Childminder in Trafford

Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY319108 Inspection date 11/01/2010 Inspector Lynda, Margaret Ronan

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Type of setting Childminder to achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children's social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, work-based learning and skills training, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It rates council children’s services, and inspects services for looked after children, safeguarding and child protection. If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 08456 404040, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may copy all or parts of this document for non-commercial educational purposes, as long as you give details of the source and date of publication and do not alter the information in any way.

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Royal Exchange Buildings St Ann's Square Manchester M2 7LA

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T: 08456 404040 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.ofsted.gov.uk This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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Introduction

This inspection was carried out by Ofsted under Sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 on the quality and standards of the registered early years provision. ‘Early years provision’ refers to provision regulated by Ofsted for children from birth to 31 August following their fifth birthday (the early years age group). The registered person must ensure that this provision complies with the statutory framework for children’s learning, development and welfare, known as the Early Years Foundation Stage.

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Introduction

The provider must provide a copy of this report to all parents with children at the setting where reasonably practicable. The provider must provide a copy of the report to any other person who asks for one, but may charge a fee for this service (The Childcare (Inspection) Regulations 2008 regulations 9 and 10).

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Introduction

The setting also makes provision for children older than the early years age group which is registered on the voluntary and/or compulsory part(s) of the Childcare Register. This report does not include an evaluation of that provision, but a comment about compliance with the requirements of the Childcare Register is included in Annex B.

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Introduction

Please see our website for more information about each childcare provider. We publish inspection reports, conditions of registration and details of complaints we receive where we or the provider take action to meet the requirements of registration. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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Description of the childminding

The childminder was registered in 2005. She lives in the West Timperley district of Trafford with her husband and two children, aged four and two. 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. The family has a pet dog which does not come into contact with minded children. The childminder is registered to care for four children at any one time and is currently caring for six children, all of whom are in the Early Years Register age range and attend on a part-time basis. The childminder is also registered on the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Overall the quality of the provision is good.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Children thoroughly enjoy their time with the childminder and are making significant progress in their learning. The uniqueness of children is valued and their individual care needs are well met. The childminder's communication with parents is good and effectively supports children's well-being. The childminder has an accurate understanding of the strengths of her provision and takes effective action to constantly improve the service to children.

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further?

To fully meet the specific requirements of the EYFS, the registered person must:

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further?

 take the necessary steps to safeguard children by including in the safeguarding policy a procedure to follow in the event of an allegation being made against the childminder or a member of staff (Safeguarding and promotion of children's welfare). 29/01/2010

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further?

To further improve the early years provision the registered person should:

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further?

 promote equality of opportunities by proactively involving parents in their child's education, for example by recording starting points.

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the early years provision

The childminder effectively organises her childminding service to meet the needs of the children in her care. The childminder's written policies and procedures are followed well in her daily practice with the children and, in general, they provide parents and carers with a helpful insight into the service provided. However, the safeguarding policy is confusing and is incomplete, breaching requirements. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 Children are safeguarded, as the childminder has attended recent training in safeguarding and has a secure knowledge of how to safeguard the welfare of the children for whom she cares. The documentation relating to the care and development of the children is maintained to a high standard.

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the early years provision

Children are very safe in the childminder's care. Her risk assessments are very thorough and accurately identify hazards in the home and outside. She closely supervises children at all times and takes sensible precautionary measures, as well as enabling children to become responsible for their own safety. For example, she involves children in role-play designed to help them practise skills needed to cross the road safely, and provides high visibility jackets for children when they are on trips outside of the home.

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the early years provision

The childminder welcomes all children and has a very good understanding of how to ensure that they are included; for example, by varying the activities to ensure that all children are able to take part. The children benefit from her individual attention, developing a close relationship with the childminder, who knows them extremely well.

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the early years provision

Parents receive good information about the setting and their child's progress through weekly observations of what their child can do, discussions about their child's day, a daily sheet of events and achievements that is individual to each child, and a white board displaying timetables of group and individual activities. Parents do not have formal opportunities to contribute to the planning and assessment of their child's progress. The childminder's strong partnerships built with others, such as the local children's centre, fully support the optimum progress of all children. The childminder's very good knowledge of the children leads to children's needs being met well and in a consistent manner.

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the early years provision

The childminder evaluates the strengths of her setting and the areas she wishes to develop further very accurately, and she is very committed to providing an excellent service. She reflects on her practice, which has resulted in effective action being taken to improve the service. She has, for example, removed biscuits form the snack menu in favour of healthy snacks following training in oral health. She attends training on a very regular basis and in 2009 attained a level 3 qualification in childcare, learning and development.

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and outcomes for children

Children make outstanding progress in their development and learning. The childminder has an excellent understanding of how children learn and she uses this knowledge effectively to provide them with an extensive range of appropriately challenging activities, both in the home and outdoors. As a result, children are active and enthusiastic learners.

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and outcomes for children

The childminder skilfully uses first-hand experiences, models behaviours for them, and challenges them to think and problem solve by asking open questions. Children gain social skills and learn to observe and explore differences and This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 similarities. They use paint and other media to express themselves and to gain physical dexterity, and their work is valued and displayed in the lounge area.

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and outcomes for children

Children are very well supported to learn independently by an appropriate mixture of child-led and adult-supported activities. Plentiful and good-quality resources are all at child height and available to children. Children, for example, play with dinosaurs in a large tray area with natural resources of tree branches and leaves; they look up what type of dinosaur they are playing with in reference materials and count how many they can find amongst the undergrowth, ably supported by the childminder's open questions, which leads to a discussion of size and shape.

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and outcomes for children

The childminder has excellent systems for observation, planning and assessment in place, which enables her to provide each individual child with challenges that promote optimum progress in their development and learning. She shares with parents her observations of their child, which are securely linked to the areas of learning from the Early Years Foundation Stage curriculum which have been covered that week. She also uses a daily diary for each child which, together with the shared observations, provides parents with useful information as to what their child is doing and how they are progressing. The assessment of each child is accurate, up-to-date and provides good information about what each child can do and which areas of learning need additional support.

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and outcomes for children

Overall, children are happy, confident and settled in the care of the childminder, and they are very effectively developing skills, which contributes to their development and well-being. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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Annex A: record of inspection judgements

The key inspection judgements and what they mean

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Annex A: record of inspection judgements

Grade 1 is Outstanding: this aspect of the provision is of exceptionally high quality Grade 2 is Good: this aspect of the provision is strong Grade 3 is Satisfactory: this aspect of the provision is sound Grade 4 is Inadequate: this aspect of the provision is not good enough

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children in the Early Years Foundation Stage?

The capacity of the provision to maintain continuous improvement

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and managed?

The effectiveness of leadership and management in embedding ambition and driving improvement The effectiveness with which the setting deploys resources 2 The effectiveness with which the setting promotes equality and diversity The effectiveness of safeguarding 3 The effectiveness of the setting’s self-evaluation, including the steps taken to promote improvement The effectiveness of partnerships 1 The effectiveness of the setting’s engagement with parents and carers

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Stage

The quality of the provision in the Early Years Foundation Stage 2

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Stage

The extent to which children achieve and enjoy their learning 1 The extent to which children feel safe 2 The extent to which children adopt healthy lifestyles 2 The extent to which children make a positive contribution 2 The extent to which children develop skills for the future 2

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Stage

procedures set out in the guidance available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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Annex B: the Childcare Register

The provider confirms that the requirements of the compulsory part of the Childcare Register are: Met

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Annex B: the Childcare Register

The provider confirms that the requirements of the voluntary part of the Childcare Register are: Met

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