Hamilton Academy

Inspection report for early years provision

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137964 Unique Reference Number 29 October 2007 Inspection date Christine Stimson 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 inadequate - notice of action to improve. The registered person does not meet 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 May 1992. She lives with her husband and two adult sons in a house in New Malden, Surrey. Only the ground floor kitchen, sitting room, front bedroom and toilet areas of the property are used for childminding. There is a fully enclosed garden that is shared with the next door neighbours where children can play, supervised by the childminder.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

The childminder is registered to care for a maximum of three children at any one time and is currently caring for one child on a full time basis. The childminder attends a local toddler group each week.

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Helping children to be healthy

The provision is inadequate. Children's health is supported as the childminder has undertaken a first aid course and maintains a well stocked first aid box to deal with minor accidents effectively. However, the first aid box is kept upstairs, which results in a delay in dealing with any accidents. The childminder has

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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 requested permission from parents to seek emergency medical advice if necessary and demonstrated a sound knowledge of how to record any accidents that occur whilst children are in her care. The childminder informs parents verbally that she will not care for children who are ill or infectious, but has not devised a written policy to this effect.

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Helping children to be healthy

Children are developing good hygiene practice whilst in the childminder's care as she is vigilant about children washing their hands before eating and after using the toilet. They have their own flannels to wash and wipe their hands and faces and this helps prevent cross infection.

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Helping children to be healthy

Children enjoy home cooked food whilst in the childminder's care and this is varied and nutritious. Although the childminder knows the children well she has no records on site that indicate their dietary preferences or details of any food allergies. Children are prevented from becoming thirsty because the childminder refreshes children's beakers at regular intervals.

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Helping children to be healthy

Children are taken to the local park and to toddler groups where they access age appropriate equipment to help develop their physical skills. The childminder has none of this equipment as part of her own resources. Children enjoy dancing to music in the childminder's home and go for walks which gives them exercise and fresh air.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is inadequate. The childminder has taken steps to ensure children play in a safe environment. For example, all accessible sockets have covers, there is a stair gate at the bottom of the stairs and across the kitchen entrance, and a fire blanket is hanging in the kitchen in an accessible place. The childminder has no written evacuation plan for her home, but has thought about how she would leave the premises in an emergency; to date she has not practised this with minded children. The childminder does not carry any public liability insurance.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Children play in areas of the home that are clean and well maintained. The house is kept at an adequate temperature, is well lit, ventilated and suitable for children to play. There are sufficient resources for the number of children currently being cared for, but this would need to be increased if any more children came into her care. The toys and equipment are maintained in good repair with the childminder regularly looking out for broken or dirty items to ensure children only play with safe toys.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The childminder is aware of child protection issues and understands her responsibilities if she has a concern about a child in her care. However, she does not have a copy of the Local Safeguarding Children Board guidelines on site, resulting in a possible delay in contacting the appropriate authorities. This compromises children's well being.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is satisfactory. Children play happily at the childminder's home where they self select toys from storage boxes kept at child height. They enjoy weekly outings to a playgroup where they mix with other children of a similar age and have opportunities to use playdough, paints, water and sand; these are activities the childminder does not participate in at home.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children are happy and relaxed whilst in the care of the childminder as they busy themselves playing with puzzles, soft toys, looking at books and using crayons to scribble on colouring

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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 books. Children are encouraged to help tidy away toys before moving onto other activities and they are gaining confidence to speak up when they want something. For example, whilst putting away pieces of a puzzle a child put a piece that depicted a piglet into the wrong box. The childminder removed it. The child took it back and said 'The piggy wants to sleep there'. The puzzle piece was left in the wrong box.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children's vocabulary is encouraged by the childminder as time is spent chatting and talking about the child's home, places they have been and activities they want to do. Children have learnt some of the childminder's native language and are able to use certain phrases in conversation. The childminder does drive, but does not use her car when childminding. This means children experience going on buses and taking lots of walks either on foot or in the pushchair.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is inadequate. Children behave well and are interested in the resources provided. The childminder deals with inappropriate behaviour by using distraction, reasoning and facial expressions with the young children in her care. This results in children who are happy and who are beginning to understand right from wrong.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The resources available to children reflect diversity, which reinforces self-image and children's understanding of other cultures and people with disability. Children attend toddler groups where they socialise with others and experience sharing, possibly for the first time. The childminder is teaching children about her own culture, not only in language terms but by including minded children in the celebrations of festivals such as the feast after Ramadan.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The childminder ensures all children's individual needs are met in accordance with their parents' wishes, but she has no written records to inform her of those needs, relying instead on verbal communication. This means the childminder is not aware of the child's GP, immunisation records, allergies or emergency contact numbers. This compromises children's health and safety. The childminder does not maintain a record of concerns or complaints, which is a breach of regulations, and she has not informed parents of the regulator's details.

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Organisation

The organisation is inadequate. The childminder has failed to ensure all adults over the age of 16 years have been vetted to ensure they are safe to be in the proximity of children. She has some regulatory documentation in place, but does not have children's record forms completed, does not maintain a record of complaints and has no child protection guidelines in place, as a result children's safety is at risk.

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Organisation

The childminder is willing to embrace training opportunities to improve her practice. She organises her home to enable children to play in comfort and makes sure resources are accessible to children. The childminder has established professional and friendly relationships with parents, which contributes to children's well being.

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Organisation

Overall, the childminder does not meet the needs of the children for whom she provides.

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Organisation

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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Improvements since the last inspection

At the last inspection two actions and six recommendations were raised to improve the care for children. Since then limited progress has been made. Children's times of arrival and departure are now recorded in the childminder's diary and she has completed a first aid course which supports children's health. However, she has not undertaken checks on her adult sons who live on the premises to ensure they are safe to be in the close proximity of children. The childminder still has not obtained child protection guidelines to support her practice, but has a record book in place where she can record behavioural incidents. Although there has been some improvement of the regulatory documentation the childminder keeps, there are still items such as child record forms and complaints records that are not maintained. Children's safety is now more secure as the childminder makes sure her smoke alarms are working and has ensured children cannot

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Improvements since the last inspection

access the mirror in the hall or the wires in the study. She now has written permission from parents to seek emergency medical advice or treatment, and although her sick child policy is not written, it is discussed with parents when they agree to leave their child in her care.

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Complaints since the last inspection

Since April 2004 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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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 inadequate - notice of action to improve. The registered person does not meet 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, the registered person must take the following actions: • ensure all household members over the age of 16 years complete Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) checks • ensure records of parents and emergency contact details and G.P. contact details are kept on site • improve knowledge and understanding of child protection in line with the Local Safeguarding Children Board procedures • improve knowledge and understanding of regulations relating to the complaints process These actions are set out in a notice of action to improve and must be completed by the date specified in the notice.

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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 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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