Pilgrims' Way Primary School

Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number 100818 Inspection date 03/02/2011 Inspector ISP Inspection

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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 has been registered since 1996 and is registered on the Early Years Register and both the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. She lives with her husband and their three adult children in the Longlevens area of Gloucester, in Gloucestershire. The whole of the house is registered for childminding. The main areas used include, the dedicated play room, open-plan kitchen and dining area, sitting room, hallway and downstairs toilet facilities. One upstairs bedroom is available for sleeping. There is an enclosed, rear garden with grass and patio areas for outdoor play. The house is within easy walking distance of shops, parks, and the library and toddler group. The childminder walks to the local primary school to drop off and collect children and collects children from local playgroups.

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Description of the childminding

The childminder may care for a maximum of six children under eight years, of these, not more than three may be in the early year's age group, of these, not more than one may be under one year at any one time. The childminder currently cares for six children in the early year's age group, on a full and part-time basis, and of these, one child is in full time education attending before andafter school. Additional care is provided for three children in the later year's age group, before and after school and during some school holidays. The childminder holds the National Vocational Qualification at Level 3 in Childcare and Development.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Overall the quality of the provision is satisfactory.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Children make generally good progress in their learning and are taking a more active role in organising and planning their own play. Observations, assessments and planning although do not currently link or effectively identify children's next steps, are developing. Effective arrangements exist to ensure children's safety. Partnerships are in their infancy and parents are kept generally well informed about their children's progress. The childminder is friendly, positive and has drive to make further improvements in the setting and is formalising the systems to evaluate her practice. Good account is given of recommendation made from the last inspection, promoting children's health, safety and experiences.

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further?

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

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further?

 develop further the planning to ensure activities radiate from children's interests and next steps to provide purposeful challenge and enable children to build on what they already know and can do  develop further the links with parents and other settings delivering the Early This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 Years Foundation Stage to share information about children's individual progress and learning  extend the risk assessments for outings to ensure they are specific to each outing undertaken  increase on going observations so that they support and inform assessment and children's next steps

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the early years provision

The childminder demonstrates sound knowledge of the welfare requirements and of the well written policies and procedures. She ensures all records are clearly ordered, well maintained and are stored securely to promote children's health, safety and welfare. The childminder is vigilant and safety aware. She supervises children closely during play and implements frequent checks when they are sleeping. Thorough risk assessments of the premises and garden ensure potential dangers are identified and suitable measures are taken to minimise any risk to children. Risk assessments for outings undertaken are adequate. The childminder shows generally good knowledge of safeguarding issues and the procedures to follow to ensure child welfare concerns are identified satisfactorily and responded to appropriately.

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the early years provision

The childminder's friendly, warm and committed approach motivates the children and encourages their positive attitudes to learning. She is becoming increasingly familiar with the Early Years Foundation Stage Practice Guidance, providing a range of interesting activities and a broad range of well organised resources to support their play and learning. The children feel confident and safe to express themselves, for example, choosing which outfits they wish to dress up in. Children benefit from good opportunities to learn about their own and other cultures. Resources depicting other cultures and festival celebrations, including Happy New Year posters in Chinese writing and experiencing different Chinese food, such as prawn crackers at snack time, help to raise children's awareness.

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the early years provision

The childminder is motivated to seek further improvement and adopts appropriate levels of monitoring and analysis. She has attended extensive training to increase her knowledge and skills of good quality practice and liaises with other childminders, and her Local Authority advisor to talk about practice issues. The childminder is beginning to review and action questionnaires from parents and children are involved in making decisions to some extent, although opportunities to actively gain their views and suggestions have not yet been fully explored. The childminder has completed the online self-evaluation form to identify strengths and some areas for development to bring about some improvement to the setting, such as developing children's experiences in the garden and introducing treasure baskets for the younger children.

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the early years provision

Partnerships with other settings children attend are in their infancy, meaning information is not routinely shared or not always used effectively to fully support children's achievements and well-being. The childminder has a generally positive partnership with parents and relationships are well established. She seeks and This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 takes account of the views of all her parents about important issues and organises social events to enable all parents to meet. Parents receive good information through the parent welcome pack, about all aspects of the setting and its policies and procedures, including sharing of the childminders photo album of activities and experiences offered to the children. Parents praise the colourful photograph calendars or scrap books, which include photographs and examples of their children's work, that are given as Christmas presents each year. There is a regular

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the early years provision

exchange of information with parents, providing them with sufficient information on their children's general well-being and some aspects of their progress through the daily diary reports and discussion on collection.

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and outcomes for children

Children are making sound progress in their learning because observation and assessment and their use in planning are satisfactory. Children respond well to the childminder's interaction and engagement in their play, happily chatting and beginning to respond to questions and ideas, to provide suitable levels of challenge. Children make some choices in their play, laughing excitedly as they make up a game, smiling and jumping with excitement as they walk up and down, saying "hello" and "goodbye", and pretending to fall on the blanket. Children have close bonds with the childminder and play nicely with their peers. They help each other while doing jigsaws, exclaiming "turn it over darling, thats it ", hide together in the cardboard den and chat happily while colouring together at the table.

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and outcomes for children

Children appear happy and very settled, displaying a strong sense of belonging. As a result, children show interest and ask questions about things around them. Children's pictures displayed in the playroom and use of frequent praise and encouragement helps value children's achievements and promotes their self- esteem. Children are becoming more creative as they occasionally explore gloop and investigate the texture of paint on their hands. They show concentration during adult-led activities and increasing dexterity as they rip tiny bits of tissue paper, exclaiming "I need glue', "I borrow it", competently rubbing the glue stick over the Chinese lantern and carefully placing the tissue paper.

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and outcomes for children

Whilst indoor and outdoor play does not consistently form part of daily routines, children enjoy daily walks to and from school and occasional opportunities to engage in large physical activities at the soft play clubs. Children talk about their own holiday experiences and use the world map to help reinforce and extend their awareness of the wider world. They are beginning to care for the environment in which they live by helping the childminder with recycling household waste, using it in their play and visiting the local recycling containers with excess waste materials. They plant and tend to tomato plants, learning to care for living things and how they need water to grow. Children are confident to share news and to recall past events they enjoyed, such as going on the train, to the play park and to feed the ducks. Overall, children generally secure the skills they require in order to progress in their learning.

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and outcomes for children

This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 Children are beginning to show understanding about healthy lifestyles and the importance of adopting good hygiene habits. Regular reinforcement and clear explanations, for example, we have to wash our hands before cooking because of the germs, result in children having good awareness of hand washing routines. Children keep well hydrated through easy access to their own water bottle and enjoy sufficient quantities of food at meal times. Children learn to keep themselves safe through monthly practice of the escape plan, daily practice of the green cross code and frequent safety explanations while playing. 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 3 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 3

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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 3 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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