Childminder in Bolton

Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number 315797 Inspection date 28/02/2011 Inspector Helene Terry

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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 1990. She lives with her husband and adult daughter in a property in Bolton, Lancashire. The whole of the ground floor of the home and a bedroom on the first floor are used for the children. The rear garden is used for outdoor play.

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Description of the childminding

The childminder is registered to care for a maximum of six children at any one time, of whom no more than three may be in the early years age range. At present, she has four children on roll between the ages of one and four years, most of whom attend for various sessions throughout the week. The childminder takes children to and from the local school. 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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Description of the childminding

The childminder regularly attends toddlers groups and is a member of the National Childminding Association. She has a level 3 qualification in early years and receives support from the local authority. Family pets in the home include a dog.

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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

Children are cared for by an enthusiastic childminder who ensures that the needs of all children are met very well. Close and caring relationships are established with the children, therefore, they are confident and settled within a well-organised homely environment. Children make good progress in their learning and development and are actively engaged in a wide range of opportunities which challenge their development. Good communication with parents and other carers ensures they are well informed of the children's progress and that they are actively involved in children's learning and development. Effective systems for self- evaluation have been established. As a result, the childminder shows a good capacity to continually make further improvements for the benefit of the children.

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further?

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

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further?

 develop further systems for observation and assessment to ensure that all six areas of learning are clearly tracked over a period of time for each child.

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the early years provision

The childminder has a good understanding of safeguarding children. She gives high priority to ensuring they are cared for in a safe environment and is fully aware of her responsibilities in regard to child protection issues. Very good risk This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 assessments are maintained and cover all aspects of the setting both inside and outside the home. As a result, children are protected very well. The childminder ensures her home is well organised, enabling children to move about freely. For example, they confidently move between the rooms, choosing their own activities and resources. Well-written policies and procedures are in place to show how the service operates and these are shared effectively with the parents. Documentation is well organised, with each child having an individual file to ensure confidentiality.

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the early years provision

Resources are easily accessible and in good condition. They are used effectively to help children learn and develop. The childminder has a good understanding of equality and diversity. The environment is suitably inclusive and meets the needs of all children. There are some resources that represent positive images of diversity to enable children to feel welcome and help them learn to respect people's differences and similarities.

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the early years provision

There is a good partnership with other early years settings that children attend. The childminder is well known at the local school and speaks with teachers as needed to support children and their parents. The children benefit from the good partnerships with parents that have been established because detailed information is shared on a regular basis. Parents access their child's development records and the childminder and parents discuss how to promote children's skills. The childminder also asks parents to complete questionnaires so she can obtain their views about the care she is providing. This links into the monitoring and evaluation process. Parents' comments are very positive and complimentary about the childminder, the care she provides and how happy their children are.

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the early years provision

The childminder has good systems in place for monitoring and evaluating the effectiveness of the provision. She has partly completed a self-evaluation form which is contributed to by parents and children. Since her last inspection she has completed a level 3 qualification in early years and has joined the local network for childminders. She receives support from the local authority's development workers and she mentors new childminders in the area. The recommendation raised at the previous inspection has been addressed, enhancing her service for the children. She is keen to continue to take part in further training to develop her knowledge and understanding of childcare and of how children learn and develop.

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and outcomes for children

Children are confident, settled and enjoy the time they spend with their childminder. They have developed close and trusting relationships which enables them to explore the environment in a confident manor. They seek help from the childminder when required, and the childminder is skilful at engaging with the children and developing their interests and extending their learning. As a result, children are making good progress in their learning and development. The childminder plans activities around children's interests and they decide on activities they wish to play with. Observations of what children can do are recorded and these are clearly linked to the learning outcomes within the Early Years Foundation Stage. The next steps in children's learning are recorded and these are used to This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 inform the future planning. However, children's progress is not clearly tracked

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and outcomes for children

across the six areas of learning. This potentially gives rise to gaps in children's learning.

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and outcomes for children

Children take part in lots of stimulating and interesting activities. They delight in looking at books and enthusiastically take part in the actions to 'Going on a bear hunt'. Children are developing very good language skills. Three-year-olds play with the sounds of words and are beginning to use alliteration, for example, by saying something is 'tricky ricky'. Children enjoy making marks on paper using a variety of materials as they develop writing skills. Toddlers make lines and circles whilst three-year-olds are beginning to create recognisable letters of the alphabet. Children are very independent in the environment, boosting their self-esteem and confidence. They help prepare snack by cutting up their own fruit and peeling oranges and they put their dishes in the dishwasher. They follow instructions well and understand positional language when they talk about putting their dishes at the top or bottom of the dishwasher. Children are beginning to count well and

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and outcomes for children

represent numbers using their fingers when they talk about how many legs sheep have as they make sheep from the play dough. Children enjoy lots of activities to enable them to understand about the environment. They feed the horses and observe the blacksmith at work. They feed the lambs and learn about lifecycles of plants and animals. They also make bird feeders for the garden and hunt mini- beasts. Children take part in lots of creative activities to enable them to express their thoughts and ideas. For example, they make collages, paint and dance and sing along to music. They take part in lots of role play activities including making food in the play kitchen.

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and outcomes for children

Children learn about healthy lifestyles and how to keep themselves safe. They enjoy healthy snacks and meals that meet their individual dietary needs. They have regular opportunities to play outdoors either in the safely enclosed garden or at parks and adventure areas where they develop muscle control and enjoy the fresh air. They understand the importance of hand-washing and have separate hand towels which help to prevent the spread of infection. Children learn effectively about all aspects of safety. For example, they regularly take part in the fire drills and learn how to cross roads safely during outings and as part of role play. They are reminded how to use equipment safely and they learn sensitively about 'stranger danger'. For example, the childminder talks to children about how to identify people they can approach for help if they are ever lost in public places such as supermarkets. 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 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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