Childminder in Westmorland and Furness

Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number 317205 Inspection date 01/10/2009 Inspector Diane Roberts

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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 2000. She lives with her husband and child aged 10 years in Kirkby Thore, Penrith, Cumbria, close to schools, parks and public transport links. The whole of the childminder's home is used for childminding. There is an enclosed garden available for outside play. She has two dogs as pets.

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Description of the childminding

The childminder is registered for a maximum of six children under eight years at any one time; of whom, no more than three may be in the early years age range. She is currently minding five children in this age group. She also offers care to children aged five years to 11 years. The childminder is registered by Ofsted on the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register.

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Description of the childminding

The childminder collects children from the local school and organises and attends several toddler and music groups regularly. She is a member of the National Childminding Association.

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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 are cared for in a safe, secure and welcoming family home, where they make good progress in their learning. Effective arrangements exist to ensure children's safety and health and encourage their involvement in their school and wider community. Strong links with parents help to involve them in their children’s care and education, and they are kept very well informed of their children’s progress. The childminder has an accurate understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of her provision and takes effective steps to improve it.

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further?

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

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further?

 make sure all records of risk assessments clearly state when carried out, by whom, the date of review and any action taken following a review or incident (Suitable premises, environment and equipment). 13/11/2009

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further?

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

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further?

 develop a systematic and routine approach to using observations to inform planning. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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the early years provision

The childminder has a good understanding of safeguarding children and has established clear responsibilities in relation to child protection and the procedures to follow with any concerns. Effective partnership working with parents and others and the childminder's commitment to making sure her knowledge of child protection issues is kept up to date further helps to protect children from harm. Policies, procedures and strategies are effective in ensuring children's safety and promoting equality and diversity. Risk assessments are in place with regard to the childminder's home and for outings to ensure children's safety whilst in her care. However, they do not include when and by whom they have been checked which is a specific legal requirement. The childminder organises her home well so children are able to move around freely and self-select from a good range of toys and equipment that are fully suitable and safe. This means the indoor environment

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the early years provision

is homely enough to feel comfortable for children while providing an environment suitable for learning.

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the early years provision

The childminder strives for continuous improvement to provide high quality care and education. She makes sure she makes the most of training opportunities with regard to equality and diversity and ensures she keeps informed and updated through attending appropriate workshops and through her own research. The childminder's assessment of her provision shows she has a clear understanding of the strengths and areas for improvement of her service. Strong partnerships are in place with parents who speak most highly of the childminder. For instance, they believe their children are ‘happy and confident’ with the childminder and have developed ‘good skills’. They consider the childminder's care of their children is 'never less than excellent’ and she is ‘very friendly and approachable’ and ‘extremely flexible and adaptive' to children's needs. Parents especially like that the childminder enhances their children's 'life experiences'. The childminder makes

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the early years provision

sure there are frequent opportunities to encourage parents to be involved in supporting their children’s learning and development, for example, through sharing plans and daily diaries. Inclusive practice is fully promoted so that all children’s welfare needs are met and all achieve as well as they can by the childminder consistently promoting equality and making sure all children and parents are treated fairly in practice. The childminder makes very good use of outside resources and local facilities to promote children's learning. She has successful liaisons with other providers delivering the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) to ensure children's progression and continuity of learning and care. Letters from schools compliment the childminder saying how ‘trustworthy and organised’ she is with regard to the minded children and that she can be relied upon to be ‘impartial and competent’. The letters further state that ‘children have settled well’ in the

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the early years provision

school and staff at the school have a ‘good professional relationship’ with her. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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and outcomes for children

Children appear happy, relaxed and secure in this welcoming homely setting. They have an excellent rapport with the childminder who uses much natural conversation to promote children’s communication skills. A wide selection of activities, discussion, books and stories helps children develop empathy and learn about the needs and views of others whilst developing mutual respect. The childminder’s use of consistent praise and encouragement means children are most confident in expressing their feelings and ideas. They behave well, knowing what is expected through familiar routines, explanations and clear boundaries. Regular visits to toddler groups help them learn to share and take turns as they play with others of a similar age.

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and outcomes for children

The childminder knows children very well as individuals and has a good knowledge of child development and the early learning goals. This means children make good progress in relation to their starting points. Information from observation and assessment is generally used to plan for individuals, ensuring that each child is offered an enjoyable and challenging experience across the areas of learning, tailored specifically to their needs and abilities. However, as yet the childminder’s approach is not always routine or systematic with regard to everyday observations informing planning. Children are encouraged to learn through everyday activities, both in and out of doors and build on all the things they have already experienced and experience new and interesting challenges. They have the freedom to explore to their own satisfaction and extend their own play and learning. The childminder is mindful of each child’s individual learning style and makes sure all activities

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and outcomes for children

include all areas of learning. For instance, children are fascinated to learn how a washing machine works when undergoing a spin cycle. They are encouraged to use their senses and listen to the changes in the noise the machine makes as the spin speed increases and then slows before it comes to a halt. When helping with hanging out the washing, children learn how the wind helps to dry the articles and how drying them outdoors helps to save electricity by not using a tumble dryer. Children successfully match the colour of pegs to the colour of the articles, counting as they go and predicting how many pegs are needed for each article. Children learn about sustainability through the childminder’s sound commitment to growing food, such as peppers, potatoes and tomatoes and are developing an understanding about not being wasteful through actions and discussions.

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and outcomes for children

Children enjoy a healthy lifestyle. They are starting to make choices in what they eat from nutritious options for snacks and meals and have daily opportunities for fresh air and exercise, including garden play and walks where they practise large muscle skills. Children are knowledgeable of hygienic routines, such as washing hands before eating. Lots of good quality visual displays in the kitchen remind children about healthy food options and using knives and forks. Children excitedly say, 'yummy' when they hear it is fruit yogurt for pudding. The childminder skilfully creates a calm atmosphere at lunchtime to encourage children in their eating and help towards healthy digestive systems. Children are starting to become aware of numbers through everyday experiences, such as counting how many bites they have of a sandwich or how many grapes they would like. Skilful questioning by the This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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and outcomes for children

childminder extends children’s learning. For example, 'Can you remember what colour grapes we had yesterday?' instigates conversation about the different types of grapes available. Children are developing fine motor skills. For instance, after choosing their own bunch of grapes they dexterously use fine pincer movements to separate the grapes from the stalks before eating. 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 2 The effectiveness of the setting’s self-evaluation, including the steps taken to promote improvement The effectiveness of partnerships 2 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 2 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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