Childminder in Leeds

Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique Reference Number EY248164 Inspection date 16 September 2005 Inspector Liz Whitehead

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Type of inspection Childcare Type of care Childminding

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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 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 has been registered since March 2003. She lives with her husband and three children, a son aged 5 and daughters aged 7 and 10, in Leeds. There is a park, shops and a library within walking distance. The ground floor and first floor bathroom are used for childminding and there is an enclosed garden available for outside play. The family have a dog and a rabbit. The childminder is registered to care for a maximum of four children at any one time and is currently minding nine children on a part time basis. She takes the children to the toddler group, which she now runs, playgroup and attends the story time at the

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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 library on a regular basis. She takes and collects children from the local school and nursery. She is a member of the National Childminding Association.

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Helping children to be healthy

The provision is outstanding. The childminder actively promotes children's and parent's awareness of eating five portions of fruit and vegetables a day. She meticulously plans and prepares fun activities to fully encourage children to choose healthy options. They have successfully tried fruit tasting including more unusual fruits such as tropical fruits. All children enjoyed this and eat more fruit on a daily basis, one child now really enjoys grapes and strawberries, which he would not try before. To ensure that children also learn about the benefits of fresh vegetables they enjoyed making soup. Children are consulted and fully involved at all stages including in the shopping where they are able to pick their own fruits and vegetables. To further develop this the childminder has a number of posters displayed in the kitchen. She is also in the process of organising a food and nutrition course for local childminders to help raise their

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Helping children to be healthy

awareness of how they can best promote healthy eating with children of all ages. Children have a very good understanding about the needs of their bodies and are able to successfully recognise when they are thirsty. They all have a drink, which they are able to freely access throughout the day. To reduce the spread of infection their cups and plates are colour coded and each child has the same colour every day to ensure that they know which is theirs. The childminder significantly enhances all aspects of children's health and hygiene. She has a list of the infectious notifiable diseases, and does not care for children when they are ill, which reduces the risk of cross infection. The children are very familiar with the consistent routines for hand washing and eagerly do this before having a snack. They proudly state that they need to always wash their hands before meals and after using the toilet to have clean

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Helping children to be healthy

hands and to make sure there are no germs. The childminder robustly observes very good hygiene practice when changing nappies and when preparing snacks. There are extensive opportunities on a daily basis for children to have fresh air and lots of exercise. They enthusiastically talk about taking the dog for a walk, going to the park, and how good they are at climbing trees. The children are extremely confident, have a well developed sense of space and are able to skilfully manoeuvre around furniture safely. The youngest child spontaneously and successfully crawls under the table to retrieve a toy that her friend has dropped.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is outstanding. Ensuring that children are fully aware of and understand fire safety is of paramount importance to the childminder. She has devised a comprehensive written fire plan, which is practised and recorded each month to raise children's awareness of the

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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 emergency evacuation procedure. There are smoke alarms fitted on each level of the property and a fire blanket is easily accessible in the kitchen. The children thoroughly enjoyed when the fire fighters came to the childminder's home, in a fire engine, to do a safety check and to install the smoke alarms in the most effective places. The childminder is highly motivated and to recognise and celebrate fire safety week she has organised for the children to visit a fire station and to talk to the fire fighters. Children are kept safe both indoors and outdoors through the childminder's exceptional knowledge of possible hazards. She actively takes steps to reduce risks to children and has relevant equipment in place such as safety gates and a fire guard. She explains to the children why these are necessary. A well stocked first aid

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

box is located in the kitchen and a separate one available in the car for use on outings. She accompanies the older child to the bathroom and also takes the younger child. This ensures that children are not left unsupervised and are not exposed to harm. She also uses this as a valuable learning experience for the younger child as she encourages her to go on the potty. The childminder is very busy organising events for road safety week including a speaker to come into the group that she runs to talk to the children to further their existing understanding and awareness of safety. Very effective systems are in place to ensure that children cannot leave the premises unaccompanied and they are only collected by authorised adults. A mobile telephone and written contact numbers are always taken on outings to ensure that parents can be contacted at all times. The childminder fully protects children in her care as she

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

has good underpinning knowledge and follows correct procedures when dealing with child protection concerns.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is good. The children share a very warm and loving relationship with the childminder and they each receive lots of cuddles and attention. Very good interaction takes place and the children really benefit from the quality time that they spend with the childminder. She continually asks the children questions to make them think and also to encourage their memory recollection. Such as when looking at books they talk about when they went on a train. This discussion then digresses and they talk about what they had for breakfast and what they would like for their lunch. The childminder happily follows the children's lead and develops their imagination by encouraging them to discuss things of interest to them. The children excitedly talk about making hand prints this morning. One child proudly explains how he put his hands in the paint and then onto the paper. Children's language and mathematical concepts are well developed. They

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

spontaneously and confidently sing happy birthday and then horsey horsey don't you stop when sitting on the rocking horse. They all spend a long time doing jigsaws and looking at picture cards. The childminder skilfully encourages children to look closely at the pictures by asking questions about small details in them. They learn many concepts from spontaneous activities such as building a brick tower together. They

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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 talk about the colours, how high they are building it and if it is as high as the tower that they built yesterday. To ensure that all preparation work is appropriately completed and that activities are of interest and learning value for children the childminder has basic written play plans based on themes. These all have a specific focus which she intends children to learn such as colours. To help them develop new skills the childminder cleverly introduces these in play situations. The youngest child enjoys putting her doll on the potty. This then becomes a familiar routine and encourages her with her own toilet training. Children thoroughly enjoy exploring and investigating both the home and outdoor environment. They regularly travel by train and visit places of interest such as the

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

farm, York, and the Royal Armouries to see an exhibition of knights and Princesses. They are developing a sense of wonder and amazement at the natural world. They are very keen to talk about going to the park, finding conkers and how the leaves are all different colours.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is good. Children are developing a good understanding about responsible behaviour and are learning right from wrong. The childminder consistently offers the children meaningful praise and includes all the children when giving out stickers. She ensures that she works with the parents to achieve a consistent approach to managing inappropriate behaviour and has found that this works very effectively. The children behave well and happily help to tidy the toys away. The childminder skilfully makes this a fun activity and they all sing a tidy up song from Barney. The childminder develops very trusting relationships with parents. She produces a monthly newsletter to keep them fully informed of the service that she provides and the themes and activities for that month. She also photocopies useful information for all parents such as articles regarding healthy eating. At the end of each term the

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Helping children make a positive contribution

parents all receive a detailed file of their child's work, photographs and records of development which ensures that they are fully aware of their child's care and development. The children and parents are strongly encouraged to attend settling in visits to ensure that they feel settled and secure and look forward to their time at the childminders. To actively raise children's awareness of the diversity of their local community and the wider world the childminder celebrates a wide range of festivals. These include Chinese New Year and the German Karnival Festival which is held in February. She varies the festivals that she introduces to the children each year to ensure that they have a knowledge of as broad a spectrum as possible. She plans a range of activities to familiarise children with the needs of others. They will again be holding a coffee morning to raise money for cancer relief. She explains to the children within their

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Helping children make a positive contribution

level of understanding why they are doing this. She also provides opportunities for the local community to be involved and has written to Asda as they endorse the scheme.

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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 Children's individual and differing needs are effectively met as the childminder consistently works with the parents and fully involves children in making choices and decisions. She follows the children's own routines and ensures that she spends time with them individually and also in group situations.

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Organisation

The organisation is good. The childminder is dedicated to providing quality care for children and demonstrates a sound understanding of the National Standards and the supporting criteria. Prospective parents receive a comprehensive pack of information. This includes policies and procedures which are unique to the setting, forms to complete, and a copy of references from previous families that she has cared for. She continually increases and updates her knowledge and skills through accessing relevant training courses. Some of the required documentation is not available for inspection although those available are maintained accurately. The toys and equipment are very well organised in boxes and on low shelving units in the conservatory. This enables children to regularly make decisions and to freely access them. Further toys are available and are used on a rota basis to constantly present new challenges to the children and to prevent them from becoming bored. A

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Organisation

good selection of toys and books are available and this includes reference books such as a dictionary. The children are cared for in a warm and welcoming home by appropriate adults who have had all relevant checks completed. Effective systems that are rigidly implemented are in place to ensure that children are not left alone with any one who has not undergone the vetting procedure. Therefore, overall, the provision meets the needs of children who attend.

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Improvements since the last inspection

Since the last inspection the childminder has increased her knowledge and awareness of the infectious notifiable diseases and now has a list to refer to. She has also implemented the required written parental consent forms further promoting the overall safety of children.

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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

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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 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): • ensure that records are maintained for a minimum period of two years and are available for inspection at all times.

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The quality and standards of the care

procedures set out in the leaflet Building better childcare: Compliments and concerns about inspectors' judgements 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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