Cropper, Deborah

Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number 310557 Inspection date 21/02/2011 Inspector Jean Thomas

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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 1991. She lives with her husband and three adult children in Bootle, Liverpool. The childminder is registered to work with an assistant. The whole ground floor of the house is used for childminding. The toilet facilities are situated on the first floor level. There is a fully enclosed outdoor play area. The childminder is able to take and collect children from local schools and pre-schools.

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Description of the childminding

The childminder is registered to care for a maximum of six children, of whom, no more than three may be in the early years age group at any one time and of these no more than one may be under one year. When working with an assistant there may be two children aged under one year present. There are currently three children attending who are within the Early Years Foundation Stage, of whom all attend on a part-time basis. The childminder offers care to children aged over five years. She is registered on the compulsory and voluntary part of the Childcare Register. The childminder holds the National Vocational Qualification Level 3 in childcare and education. She accesses Local Authority support.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Overall the quality of the provision is outstanding.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

The childminder is an extremely dedicated and committed practitioner. Children benefit immensely from her understanding and implementation of the Early Years Foundation Stage to make outstanding progress in their learning and development. The childminder provides a fully inclusive and welcoming setting in which children are happy and confident. The systems to ensure continuous improvement are highly effective, which significantly impacts on outcomes for children. Exemplary systems are in place to work in partnership with parents and others to promote continuity and progression in children's learning and development.

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further?

To further improve the high quality early years provision the registered person should consider:

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further?

 developing further the documented information regarding the developmental stage of children when they start to inform the initial planning. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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the early years provision

The childminder has highly effective safety procedures and ensures her knowledge of safeguarding is accurate and secure through attending training. Consequently children are extremely well protected from harm. The childminder's organisational skills enable her to effectively meet the needs of the children and offer a high level of supervision. Parents are made fully aware of her responsibility to protect children from harm. This is achieved through giving them her written safeguarding policy, discussion and displaying specific information. The childminder has completed comprehensive documented risk assessments for the provision and outing. These records show that a review is carried out to ensure potential hazards are minimised at all times, particularly when there have been changes in the setting. The childminder is fully aware of her legal obligations to protect information under the Data Protection Act 1998 to ensure it is not misused and has

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the early years provision

registered with the Information Commissioner's Office.

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the early years provision

The childminder is a qualified and experienced childcare practitioner. She is dedicated to continuing her personal development through attending a wide range of additional training opportunities to further improve the childcare practice. This has a significant impact in promoting outcomes for children through the high quality learning and development experiences offered. The childminder's eagerness to continually improve the provision is reflected in her self-evaluation systems. The self-evaluation involves seeking the views of parents and children. She has introduced systems to ensure younger children's voices are heard. For example, the childminder asks the children individually questions about their experiences and points of view. These are recorded on a child-friendly format and the information gathered is used to inform her practice. The childminder has met the recommendations from the last inspection. The bathroom door lock has been re-

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the early years provision

positioned and the fire safety related issues addressed for children's wellbeing.

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the early years provision

The childminder is passionate about promoting equality of opportunity and inclusive practice. The children's uniqueness is fully respected which greatly promotes their self-esteem and confidence. The childminder has undertaken training, completed research and uses her own life experiences to effectively nurture children's understanding and respect towards people who are different to themselves. The childminder has a wide range of resources and activities which are planned to further enhance children's understanding of diversity. The meticulous planning for children's individual learning and development optimises the opportunities for children achieving their full potential. The childminder is fully aware of the principles of the Early Years Foundation Stage and implements the ethos to support children's progress and their future opportunities.

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the early years provision

The excellent partnership with parents developed by the childminder is highly beneficial to the continuity of care the children receive and supports their learning and development. Parents are actively involved in their child's learning. The monthly observation, assessment and planning sheets, which form part of the children's personalised learning journey journal, are shared with parents. They document their own observations and comments. The partnership is forged by the This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 childminder as soon as the arrangement commences. Settling-in visits are arranged and parents complete a document called 'All About Me' which is an excellent basis to start planning for children's welfare and developmental needs. However, the documented information lacks detail about the children's stage of development to use as a point of reference when completing the initial planning.

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the early years provision

Parents comment very highly about the provision, referring to it as an 'excellent service'. The childminder has comprehensive written policies and procedures in place which clearly underpin her excellent practices and successfully promote children's welfare. These are effectively shared and implemented with parents. The childminder works with other professionals who deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage to the children she minds. The exchange of information is used purposefully to ensure continuity and progression in children's learning and development.

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and outcomes for children

The childminder is passionate about the quality of her provision and this significantly impacts on ensuring outstanding outcomes for children. The childminder is fully conversant with the Early Years Foundation Stage. She has an exceptional understanding of its principles, which form the basis of her practice. The childminder has high aspirations for children's achievements. She carries out systematic observations on each child and these are used to identify the next steps in their learning and development. The childminder has developed a system to track children's progress towards the six early learning goals. This system ensures children's learning and development is consolidated before moving on to the next expectation of the Early Years Foundation Stage. This is further enhanced by the childminders secure knowledge that children need to practice and repeat their involvement in activities to develop skills. The childminder's weekly planning for

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and outcomes for children

the individual children offers challenge and variety in their learning and development. This is supported by an extensive stock of play materials. Children flourish in this warm, welcoming and homely environment which is extremely well- organised and enables children to make choices and develop their independence.

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and outcomes for children

From a young age children are highly motivated. They eagerly and confidently play with purpose. Their strong exploratory impulse is developed from when they are babies. They create and experiment with a wide range of resources, such as the contents of the treasures basket, water and yoghurt. They show deepening levels of concentration and display their developing problem solving skills as they stack the play beakers and push buttons and turn controls on interactive toys to generate the different sounds. Children display a close and trusting relationship with the childminder and clearly make their play preferences known. They express their feelings and laugh out loud with delight as they pursue play. The childminder and children sit together to look at books. The children point to the objects in the pictures as they are named by the childminder. There is a strong sense of togetherness and enjoyment as they pursue this activity. The young children are

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and outcomes for children

beginning to play 'make-believe' games and use role play materials, such as the telephone to act out their own observations and experiences. The childminder This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 skilfully involves herself in their play to extend their learning. She asks questions and responds to the children's vocalisation to support their language development.

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and outcomes for children

The childminder has innovative ideas to maximise children's learning opportunities. For example, the planned gardening activity of growing sunflowers from seeds, develops the children's numeracy skills as they consider quantity, size and numbers when filling the pots with soil. In view of the height that the plants grow the childminder transfers the pots to the lower section of the outdoor area. The children stand on the higher decked level to examine and study the flower heads, leaves and the insects attracted to the plants. The planning for children's enjoyment and involvement in a wide range of activities significantly develops an extremely positive attitude towards future learning.

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and outcomes for children

The childminder's approach to developing children's understanding of a healthy lifestyle is excellent. The children pursue outdoor activities each day. They enjoy an extremely wide range of activities which allows them to be exuberant and expressive in their movements, both indoors and outside. For example, indoors they chase balloons and play with paper balls. The younger children are overjoyed as they proudly display their new skill of walking unaided. The clear floor space gives children opportunity to practice and gain control of their body in a safe environment. Children benefit from a healthy diet of freshly cooked foods and drinks are readily available. Activities such as vegetable growing trigger their interest in trying different foods. The children discover the prickly texture of the home grown cucumber compared to smooth skin of the cucumber they usually eat. Vegetables are grown from seed to demonstrate to children that they do not just

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and outcomes for children

come from a supermarket. The childminder is an excellent role model. She shows children genuine respect in what they do and in response to their actions. The childminder's behaviour management strategies support children's learning of acceptable behaviour and to respect each other. The childminder plans fun and highly effective age appropriate activities to help children understand their feelings and manage their behaviour. The superb partnership with parents results in a consistent approach to dealing with any behavioural issues that may arise. 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 1 The effectiveness with which the setting promotes equality and diversity The effectiveness of safeguarding 1 The effectiveness of the setting’s self-evaluation, including the steps taken to promote improvement The effectiveness of partnerships 1 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 1

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Stage

The extent to which children achieve and enjoy their learning 1 The extent to which children feel safe 1 The extent to which children adopt healthy lifestyles 1 The extent to which children make a positive contribution 1 The extent to which children develop skills for the future 1

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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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