Childminder in Central Bedfordshire

Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY377659 Inspection date 06/07/2010 Inspector Susan Ennis

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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 registered in 2008. She lives with her one child aged one year in Dunstable, Bedfordshire. The whole of the ground floor and one bedroom of the childminder's house is used for childminding and there is a fully enclosed garden for outside play. There is level access to the premises. The family has one dog.

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Description of the childminding

The childminder provides care on each weekday term-time and during school holidays. She is registered on the Early Years Register to care for a maximum of two children in the early years age range and is currently minding two children in this age range. She also offers care to children aged over five years and this provision is registered on the voluntary and compulsory parts of the Childcare Register. There are currently one child on roll in this age group. Children on the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register share the same facilities as those on the Early Years Register.

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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

The childminder offers a safe, secure and welcoming environment in which all children thrive. Her flexible planning ensures that the children's interests and development are consistently promoted and that they enjoy their time with her. She builds trusting relationships with parents to ensure that all the children's individual needs are met. Through monitoring her practice, the childminder has a clear picture of her strengths and areas for improvement. She is, therefore, able to make effective changes to improve the daily care and experiences for the children in her care. She demonstrates commitment to her childminding and is enthusiastic about making and sustaining improvement.

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further?

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

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further?

 develop further the use of observations and assessments to identify children's starting points and demonstrate their progress towards the early learning goals  develop the record of risk assessment to include each specific outing  ensure children's safety in an emergency situation by making the fire blanket more easily accessible.

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the early years provision

Effective safeguarding policies and procedures ensure that children are well protected at all times. For example, the childminder is aware of the signs and symptoms of abuse, having attended additional training to improve her knowledge This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 and has the required contact numbers for reporting any concerns should they arise. She also ensures that anyone coming into contact with the children is suitable to do so and has emergency care arrangements with another registered childminder should she be unable to care for the children at any time. The childminder uses clear and practical procedures, such as, daily safety checks and risk assessments for monitoring the environment meaning that hazards to the children are minimised and that they can move around freely and with confidence. However, as the fire blanket is not correctly positioned children's safety is

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the early years provision

potentially affected in an emergency situation. Good practice on outings also helps to keep the children safe. For example, the childminder carries cards containing all the children's details including emergency contact numbers for the parents and information about any allergies or medical conditions. The cards also tell whoever finds them that the children are with a childminder protecting their safety further. Although, the childminder informally risk assesses all outings, not all are fully recorded as required.

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the early years provision

The childminder has a good understanding of anti-discriminatory practice, enabling her to provide a service which is inclusive for all children and families. She works closely with the parents to ensure that she understands each child's background, needs and beliefs. Children are gently encouraged to recognise differences and respect diversity. This is encouraged through playing with resources, such as, chop sticks, Russian dolls and books which help the children learn different languages. The childminder also addresses any situations as they arise to develop the children's understanding of the diverse society in which we live.

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the early years provision

A close and trusting partnership with parents ensures that all relevant information is shared and a consistent approach given. Organised documentation ensures that parents are fully informed about the childminder's working ethos and good practice. Daily interaction, an informative notice board and a communications book helps the parents find out about their child's day and the activities they have enjoyed. The childminder demonstrates an awareness of liaising with other agencies and plans to develop this area of her work once the children start attending other settings.

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the early years provision

Children's individual development is well promoted because the childminder has effective procedures and resources in place to support, monitor and evaluate their progress. The available resources are well used and the inclusive, child friendly environment is conducive to children's learning. Low level storage enables the children to freely choose which toys they want to play with and rotation of resources provides added interest and stimulation ensuring that the children get a broad range of activities to learn from. The childminder also makes active use of the garden where a large covered area enables the children to play out in all weathers and a newly built play house encourages their role play and creative development.

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the early years provision

The childminder demonstrates a genuine enjoyment of her work and regularly attends further training to improve her knowledge and the outcomes for the children. She reacts positively to the inspection process and talks regularly to the parents and children about the service she provides. Parents demonstrate their positive views through comments, such as, ' I have been impressed with the effort This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 she puts in to ensure that the children enjoy their time with her. She has a lovely nature and the children are clearly fond of her.' The childminder completed the self evaluation form before inspection and plans to continually use it as a tool for further identifying her strengths and areas for improvement.

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and outcomes for children

Children are consistently offered a wide range of opportunities that support them in making good progress across the areas of learning and development. The childminder has a secure knowledge of child development and uses this to assess the children as they play. For example, she observes that children's vocabulary is developing so plans the next steps to include a trip to the library to borrow some books with a wider range of words and to encourage the children to choose some of their favourite characters. However, children's development is not promoted to the optimum because the assessment procedures do not include an initial assessment and children's records are not sufficiently precise to clearly demonstrate their progress towards the early learning goals.

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and outcomes for children

The childminder's flexible approach to planning ensures that children's likes and dislikes are responded to and their choices taken into account. The childminder is also effective in drawing the learning experiences from everyday activities. For example, when children collect leaves on the way home, the childminder extends their thinking by talking about the different colours and sizes of leaves picked up. She then develops the children's creative skills as they make prints and pictures from the leaves. Children's language and listening skills are encouraged as the childminder uses a story sack to develop their skills. She tells the story using the character models provided to make the story more realistic to the children. She also repeats the same phrase throughout the story encouraging the children to repeat the words and build on their memory skills. Children are learning about the natural world as they feed the horses near to their house and grow flowers in the

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and outcomes for children

childminder's garden watering and nurturing them and taking great delight in the flowers produced.

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and outcomes for children

Children's emotional development is well promoted as they develop trusting and caring relationships with each other and the childminder. They play alongside their peers as they visit toddler and childminder groups whilst also learning to share and take turns with the resources provided. Consistent boundaries and ongoing explanations help the children understand appropriate behaviour and sensitive reminders from the childminder encourage their use of good manners. They are fully supported by the childminder who, acting as a positive role model helps them make the right choices.

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and outcomes for children

Children's health and welfare are actively promoted as the childminder takes effective steps to minimise the spread of infection and develop children's understanding of a healthy lifestyle. For example, they all have their own individual flannels and towels and learn to wash their hands before snack to 'remove all the germs.' They also enjoy music and movement sessions encouraging their physical development and their knowledge of how their bodies work. Children are also This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 learning about their own safety as they regularly practise the emergency fire drill and discuss road safety when out and about. 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 3 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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