Setting

Inspection report for early years provision

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EY263377 Unique Reference Number 25 July 2007 Inspection date Esther Gray 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 good. 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 was registered in 2003. She lives with her husband and three children aged 14, ten and nine in Harborne, Birmingham. The house is within walking distance of shops, parks and schools. The whole of the ground floor of the childminder’s house is used for childminding and there is a fully enclosed garden for outside play.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

The childminder is registered to care for a maximum of six children at any one time and is currently minding four children on a full time basis. She drives and walks to local schools to take and collect children and attends some local parent and toddler groups. She also visits local areas of interest. The family have no pets.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

The childminder is able to support children with learning difficulties and/or disabilities. She is a member of an approved childminding network, however, is not yet in receipt of funding for early education for three and four-year-olds.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

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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Helping children to be healthy

The provision is outstanding. Children’s health is very effectively promoted. Positive steps are taken to prevent the spread of infection and appropriate measures taken when children are injured or ill so that their health needs are met. The childminder has updated her qualification in first aid well before the expiry time to ensure she is confident in treating children who become ill or are injured. She takes positive steps to promote children’s good health and encourages them to begin to take the responsibility of meeting their own health needs. She encourages their independence in toilet training and in the use of the hand washing facilities by providing a stool for children to reach the sink and paper towels to prevent cross infection. As a result, the health and well-being of children is very well safeguarded.

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Helping children to be healthy

Children enjoy excellent opportunities to experience physical activity and develop their skills. Younger children jump in and out of the ball pool indoors with squeals of delight and enthusiasm. All children enjoy a wide variety of well-planned outdoor activities which promote physical development and a healthy lifestyle. Children are encouraged in their appreciation of fresh air and exercise in all seasons.

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Helping children to be healthy

Children are well nourished. Children enjoy nutritious food, which is well planned in meals and snacks, is displayed in menus made available to parents. The menu includes the option to select vegetarian food, which means all children's individual needs are met. Children have excellent opportunities to learn about healthy eating. Children are helped to enjoy good food and understand why some foods are healthy and others are not. They learn about healthy eating during planned activities, such as cookery, or in the routines where older children prepare their own food. All children are encouraged to enjoy new tastes and textures. They also enjoy spontaneous activities, for example, rolling pastry and making chapattis. They talk about what food is good for the body. As a result, children are developing a very good awareness of factors which influence good outcomes for a healthy lifestyle.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is good. Children’s safety is very well promoted because the registered person takes positive steps to promote safety within the setting and on outings. She ensures proper precautions are taken to prevent accidents and minimise identified risks to children. They are learning to keep themselves safe. Younger children are able to investigate and explore their surroundings safely. They begin to understand there are rules and boundaries that keep them safe. Children use appropriate and safe equipment and they are made aware of the safety of others. For example, older children can exit the property into an enclosed garden area from the dining room, so that areas set aside for younger children are kept safe and dedicated for their use.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Children are well protected from harm because the childminder has a good understanding of her role in child protection. She is able to put appropriate procedures into practice and has a good appreciation and understanding of the various ways concerns are raised. She has covered child protection in several courses she has undertaken and can identify the indicators of abuse. As a result, she is in a good position to safeguard 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

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is outstanding. Children are confident, independent and are developing their self-esteem. They are happy and settled because routines are carefully planned to give children a sense of security in the routine they begin to recognise and become familiar with. Activities are planned to enable children to feel part of the family social group, to be involved with the older children for part of the day as they return from school. There is a very good range of resources which children can explore confidently and independently. The childminder arranges the boxes on rotation into the play room to ensure the space is not too cluttered and provides a wide variety of resources for the children to choose from. She anticipates their needs very well, energetically obtaining more resources and tidying discarded resources away with their help.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

All children have their individual needs met and are developing an excellent range of knowledge and skills because there are well thought out, effective plans, which provide motivating activities and interesting play opportunities that help children achieve very well in all areas. The childminder uses the ‘Birth to three matters’ framework to ensure younger children have a balanced programme of activities which promote their development and encourage a good disposition towards learning. They are encouraged to develop their communication and knowledge, for example, by recognising colour and number through language and gestures. Younger children are able to recognise the colour 'red' and are beginning to count how many balls they have in their hand. The childminder uses her knowledge of the children to plan future activities to promote their development. Children's development is charted and shared with

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

parents and carers. All children enjoy and share stories, songs and rhymes. They enjoy music, expressing themselves enthusiastically, releasing emotion through the variety of sounds they can make with the tom-tom or piano. Older children are provided with sufficient space and resources to relax after school or develop play outdoors and indoors with a good variety of planned activities.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is good. Children are developing good self-esteem and respect for others. They are welcomed and are given sufficient time to settle into the setting so they feel a sense of belonging. They benefit from a calm and supportive approach and learn right from wrong through careful explanation and consistency. Children are encouraged to play together, take turns and share. They behave extremely well in proportion to their level of understanding and maturity because the childminder creates an environment that encourages children to respect boundaries and begin to control their own behaviour. Younger children are particularly well supported as they learn to overcome the frustration of their lack of language. This means children settle well into a calm environment well supported with the use of the childminding assistants.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Good arrangements are made to ensure all children are included. There are sufficient suitable resources and activities to help children learn about a diverse society through their play. The childminder speaks several languages and has a good appreciation of the individual needs of children. This includes dietary and religious requirements and identified special needs, both physical needs and educational needs. This means children have a balanced view about the wider world. All children are valued as individuals which actively promotes inclusion.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Children are developing good relationships with adults and other children in a setting where the childminder works closely with parents and carers to meet individual children’s needs and

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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 ensure they are fully included in the life of the setting. The childminder works well with parents and carers to develop close partnerships so that all children achieve their full potential. However, although there are many very good policies and procedures available to support the childminder in her work, she has no information to support her in ensuring children with communicable illness and disease are excluded for the appropriate amount of time. This means she does not have sufficient information to communicate this effectively to parents, to safeguard children further from cross infection. Parents are given opportunities to express appreciation or raise concerns on a regular basis. As a result, children feel comfortable and settled because they see parents and childminder acting together and giving consistent messages.

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Organisation

The organisation is good. Children are well cared for in a setting where the childminder is suitably qualified and experienced to meet the needs of all children. She is committed to continue to update her skills and knowledge by attending training, having a clear sense of purpose and a commitment to continual improvement. She has nearly completed a course in child care and education to level three and has undertaken a wide variety of courses which protect children and enable her to plan for children effectively to promote their development.

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Organisation

Children benefit from good organisation of the setting. It ensures that children’s health, safety and well-being are well met. The childminder makes good use of the time, space and resources, to ensure children have a stimulating day and are cared for very well. However, because a lot of resources are stored out of children’s reach, they are unable to find, use, and return materials independently and this inhibits the further development of different types of play.

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Organisation

Children are protected from harm as the childminder is aware of the importance of ensuring that all unvetted visitors are suitable and are not left unattended with children in the setting or whilst on outings. Policies and procedures protect children sufficiently. Records are available and retained for inspection. They are well organised and kept confidential. Overall children’s needs are met.

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Improvements since the last inspection

At the last inspection the childminder was asked to develop her knowledge and understanding of child protection procedures and ensure the daily record of children's attendance is kept accurately and up-to-date.

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Improvements since the last inspection

Since the last inspection the provider has continued to update her knowledge on child care and this includes a course on child protection. As a result, she has a good understanding of how to safeguard children in her care. The record of the daily hours of children's attendance is kept diligently and accurately by the childminder. This ensures records reflect when the children are in her care. This safeguards their well-being by demonstrating to parents and carers that, for example, conditions of registration and the ratio of adults to children are met when working alone or with an assistant. Consequently, children's well-being is safeguarded.

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Complaints since the last inspection

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 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.

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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 good. 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

To improve the quality and standards of care further the registered person should take account of the following recommendation(s): • improve the organisation of the way activities are offered to children, to enhance the learning experiences for children • improve information to parents further, for example, by providing information about excluding children who have communicable diseases.

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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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