Thompson, Julie Anne

Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY404922 Inspection date 06/07/2010 Inspector Elaine Marie McDonnell

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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 has been registered since January 2010. She lives in the Eston area of Middlesbrough with her husband. Minded children have the use of the whole ground floor of the house, plus the bathroom on the first floor. There is an enclosed rear garden available for outdoor play. The home is close to local shops, primary schools, play park social groups and a library. The couple has two cats, which minded children have supervised access to.

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Description of the childminding

The childminder is registered to care for up to six children aged under eight years at any one time. She is also included on the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register, and may care for children aged over eight years. There are currently six children on roll aged between seven months and nine years, with four of these being in the early years age group. The childminder has a National Nursery Examination Board (NNEB) qualification and has had experience of working in day nurseries and primary schools.

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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

A very warm, welcoming and stimulating environment is provided for children and on the whole they make good progress towards the early learning goals. A varied range of interesting activities are planned for children, however, these are not always sufficiently challenging for babies. Very good partnerships with parents ensure that children's individual needs are met, and inclusion is well promoted. The childminder has implemented an effective system of self-evaluation which supports the continuous improvement of the provision.

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further?

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

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further?

 plan more challenging activities for babies to further extend their learning  plan and provide more learning experiences to help raise children's awareness of the cultures and beliefs of others.

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the early years provision

Children are well safeguarded. Comprehensive procedures are in place and the childminder demonstrates a good knowledge and understanding of safeguarding issues, and of how to put appropriate procedures into practice. Comprehensive risk assessments have been conducted and recorded for the home, garden and outings, and all relevant actions taken, to ensure that children’s safety is well maintained. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 The environment is very warm and welcoming for children. They have access to a designated play room, with examples of their art work and photographs attractively displayed. They are also allowed free-flow access to the living room and to the rear garden. Resources are very well deployed both indoors and outdoors, and children have easy access to a varied range of stimulating and age- appropriate toys and activities, both in the home and garden. The childminder

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the early years provision

ensures that resources remain safe and suitable with regular checking and cleaning routines.

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the early years provision

Equality and diversity is well promoted. All children are appropriately included and involved, and their individual needs are met. Children have access to some resources that positively reflect wider society and also talk about how people are different. However, there are limited planned activities and learning experiences to help raise children’s awareness of the cultures and beliefs of others.

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the early years provision

The childminder has a positive attitude towards personal development and has continued to attend training since registration. For example, she has recently attended 'motivational maths', 'exploring narrative assessments' and 'learning stories' training courses, which help her to plan a more varied range of activities for children. She has also implemented an effective system of self-evaluation and has identified areas for development, to support the continuous improvement of the provision.

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the early years provision

The childminder works very well in partnership with parents and keeps them informed of their child’s development and progress through regular discussions. Parents also have good access to a daily diary, photographic evidence of what activities their children have been involved in and their child’s individual observation file. The childminder receives useful written information about each child when they first start to attend and this is well used as a basis for their individual care. Parents receive newsletters keeping them informed of planned learning, events and how training knowledge has been incorporated into the provision. Parents' views about the setting have been sought and these are very positive.

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the early years provision

The childminder is establishing good relationships with the local primary schools where some minded children also attend. She keeps ‘conversations with school’ record sheets and shares the information with parents. She also obtains copies of newsletters and information relating to activities and themes children will be covering at school and nursery, so that learning can be extended in her provision.

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the early years provision

All records and documents required for the safe and efficient management of the provision are available, well kept and up-to-date, including some good practice records, and policy and procedure documents, all of which are effectively shared with parents. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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and outcomes for children

The childminder observes and records children’s development well and relates this to the different areas of learning. Information gained is effectively used to inform future activity planning for individual children. However, activities for babies are not always sufficiently challenging. The childminder has a good understanding of the interests of the children in her care and ensures these are taken into account when planning activities and outings.

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and outcomes for children

The childminder supports older children’s learning very well, asking questions to promote their thinking and language skills, promoting independence and offering praise and encouragement. Children have a very positive attitude towards learning and are keen to participate and make choices about what they want to play with and do. They are well-behaved and form good relationships with the childminder and their peers. Children are observed praising each other, saying 'good girl' when their friends construct a house for animals with building bricks.

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and outcomes for children

Children learn about keeping themselves safe and discuss this during activities, for example, when chopping fruit for snack-time they talk about being careful with knives so they don’t cut themselves. They also participate in regular fire drills and learn about road safety when out walking. Children present themselves as feeling safe and secure in the childminder's care and are settled and happy.

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and outcomes for children

Children are encouraged to adopt a healthy lifestyle. They receive a varied range of healthy and nutritious meals and snacks, and the ‘Change 4 life’ initiative is implemented. Children use an interactive chart to show when they have eaten fruit and vegetables and they know what foods are good for them. They also have regular opportunities for physical activity and are beginning to learn about the importance of exercise. The spread of infection is very well managed, the home is very clean and hygienic and good hygiene procedures are promoted with children.

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and outcomes for children

Children maintain attention and concentration at different activities, such as when building sandcastles. Older children also talk activities through, explaining to the childminder step-by-step how to make a sandcastle. Children identify when their buckets are ‘full’ and also have opportunities for filling different size bottles with water and comparing the weight of them. A range of puzzles are available to help children with early problem-solving skills. They show an interest in books, enjoy listening to stories and talk about the pictures.

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and outcomes for children

Children enjoy regular visits in their local community, such as to the shop, post office, parks, library and social groups. Their knowledge and understanding of the world is promoted through activities such as running around and splashing in the rain, planting and nurturing sunflower seeds and learning about different holidays destinations. They also have access to various programmable and electronic toys. They have lots of opportunities to promote small and large muscle development, for example, when using large physical play equipment in the garden and at the park, and when pouring, scooping and chopping. They also have regular This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 opportunities for role play activities, colouring-in, finger painting and drawing, and they can successfully identify different colours. 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 3 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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