Childminder in Barking and Dagenham

Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY399707 Inspection date 08/04/2011 Inspector Marcia Robinson

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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 2009. She is registered on the Early Years Register and the compulsory part of the Childcare Register. The Childminder is registered for a maximum of four children under eight years of whom two maybe in the early years age group at any one time. There are currently two children on roll in the early years age group. The childminder lives with her husband and two children aged three and seven years, in the London Borough of Newham, close to shops, parks, schools and public transport links. The childminder's home is a two bedroom flat, where the living room is used for childminding and local children's facilities are regularly used for planned outdoor play. The childminder is a member of the National Childminding Association(NCMA).

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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 happy, settled and thriving, because the childminder creates a safe and secure environment, where children are supported to make the most of their abilities. The childminder helps the children to feel comfortable whilst they attend the setting. Warm, positive and trusting relationships enable children to feel safe and secure. Currently, observations and systems for sharing information with others are undergoing further development. The childminder has a good capacity to maintain continuous improvement, because she seeks to improve her knowledge and understanding of children's early years through further training opportunities. The childminders self-evaluation process is in its infancy, although, the childminder is aware of her strengths and is clear about some areas that require improvement.

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further?

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

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further?

 strengthen systems for observation and assessment by formally gathering information from parents about children's starting points, making sure next steps identified for children are clearly followed up and reviewed and; encouraging parents contributions as part of the ongoing observation and assessment process  strengthen partnerships with other settings that children attend, in order to promote continuity in learning and care  further develop the self-evaluation process to help identify ways to improve outcomes for children 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 effectively safeguards children's welfare. She implements secure policies and procedures and has a clear understanding of her responsibilities towards the children in her care. She has attended further training in child protection and this has enhanced her knowledge and understanding of protecting children, so she knows what steps to take to ensure children are fully safeguarded and protected from harm. A clear safeguarding policy is in place and shared with parents. The risk of accidents indoors are minimised as the childminder conducts good risk assessments. These are fully effective in identifying all risks to children both on the premises and on outings. All of the documentation that promotes children's health and wellbeing is in place, up-to-date and stored to promote confidentiality. This is combined with effective systems to record children's details, accidents and medication records to ensure that children remain well protected

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the early years provision

and the childminder is aware of their individual needs. The home is well organised and welcoming, with space for children to play and access a wide variety of good quality resources that support their learning. The child minder makes good use of local training opportunities, forms links with other childminders, as well as seeks feedback from parents and her network coordinator, to continually monitor and evaluate the provision. Actions taken lead to improved outcomes for children, such as accessing more toys and play materials, and the range of training attended since registration, has enabled the childminder to implement the welfare requirements securely. The childminder works closely with parents. She makes sure she has detailed information about each child's backgrounds and needs so that she includes all children appropriately and effectively promotes equality and diversity.

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the early years provision

Partnerships with parents and carers are good. Information about children's care needs is exchanged on a daily basis and parents are provided with good quality information about the provision itself through the range of policies and procedures. Overall, parents are well informed about their children's learning and development at the setting as they have access to children's profiles and samples of their children's work. However, although the childminder knows children and their families well, she does not formally gather information from the parents regarding the children's starting points when they first start at the setting. Further to this, the observation and assessment systems are not yet fully developed to encourage parents and carers contribution to the ongoing process, thus enabling parents to be fully involved in their child's continuous learning and development. Nonetheless, the childminder is beginning to establish satisfactory relationships with other

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the early years provision

providers delivering the Early Years Foundation Stage. She is however, keen to further develop this to ensure stronger links are in place to support progression and continuity of learning and care for children attending other settings. The childminder evaluates her practice through various methods and is keen to continue to improve. She is periodically in contact with her local authority co- ordinator, regularly attends Children's Centres where she meets other childminder's and attends relevant training. These practices contribute to improving the service being offered to children and parents. In addition, she has began to use the Ofsted self-evaluation form and regularly seeks the views of This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 parents via verbal feedback and questionnaires to encourage their involvement in the decision-making about the provision and to support ongoing progress.

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and outcomes for children

The childminder supports children's learning well. This is because she has a good understanding of the learning and development requirements. Children are happy in the childminder's care and constantly receive purposeful support throughout the day with adult-led activities planned into the daily routine. This helps them to feel safe, valued and secure, which increases their desire to learn. The childminder is consistently teaching children boundaries and the importance of sharing is caring which contributes to positive good behaviour amongst the children. She interacts well with the children to support their learning and she uses a variety of different experiences and everyday activities to promote learning and development across all the areas of learning. Some examples of this is where she sits on the floor and engages fully in their play, for example, talking to the children about how long their beaded necklaces are and supporting number skills as she encourages them

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and outcomes for children

to recognise colours and count beads. The childminder takes time to explain and encourage children, for example, showing them how to thread the beads or dress the dolls. She also makes effective use of everyday situations and routines to provide children with good opportunities to recognise numbers and count. For instance, counting door numbers when out walking in the local community as well as the use of number resources such as puzzles and singing along to familiar number songs and rhymes including 'Ten fat sausages'. As a result, children are developing well with their communication, language, problem solving, reasoning and number recognition skills, ensuring they develop a broad range of skills for the future. Activities and experiences are differentiated to meet children's different abilities and stages of development. This is complemented by the childminder who makes regular observations of children's achievements but the system for following

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and outcomes for children

up and reviewing their next steps is not yet fully established. A variety of creative activities, including painting, cutting and sticking, promote children's self- expression whilst having fun. The childminder promotes inclusion and diversity well and this is reflected in the planned festivals celebrated within and outside the home as well as a range of resources available, such as books, dolls and play figures that are reflective of the backgrounds of the children attending and of the wider world.

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and outcomes for children

Children are cared for in a clean and well kept home where they have sufficient space to play. Ample opportunities are provided for children to develop their large physical skills. These include accessing a wide range of resources both indoors and outdoors where children can access more challenging equipment when they go to children's play centres and parks as a garden is not available on the premises. The childminder is sensitive to children's individual needs and ensures they have the opportunity to relax or rest in-line with their home routines or parent's request. Their diet and nutritional needs are well ensured as the childminder holds a food hygiene certificate and has a good understanding of healthy eating for young children. She successfully supplements the food and drink provided for children in This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 partnership with their parents. A choice of nutritious light snacks of yogurts and

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and outcomes for children

fresh fruit is provided, with easy access to fresh drinking water at all times, promoting healthy lifestyles. The childminder holds a current first aid certificate and keeps a well stocked first aid box, which ensures that any accidents can be dealt with immediately. Children do not attend if they are sick which enables the childminder to protect others from illness. Children are learning through demonstration and explanations so they know why it is important to wash their hands in order to maintain their good health and the use of individual hand towels, protects the children from cross-contamination. Children feel safe in the setting because the childminder offers warmth and security, along with consistent and familiar routines. They are also learning the importance of keeping themselves safe through routine activities such as the use of the green cross code when out walking, discussions about what to do if they are lost and they regularly practise

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and outcomes for children

the evacuation procedure to reinforce their learning and understanding. This positively contributes to children developing a sense of danger and how to keep themselves safe. All the required procedures and documents are in place to ensure children's welfare is safeguarded and promoted. 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 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 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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