussion with children and through involving parents for example, in helping her to extend the range of dressing up clothes and accessories available to children.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000 Arrangements to keep children safe and to help them develop their understanding of what staying safe means are excellent. Documented risk assessments are used for both the physical environment and for outings and particular activities. These clearly indicate potential risks and how these have been addressed. Fire drills are displayed within the setting and children regularly practise emergency evacuations from the premises.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Children learn first hand about what they can do to keep themselves safe in a variety of situations, for example, through trips to the local fire station where they explore fire safety and role play days organised by the childminder group where they have fun dressing up and practising road safety procedures. The childminder skilfully involves parents by providing fire safety packs which children take home to share with parents. In addition, the childminder is proactive in helping children to learn the role that rules play in keeping them safe. For example, she always explains why some behaviour is not acceptable because it may place a child or other children at risk and as a result children learn quickly to respect rules and understand how they keep them safe.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The childminder also effectively promotes children's safety and well-being through her well informed approach to child protection. She regularly updates her training to ensure that her practice is consistent with current procedures and provides detailed written information for parents about her role, responsibilities and the action she would take if she were to have concerns about a child in her care.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is outstanding. The childminder plans a wide variety of interesting and fun activities and experiences for children of all ages. She involves all children in planning and deciding outings and activities to ensure that they reflect their enthusiasm and interests at any one time. She skilfully juggles the time available to respect children's individual routines whilst also providing opportunities for all children to have fun and pursue their own interests and develop new talents. For example, whilst older children attend after school activity groups, the childminder takes the other children to the local Surestart café where they enjoy having a snack and meeting their friends before going back to collect the other children from their activities.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Parents comment that children love coming to the childminder's house and look forward to their time in her care. Children appear very happily settled and clearly delight in the childminder's company as she joins in enthusiastically with their play activities. For example, children love playing with the box of musical instruments and the childminder joins in, encouraging them to explore what noises the different instruments make. Children are thriving because they have a warm, loving and fun relationship with their childminder and often hug her in the midst of their play activities.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The childminder makes extremely good use of local facilities and amenities to extend children's enjoyment and develop their awareness of what is available to them in their local community. In the summer children visit the local swimming baths and explore the local nature reserves and all children have their own library card and regularly visit the library to choose their own books. Children love to attend groups run at the local Surestart centre or by the childminder support group where they can do a wide variety of activities and meet up with friends from pre-school and school.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000 The childminder explains that as a result of being involved in group situations from a young age, children in her care develop excellent social skills and good manners which enables them to make very successful transitions into pre-school and school and feedback from parent's references confirms this.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

She works closely with parents to provide excellent continuity of care for children and to plan ahead to meet children's learning needs at different stages of their development. For example, she encourages parents to think about where they want their children to go for their funded nursery education and helps them to explore local options giving advice about where they can go for more information.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is outstanding. The childminder has an excellent partnership with parents which ensures that children's care and the support for their development and learning is extremely well informed and consistent. The childminder spends lots of time observing and playing alongside children to enable her to get to know each child well and to provide focused individual care and support for their learning. She encourages children to recognise and value the differences between themselves and others and to understand the need for fairness, sharing and turn-taking so that everyone can benefit from the time they spend in her care. Parents comment that as a result of this approach their children are skilled at sharing and at getting along with children of all ages.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The childminder provides an inclusive service where the needs of all children are valued equally. She explains how she adapts activities to enable all children regardless of age or ability to join in and enjoy themselves. She uses training to update her knowledge about working with children who have particular needs. In addition, she liaises effectively with parents and others such as speech therapists to ensure she provides focused and consistent support for children to promote their development and help them to overcome potential barriers to their learning. Children are also learning about diversity and the similarities and differences between peoples and their cultures through planned activities, through attractive, age appropriate children's books and through playing with resources which give them positive references to diversity.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Children have excellent support in relation to learning about right and wrong and how to manage their behaviour appropriately. A detailed written policy and verbal discussion at the beginning of children's placements ensures that parents are well informed about the childminder's approach to behaviour management and daily discussion enables them to be closely involved. Children are encouraged to feel good about themselves and have confidence in their skills and abilities through praise, reassurance and encouragement. They are clear about boundaries and older children generally act as very good role models for younger children. As a result children behave well, enjoy their time in the childminder's care and are developing very good social skills which help them to interact positively with people of all ages.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The childminder provides a high quality, flexible and well informed service to children and parents. She gives parents a wealth of information about her approach and her policies and procedures and encourages them to discuss all aspects of their child's care with her. She communicates effectively with parents recognising that for some parents this needs to be flexible to reflect their long working hours and adapting her availability accordingly. Feedback from parents provided for the inspection indicates a very high level of satisfaction with the services the childminder provides.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000

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Organisation

The organisation is outstanding. The childminder has excellent organisational skills which she uses very effectively to enable her to provide high standards of care to children and families. She works hard to keep up to date with the changes in early year's legislation and regularly reviews her policies and practices to ensure that they are consistent with the requirements and changes to the National Standards. She makes excellent use of training to develop her childcare knowledge and practices and to extend the range of activities and experiences she provides for children of all ages. She plans ahead to ensure that she is well informed about forthcoming changes to early years work and has already booked on to courses to help her prepare for the Early Years Foundation Stage in 2008.

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Organisation

The childminder regularly reviews how space is used within her home to most effectively meet children's needs. For example, she has recently started to use two upstairs bedrooms for children aged eight and over to enable them to have space to play separately from the younger children respecting their differing needs and ages. She skilfully juggles caring for a number of children of different ages by providing wide ranging and varied activities and experiences and by listening to and consulting with children.

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Organisation

Records, policies and procedures are exceptionally well maintained, regularly reviewed and updated and very well organised. All were available for inspection. These demonstrate the childminder's commitment to high standards and reflect her detailed knowledge of the National Standards as well as her understanding of how to keep children safe and promote their healthy development. Overall, the provision meets the range of the needs of the children for whom it provides.

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Improvements since the last inspection

At the last inspection one recommendation was made relating to obtaining written parental consent for the administration of medication. This has now been followed up and the childminder's medication records are well maintained and demonstrate that the childminder keeps children safe and well by following all the correct procedures for the administration of medication.

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Complaints since the last inspection

Since the last inspection there have been no complaints made to Ofsted that required the provider or Ofsted to take any action in order to meet the National Standards. The provider is required to keep a record of complaints made by parents, which they can see on request. The complaints record may contain complaints other than those made to Ofsted.

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Complaints since the last inspection

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE

On the basis of the evidence collected on this inspection:

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE

The quality and standards of the care are outstanding. The registered person meets the National Standards for under 8s day care and childminding.

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The quality and standards of the care

No recommendations for improvement are made because the quality and standards of care are outstanding.

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The quality and standards of the care

set out in the leaflet Complaints about Ofsted Early Years: concerns or complaints about Ofsted's role in regulating and inspecting childcare and early education (HMI ref no 2599) which is available from Ofsted's website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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The quality and standards of the care

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000

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