Childminder in East Sussex

Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY385852 Inspection date 23/10/2009 Inspector Stacey Sangster

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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 2008. She lives in a terraced house in a residential area of Eastbourne with her partner and adult son. The ground floor is made available to minded children for play and there is a dedicated play room and regular access to the garden which is well stocked with play equipment and resources. The childminder has two children on her books, one of whom is in the early years age range. The childminder is registered on the Early Years Register, the compulsory part of the Childcare Register and the voluntary part of the Childcare Register. She may care for up to six children of whom three may be in the early years age range.

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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 enjoy their time in the care of this childminder. She is dedicated to ensuring that each child has a tailor made routine designed to make the most of their time with her and focus on fun ways to promote their development and welfare and this result in children making good progress in all six areas of learning. The childminder works well with parents and understands her role in working with others. She has good self-evaluation skills and a strong commitment to continually improving her practices.

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further?

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

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further?

 improve the record of risk assessment so that it reflects the practice in place for assessing risks and includes information about the risks identified, the actions taken to minimise the risk, the frequency that this needs to be checked, the date of review and any action taken following a review or incident (Documentation) 30/11/2009

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further?

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

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further?

 consider including the observations shared by parents that are noted to assist planning, in the formal assessment of children's progress to ensure that the assessment is as full and accurate as possible  use the benchmarking of children's progress and development to review the strengths and weaknesses of the delivery of the EYFS This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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the early years provision

Safeguarding children is given high priority by this childminder and is effective in keeping them safe as well supporting their understanding of risk and how to begin to manage this. She has a good knowledge of child protection and her role and responsibility in regard to this, this is explained clearly in a written policy, which she shares with parents.

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the early years provision

The childminder is qualified and highly experienced having worked in childcare for many years. She has developed an excellent understanding of the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS), knows how children are motivated to learn and demonstrates a comprehensive knowledge of child development in general. The toys and resources are exceptionally well used to support children learning. Children are able to access a wide range of activities, games and play materials which the childminder then uses to support whichever area she is targeting in her plans to promote the child's next developmental step. She is creative and thoughtful in her organisation and supply of activities, for example adding glitter to the water tray to prolong the child's interest and facilitate discussions about the light reflecting on the tray, their hands and items in the water.

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the early years provision

Children's progress is monitored very closely, linking their achievements to the EYFS and from this identifies what children's next developmental or educational step is likely to be. She used this information to plan activities which will support children's development and target these next steps. The childminder is keenly aware that all children are unique and at all times plans and provides activities, bearing this in mind. Although she benchmarks children's progress informally to identify that they are making progress as expected for their age, this is not currently recorded. As such, she is less able to use the assessment of the children's progress to identify the strengths and weaknesses in her delivery of the six areas of learning as part of her self-assessment process.

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the early years provision

The childminder is very committed to ongoing improvement. She continually reflects on what she does and makes changes to her systems and practices in order to improve upon them. She has joined local childminding groups and liaises with other professionals to help keep up to date with the requirements and ideas about good practice. She receives guidance, updates and information from the local authority but has not always used this effectively to support her practice; for example, she had detail on file, of clear guidance with regard to how to record risk assessments and although, in practice, her arrangements are thorough and protect children well, the method she devised for recording this, does not cover key elements and as such her record of risk assessment does not meet requirements.

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the early years provision

The childminder has established a very successful partnership with the parent of the child that she minds and as a result they work together to support the child's development, both focusing on key areas at the same time. This enhances the child's opportunities to consolidate their learning and enjoy consistent support to reach their next developmental goal. Parents' contributions are encouraged, valued and noted so that they can be included in ideas for future planning. The This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 childminder keeps the parent observations in mind when assessing children's progress, but has not yet incorporated these formally within the record of assessment. The child does not attend any other provider of the EYFS, the childminder is aware of the need to establish partnerships with other EYFS providers if taking on the care of a child who attends other settings.

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and outcomes for children

Good quality routines and interaction help children to feel safe and secure when in the care of this childminder. She provides children with opportunities to explore and investigate in a safe environment, while providing them with gentle reminders about behaviour and practices which will keep them safe. Children are encouraged to develop an understanding of safety and how to manage risks. The childminder talks to them about road safety when they are out and about and familiarises them with concepts such as stranger danger. The children know that some 'jobs' such as opening the front door or the gate out of the garden are the childminder's responsibility and that it is not safe for them to do this.

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and outcomes for children

Good hygiene routines and the development of a positive attitude to fresh air and exercise help children to understand the benefits of adopting healthy lifestyles. The childminder provides a good role model for children and is enthusiastic about outside play and trips to the park to 'get out in the nice fresh air' the children are encouraged to be active indoors as well as out. The child at the visit enjoyed dancing with the childminder to the beat of an electric drum and following her example and instructions to try taking 'big steps…little steps, tip toe steps…fast and slow steps'.

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and outcomes for children

The childminder encourages minded children to make healthy choices with regard to food and fruit is always freely available. Children eat from place mats covered in pictures of healthy foods, which acts as a prompt at mealtime to discuss which foods are good for you and which need to be eaten in moderation. Singing songs about hand washing and the reasons for it, while they wash hands, as well as making it fun, helps children to remember the purpose of good hygiene so that they are motivated to do this unprompted.

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and outcomes for children

Children take pride in the environment, which is rich in examples of their work and photos of them at play. They enjoy pointing out drawings that they have done, and delight in seeing a new set of photos of them for example illustrating the steps they took to make pizza the week before. As well as enjoying looking at themselves in the photos this helps children to recall activities and re-open discussions about what they learned in the original activity. Children are secure and are supported effectively to establish a sense of belonging.

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and outcomes for children

Children behave well for the childminder, she gets to know them well and identifies what will motivate them, she uses smiley face charts, positive reinforcement of good behaviour and reinforcing simple expectations which take into account children's individual age and level of understanding. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 The childminder plans activities to help children to develop a love of books by noting the elements of stories and reading that they enjoy, such as when the childminder uses different voices and includes in her plans extensions of this in the form of story sacks to link books with other elements of play she knows that they will enjoy. She counts with them all the time, using whatever is around her in the environment, resulting in children spontaneously counting as they observe and compare the numbers of items around them. Children are encouraged to work

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and outcomes for children

things out for themselves and to enjoy being independent. They are praised for trying to do things and provided with verbal instructions and guidance before any hands on help, so that children have every opportunity to master skills for themselves.

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and outcomes for children

The children make very good progress in all areas of the EYFS while in the care of this childminder. She provides a fun, stimulating and challenging range of play opportunities and helps children to become creative, inquisitive and motivated learners. 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 1 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 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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