Childminder in Solihull

Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique Reference Number 257557 Inspection date 16 November 2005 Inspector Sharon Waterfall

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Type of inspection Childcare Type of care Childminding

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This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000

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ABOUT THIS INSPECTION

The purpose of this inspection is to assure government, parents and the public of the quality of childcare and, if applicable, of nursery education. The inspection was carried out under Part XA Children Act 1989 as introduced by the Care Standards Act 2000 and, where nursery education is provided, under Schedule 26 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998. This report details the main strengths and any areas for improvement identified during the inspection. The judgements included in the report are made in relation to the outcomes for children set out in the Children Act 2004; the National Standards for under 8s day care and childminding; and, where nursery education is provided, the Curriculum guidance for the foundation stage. The report includes information on any complaints about the childcare provision which Ofsted has received since the last inspection or registration or 1 April 2004 whichever is the later.

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The key inspection judgements and what they mean

Outstanding: this aspect of the provision is of exceptionally high quality Good: this aspect of the provision is strong Satisfactory: this aspect of the provision is sound Inadequate: this aspect of the provision is not good enough For more information about early years inspections, please see the booklet Are you ready for your inspection? which is available from Ofsted's website: www.ofsted.gov.uk.

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE

On the basis of the evidence collected on this inspection:

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE

The quality and standards of the care are good. The registered person meets the National Standards for under 8s day care and childminding.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

The childminder has been a registered since 1992. She lives in the Castle Bromwich area of Solihull, with her husband, their four sons and her father. The ground floor only is used for childminding and the children access the living room, conservatory, kitchen, toilet and a playroom. There is an enclosed garden at the rear of the premises for outdoor play. The childminder is registered for 4 children of whom 3 can be under 5 years. Currently she is caring for 2 children aged 2 and 7 years. She takes and collects the children from local schools and is a member of the National Childminding

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000 Association.

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Helping children to be healthy

The provision is good. The children are learning about the benefits of a healthy lifestyle from a childminder who encourages them to engage in gentle exercise, eat nutritious meals and develop good personal hygiene. The children take control of their bodies and improve co-ordination as they climb, balance and twist on large play equipment in local parks. They develop ball skills as they play football and roll small balls indoors. Hand and eye co-ordination is developed as children thread beads, manipulate play dough and use tools such as crayons and glue spreaders for creative play. Excellent meals are provided for the children that help them to make healthy choices from a varied range of fresh fruits and vegetables. The children's preferences and individual routines are catered for and they receive adequate quantities of food for their needs. Policies and procedures are implemented well to support children's welfare and

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Helping children to be healthy

hygiene, though the overall medication policy requires more detail. Children are protected from the spread of infection as the childminder understands simple, good health and hygiene procedures. She encourages the children to understand and learn about the importance of personal hygiene through discussions and the daily routines.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is satisfactory. The children are confident in accessing the available play space. They move around safely and freely and can decide for themselves what resources they would like to play with. The space is well organised to allow the children to partake in either active or quiet activities as they require. The atmosphere is warm and friendly and the children are secure in familiar routines. The children's safety is a priority and they are protected by a conscientious childminder. Though she has minimised many hazards within the home and garden some do remain and therefore affect children's overall safety. The children are helped to keep themselves safe and limit accidental injury by actively participating in emergency evacuations and talk about road safety. Policies and procedures are effective in ensuring that children's welfare is protected and these policies are shared with parents. The children are safeguarded from abuse

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

and neglect by the childminder's secure knowledge of child protection issues.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is good. The children engage in a wide range of stimulating and interesting activities both within the home and through outings. These ensure that all areas of the children's development needs are met in fun and sociable ways. These activities develop mathematics as children count how many cars are on the garage and manipulate jigsaw puzzles. They sing favourite songs and dance to music. Creative skills are used to make cards and calendars and freely paint. Older children's concentration and writing skills are extended as they write letters to Father Christmas and cards for parents. Imagination is developed through dressing up, role play and copying the childminder as she cares for others. The children are confident in accessing their own resources and their independence is encouraged as they help make snacks, take off clothing and talk about what they want. They are keen and motivated to try new activities such as making snakes from

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

beads and enjoy showing others what they have achieved. Younger children have a vast amount of one to one attention and thrive on this; in particular their speech and language skills are well developed. They are confident in making their needs known and are learning the skills for conversation. They benefit from looking at books and joining in with songs, in addition they hear rich language in the form of discussion and description from the childminder about the activities they are doing. The children mix with peers at a stay and play session attended weekly and through visiting friends regularly. This enables them to further extend their social skills, interact with children their own age and learn about taking turns and sharing. They are beginning to involve others in their play and develop friendships with children as well as adults. These outings also extend the children's experiences of the world

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

around them as they ride on public transport, take picnics to the park and borrow books from the library.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is good. The children's individuality is greatly respected and valued. Their sense of worth is cherished by a childminder who is very demonstrative with affection and enables the children to grow in confidence and independence. This is achieved as the children are listened to and their requests and needs are responded to positively. The strong relationships between the children and childminder are supported by the child centred environment, sensitivity of the childminder and a good sense of belonging. Children's art work is displayed in the playroom and they access the premises easily and confidently. The children behave very well. They are occupied and busy at all times with a range of activities that meet their development needs and interests. Even young children use manners and have learnt to tidy up their toys before getting new ones out. Praise

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Helping children make a positive contribution

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000 and humour are used to encourage all positive behaviours. Consistency of care for the children is developed through the strong working partnership of the parents and childminder. Parents receive constant communication regarding the service and their children's progress. All policies and procedures are shared with them and their opinions are sought and valued.

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Organisation

The organisation is satisfactory. Children are cared for in warm environment where they can initiate aspects of their own learning as they chose resources independently and activities meet their needs. The space is well organised to enable the children to be active or quiet and they are confident in the daily routines. Strong relationships have been fostered within the family environment and the children are secure and content. Policies and procedures are well organised and effectively support children's overall care, safety and welfare. In the main they are well implemented, though evidence of public liability insurance and a valid driving licence were not available at inspection. Parents read all policies and are fully involved in all care aspects. The warm care, sense of belonging and effective support ensures that overall the provision meets the needs of the range of children attending.

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Improvements since the last inspection

At the last care inspection the childminder was asked to improve children's care by completing a relevant first aid course and recording children's daily attendance. A first aid course in paediatric care has been completed and children's accurate daily attendance is completed in relevant documentation, so supporting children's care, health and welfare.

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Complaints since the last inspection

A complaint was received in September 2004 relating to Standard 1 Suitable Person; Standard 2 Organisation; and Standard 6 Safety, concerning allegations that the childminder was exceeding registered numbers of children and leaving children unsupervised in a car when picking up from a local school. Ofsted investigated by unannounced visit and found the childminder to be caring for one too many children under the age of 5 years and that she had left children unsupervised in a car during school runs. Ofsted agreed two actions in respect of these concerns, requiring the provider to meet her registered numbers and to ensure that children are supervised at all times. The provider has confirmed in writing that she has completed these actions. The provider remains qualified for registration. The provider is required to keep a record of complaints made by parents, which they can see on request. The complaints record may contain complaints other than those

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Complaints since the last inspection

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000 made to Ofsted.

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE

On the basis of the evidence collected on this inspection:

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE

The quality and standards of the care are good. The registered person meets the National Standards for under 8s day care and childminding.

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The quality and standards of the care

To improve the quality and standards of care further the registered person should take account of the following recommendation(s): • improve safety by ensuring that all low level glass meets safety standards and garden fencing is maintained appropriately • ensure that all relevant documentation is in place, particularly a valid driving licence and public liability insurance.

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The quality and standards of the care

procedures set out in the leaflet Building better childcare: Compliments and concerns about inspectors' judgements which is available from Ofsted's website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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The quality and standards of the care

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000

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