Childminder in North Northamptonshire

Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY246687 Inspection date 14/05/2010 Inspector Jane Wakelen

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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 2002. She lives with her husband and three children aged 14, 10 and 18 months in Rainham, Kent. The whole ground floor of the house is used for childminding and there is a fully enclosed garden for outside play.

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Description of the childminding

The childminder is registered to care for a maximum of five 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 two children in this age group. She also offers care to children aged over five years to 11 years. This provision is registered by Ofsted on the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register.

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Description of the childminding

The childminder walks to local schools to take and collect children. The childminder attends the local parent and toddler group.

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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 make excellent progress in their development because the childminder has an extensive knowledge of the Early Years Foundation Stage learning and development requirements. She provides stimulating activities and experiences to help children develop in all six areas of learning, using a vast range of high quality play resources. Parents are fully involved with their children's learning and are encouraged to contribute to the assessment process, to ensure children's individual needs are met. The childminder has an exceptionally professional approach to the service she provides and constantly monitors and assesses her practice through observations and the completion of the self-evaluation form. This process reflects the childminder's total commitment to improving her service to promote excellent outcomes for children.

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further?

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

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further?

 continue to develop the observation and assessment process to identify children's next steps in their development and use this to inform future planning.

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the early years provision

The childminder gives high priority to safeguarding children in her care. She has a written policy in place which is shared with parents, to keep them informed about her role in relation to protecting children in her care. Secure procedures are in This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 place for the safe arrival and collection of children, including written consent from parents to take children on outings and on public transport. The childminder has completed comprehensive risk assessments for her home, garden and outings and reviews these on a regular basis to ensure all hazards are identified and minimised.

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the early years provision

The childminder has an extensive range of good quality resources which are stored in clearly labelled boxes, using words and pictures. These are stored in outside storage due to space requirements, where children are able to accompany the childminder to make choices or requests. The childminder ensures children always have a wide variety of resources that are easily accessible, and rotates the toys to provide variety. The childminder has an excellent understanding about child development and regularly attends additional training to keep her skills and knowledge up to date.

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the early years provision

All children are valued and treated with respect by the childminder who ensures all children's individual needs are identified and met. She has a wonderful range of resources to reflect positive images of diversity, including photographs of all the children she has cared for. Children enjoy looking at the photographs, giving them a sense of belonging and raising their self esteem. Children have fabulous opportunities to learn about different celebrations from around the world, through books, jigsaws and discussion to find where the countries are on the world place mat.

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the early years provision

The childminder promotes partnership with the parents and ensures good relationships are established to provide continuity of care for the children. Parents are kept fully informed about their child's daily routine and activities through the use of the contact book, with opportunities to make comments if necessary. They are invited to see their child's assessment records on a regular basis and to contribute to this process when possible, to ensure an accurate picture of children's stage of development. Parents provide written consent for aspects of care, such as outings, the application of sun cream and are asked to complete yearly questionnaires to support the childminder in making improvements to the service she provides. The childminder is aware of the importance of working in partnership with other providers or external agencies that work with the children in her care to support their individual needs.

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the early years provision

The childminder has completed a self-evaluation of her provision, reflecting an excellent understanding about promoting outcomes for children. She works tirelessly to continually monitor the provision for children and is constantly thinking of new ways to improve the environment for children. The childminder is a committed, enthusiastic practitioner who thoroughly enjoys educating and caring for the children in her home in a stimulating, inviting environment.

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and outcomes for children

The childminder knows the children exceptionally well in her care and uses the information gathered from regular observations to inform her planning. She uses photographs to support her observations, linking these to the areas and aspects of This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 learning. However, some observations are not evaluated to identify children's next steps in their learning, which results in some learning not being identified or extended.

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and outcomes for children

Children make outstanding progress in their development towards the early learning goals, experimenting with excellent choices of resources and toys. They are able to move freely in the downstairs of the home, making choices of activities or enjoying the support from the childminder in planned, adult-led activities. Children learn about different fruits, where they grow and where they come from as they make fruit kebabs. They have opportunities to grow vegetables outside, gaining an understanding about the importance of sunlight and water to make them grow. Children begin to develop an understanding about the world they live in, learning about their environment and how this might differ in different countries around the world. Children experiment with the light-board and use the electronic games and the computer to gain an understanding of technology.

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and outcomes for children

Children's language is continually extended and developed because the childminder uses good communication skills and asks open-ended questions. Children begin to sequence events and recall past experiences, expressing their likes and dislikes with confidence. Children show real enjoyment looking at and sharing books with the childminder, using the visual aids and puppets to tell the stories. Children listen with good concentration and enjoy joining in with the repetitive verses. They begin to use mathematical language in their play, for example, comparing the sizes of grapes and the shape of the fruit when it has been cut up. Children show confidence with counting and are developing good problem-solving skills through encouragement from the childminder. They count the animals in the story and are aware of familiar numbers, such as their age. Children's numeracy and communication skills, together with their understanding of technology ensure

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and outcomes for children

children's skills for the future are fully promoted.

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and outcomes for children

Opportunities to develop children's imagination and creativity are offered daily. Children use a wide variety of dressing up clothes to role play familiar people and situations, including playing with the baby dolls and toy kitchen utensils. Children have opportunities to listen to music and use the musical instruments as well as occasionally attending a music group to play in a group situation. Children learn that marks carry meaning, looking at the house rules poster and the posters to remind children to wash their hands. They use a variety of mediums, paint, pencils and chalks to experiment with, with samples to take home and share with their parents.

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and outcomes for children

Children gain an excellent understanding about keeping themselves healthy, eating healthy snacks and meals and having regular exercise and fresh air. Children are encouraged to walk, because the childminder does not drive, enabling children to experience different modes of transport, such as buses and trains. Children learn the importance of hygiene routines, washing their hands with antibacterial soap and using their own hand towel to prevent cross infection. They learn about keeping themselves safe through discussion about stranger danger and are reminded about staying with the childminder at all times. Each child wears a fluorescent jacket when on outings to promote their safety. Children are encouraged to be independent, helping cut the fruit with knives and reminded This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 about using it safely.

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and outcomes for children

All children are valued in the childminder's home and learn about sharing the toys and taking turns at the various childminding groups they attend. They learn to treat each other with respect and accept each other's differences and similarities. The children help to write the house rules which are displayed at their eye-level and older children will often refer to it, to reinforce their understanding of good behaviour. Children receive regular praise and encouragement from the childminder, helping to develop their confidence whilst learning to build trusting relationships with adults and peers. 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 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 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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