Childminder in West Sussex

Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY274510 Inspection date 10/01/2011 Inspector Daphne Prescott

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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 assesses 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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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 two school aged children in Worthing, West Sussex. The ground floor of the property is used for childminding and there is an enclosed garden for outside play. The family has two pet dogs, a hamster and some goldfish. The childminder is within walking distance of local schools, parks and shops.

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Description of the childminding

The childminder is registered to care for a maximum of six children under eight years at any one time, of whom no more than three may be in the early years age group. There are currently eight children on roll, of whom three are in the early years age group. Children attend different times of the week. The childminder also offers care to children aged over five years to 11 years. This provision is registered by Ofsted on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare 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 provides a welcoming environment to ensure all children are happy and enjoy their time in the setting. She provides a broad range of activities and experiences for all the children who attend. The good knowledge of each child's individual needs ensures that the childminder promotes all aspects of the children's welfare and learning. The partnership with parents is good and contributes to all of the children's needs being met. Most of the required documentation is in place to ensure children's well-being and learning. The childminder has started to conduct self-evaluation to bring about further improvement to the provision and promote outcomes for children and their families.

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further?

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

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further?

 update the record of risk assessment to include any assessments of risks for all outings and trips  further develop observations on the children by linking the observations to the six areas of learning

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the early years provision

The childminder has a good understanding of child protection and how to safeguard children. She is fully aware of her duty of care to protect children and of This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 the procedure she must follow if she has concerns about their safety and welfare. Children are supervised well by the childminder and she ensures that they are never left unsupervised with adults who have not been vetted for their suitability. All areas of the home are safe for children. There are effective safety measures in place as risk assessments for the environment are carried out to ensure all risks to children are minimised. The childminder has started to maintain risk assessment for outings, although these do not detail the different types of outings she undertakes with the children. This does not affect children's safety because the childminder visually carries out risk assessments whilst out in the local community

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the early years provision

to identify and minimise obvious safety hazards on all outings.

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the early years provision

The childminding areas are well organised to allow for safe, quiet and active play within the home. The welcoming environment gives children of all ages opportunities to freely access a wide variety of resources and play materials. They are presented at low level, which ensures children can be independent, which leads to them using their own initiative to instigate their play. The childminder offers an inclusive service to children in her care and ensures that she understands each child's background. She helps children to learn about diversity at a level that they can understand. For example, children are able to access multicultural resources and activities such as tasting traditional food from other countries and celebrating some cultural festivals with the childminder.

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the early years provision

The childminder has developed good partnerships with parents. She has good systems in place to share information and observations about the children in her care with their parents. This ensures they experience consistent care and progress well. For example, she provides parents with daily feedback at the end of each day which keeps them informed of how well their child is doing and regularly shares a progress report with them. Parents written comments are that they are extremely happy with the service she offers and would highly recommend her to others. There child is happy in a secure and safe environment and enjoys their time with the childminder. The childminder fully understands the importance of liaising with other settings that the children may also attend to make sure there is a cohesive approach to their learning and development. She also understands her responsibilities to work with parents and other agencies to meet the needs of

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the early years provision

children with special educational needs and/or disabilities.

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the early years provision

The childminder has started to self-evaluate her practice; she is beginning to identify her strengths and highlight areas for improvement. She is committed to the continuous development of the setting and demonstrates a good capacity to maintain continuous improvement. The actions and recommendations raised at the last inspection have been fully addressed, improving outcomes for children. For example, she has implemented a detailed safeguarding children policy which is shared with parents to ensure they are familiar with the responsibilities of the childminder. Regular emergency evacuation is now practiced with the children, raising their awareness of how to stay safe. 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 is warm and caring towards the children which allow them to settle in well. She has good knowledge of all of the children in her care, and uses this information to plan activities to aid their development. The childminder has started to build up children's individual learning journals which are shared with parents. She makes regular observations of children's progress which allows her to assess their achievements and identify what steps they need to take next. Although, linking the children's observations to the six areas of learning is in its infancy, as a result it is not clearly recorded what areas of learning the children are progressing well in. The childminder is actively involved with the children as they play; she sits at their level, supporting and extending their play well. For example, by demonstrating to children how to operate the interactive game and by talking about colours and numbers as they play.

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and outcomes for children

Children are interested and motivated to learn as they explore the resources and learn new skills. Younger children thoroughly enjoy playing with toys which allow them to begin to show an understanding of technology as they eagerly press buttons on interactive toys. Children are supported well by the childminder to develop their problem solving and other mathematical skills. The childminder sits with the children playing a game counting the number of butterflies they have caught in their net. She extends this by asking a child to group the butterflies into the different colours and then they count each group. Children's language is well developed and the childminder encourages this further, broadening their vocabulary by asking the children questions, singing rhymes and recognising and practising different sounds of the alphabet. They have a lovely time enjoying a range of creative activities including painting, role play and cooking. Children have

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and outcomes for children

a great time as they pretend to make cups of tea for the childminder.

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and outcomes for children

Good hygiene procedures, such as children having their own towels and the routine washing of hands encouraged by signs in the bathroom, help to prevent the spread of infection. Children learn about the importance of being healthy and are provided with a range of nutritious, well-balanced meals. They are offered freshly prepared home-cooked meals, which include fresh fruit and vegetables. The childminder also teaches the children about growing vegetables as they visit an allotment and learn about the compost pot in the childminder's garden. The childminder's recognition of the importance of physical activity contributes to the children's development. For example, they play in the childminder's garden running around in the fresh air and make regular visits to the local park to play on large apparatus. The childminder has a calm, consistent approach to behaviour management. She praises and encourages children in their achievements and

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and outcomes for children

encourages sharing, good manners and respect for others. Children are encouraged to learn about personal safety as the childminder teaches them about road safety each day when in the community. She encourages children to listen carefully to reminders regarding picking up toys on the floor so that younger children do not hurt themselves. 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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Early Years Foundation Stage

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 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 3

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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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