Childminder in Reading

Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY339211 Inspection date 31/03/2010 Inspector Caroline Hearn

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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 0300 123 1231, 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: 0300 123 1231 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 2006. She lives with her partner and children aged four and 11 years in Reading, Berkshire. Most childminding takes place on the ground floor. There is a fully enclosed rear garden for outside play.

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Description of the childminding

The childminder is registered on the Early Years Register and both the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. She may provide care for a maximum of five children at any one time, of whom two may be in the early years age group. There are currently five children on roll, aged between four months and ten years. The childminder cares for children who have English as an additional language. The childminder is also a community childminder, this role entails her supporting looked after children and their families. The childminder walks to local schools to take and collect children. The family has one pet cat.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Overall the quality of the provision is outstanding.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Children thrive in the care of this childminder and show an obvious enjoyment and closeness in their interactions with her. The childminder strives to develop her practice and demonstrates an excellent understanding of the need to reflect on this to ensure her high standards are maintained. As a result of her precise attention to detail and ability to tailor activities to best meet children's individual needs, all children are making good to outstanding progress in their learning and development.

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further?

To further improve the high quality early years provision the registered person should consider:

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further?

 encouraging parents to include their observations of children's home learning in the development records.

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the early years provision

The childminder has a comprehensive knowledge of safeguarding. She has undertaken extensive training to support her work as a community childminder. To promote day-to-day safety she conducts comprehensive risk assessments of her premises and all outings undertaken, keeping a detailed record and reviewing this regularly. A full range of relevant policies and all required documentation support the daily management of her provision. As a result of all these actions, children are safeguarded exceptionally well.

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the early years provision

The childminder has an excellent understanding of how to reflect on her practice to This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 ensure this meets the ongoing needs of the children and their families. Since her last inspection, she has undertaken 22 training courses, including a level three childcare qualification, and confidently uses the knowledge gained from these to develop her practice to the outstanding level she has now achieved. Equality and diversity are extremely well promoted and each child's individual needs are considered. She may for example buy dual language books to read to children who have English as an additional language.

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the early years provision

The childminder engages extremely well with parents and other professionals, establishing excellent two-way communications with them. She makes every effort to seek their views on her provision and parents regularly visit on a Saturday for an informal chat and chance to talk about any concerns in a relaxed way. To keep parents involved the childminder writes regular newsletters and each child's development folder is sent home for parents to view at the end of each week. The parents do not currently make comments in these regarding their children's learning at home. That aside, the partnership with parents is promoted outstandingly well.

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the early years provision

Children are provided with a wealth of resources. These are stored at their height and are freely accessible. The childminder has developed a selection of natural resources such as treasure baskets for babies to explore. The childminder carefully considers each resource to ensure it provides the best learning opportunities for the children. This includes buying dual language toys so children can hear songs in their home language as well as English.

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and outcomes for children

Children form close and trusting relationships with the childminder. The childminder is skilled at noticing children's body language as well as spoken requests. This is particularly evident in her interaction with babies when she notices their babbling and facial expressions, knowing when they have had enough of an activity or just want a cuddle. The childminder encourages babies to explore toys; a baby playing with a bell learns how they can shake this to make noise. Children undertake a wide range of activities across all of the areas of learning. There are plenty of opportunities for outdoor learning and development records show pictures of babies sat in autumn leaves, showing clear delight exploring the textures of these.

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and outcomes for children

The childminder maintains highly detailed development records and these contain an exceptional amount of information. Each folder has an explanation of the Early Years Foundation Stage and why the childminder is keeping the records that she does. These folders then go on to plot each child's stage of development and plans for furthering this in exceptional detail. These give the parents a detailed understanding of their child's progress whilst with the childminder.

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and outcomes for children

The childminder has exceptionally good resources, which she uses to promote diversity and give children an understanding of the needs of others. These include small figures of people in wheelchairs or those with differing cultural backgrounds. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 The childminder uses these to talk about why someone would be in a wheelchair or to explore different cultures. Children also explore each other's cultures, such as having a French café day, eating French food and learning some French words. These exceptionally well thought out activities give children excellent opportunities to explore issues of diversity and the wider world.

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and outcomes for children

The childminder uses discussion to support the management of children's behaviour. Older children will be asked to consider how their actions make others feel. The childminder also uses resources to help children express their feelings and has mood dolls with happy or sad faces, allowing the children to select a doll that shows how they feel. This supports young children in expressing their feelings or just discussing what makes us happy or sad. This comprehensive range of methods results in children being highly considerate to the needs of others.

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and outcomes for children

Children learn how to keep themselves safe through simple yet effective activities such as stopping and looking before crossing the road. For older children the childminder has a range of children's books that explore stranger danger. The childminder uses these for discussions with the children about how they can keep themselves safe.

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and outcomes for children

Good health and hygiene are very well promoted. Each baby has their own bedding, older children have their own towels/flannels, and pictures at child height in the bathroom promote the importance of hand washing. These simple yet effective measures help prevent the spread of infection. The childminder encourages children to have a balanced diet and provides the children with home cooked meals. To enable them to understand where our food comes from she also takes them on trips to local farms in the summer to pick fresh produce. 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 1 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 1

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Stage

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

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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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