Avery, Christine

Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number 963928 Inspection date 14/07/2011 Inspector Carol Cox

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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 registered in 2001. She lives with her husband and two children in Weston-Super-Mare, North Somerset. The whole of the property is used for childminding and there is a fully enclosed garden for outside play. The family have two dogs and guinea pigs as pets. The childminder is registered on the Early Years Register and the voluntary and compulsory parts of the Childcare Register to care for a maximum of six children under eight, three of whom may be in the early years age group. The childminder currently cares for nine children in the early years age group at different times during the week. She is also registered to care for older children. The childminder has experience of supporting children with special educational needs. She is a member of an approved childminding network and receives funding for early years education for children. The childminder holds an appropriate childcare qualification to level 3, and has gained the Developing

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Description of the childminding

Childminding Practice and Extending Childminding Practice qualifications.

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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 meets the unique needs of each child exceedingly well. Children make exceptional progress in relation to their starting points in a highly effective environment overall. Significant relationships developed with parents and others support children's care, learning and development. The childminder continually reflects on her practice to ensure best possible outcomes are achieved for children. She is committed to maintaining highest possible standards and attends regular training to promote the continuous improvement of her provision.

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further?

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

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further?

 extending children's early reading and recognition skills further through the addition of written labels on storage boxes for everyday resources.

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the early years provision

Children are very effectively safeguarded. The childminder has an exemplary awareness of child protection issues and attends regular training to make sure her practice meets the guidance of the Local Safeguarding Children Board. Parents are given written copies of her comprehensive safeguarding procedure so they are fully aware of her responsibilities. Children are never left with unvetted people. To This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 safeguard them in case of emergency, the childminder has parental agreement to use an organised back-up plan with three registered childminders who are well known to the children and their parents. The childminder has a heightened awareness of how to keep children safe at all times in her care. She has completed comprehensive risk assessments of all aspects of her provision and makes daily checks of her home and garden. Children learn about keeping themselves safe in

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the early years provision

an emergency when regularly practising the fire drill. The childminder has extensive experience of working in partnership with families when they are experiencing difficulties. She is confident to work with health and social care workers to promote best outcomes for children and their families. These valuable partnerships extend to working closely with other settings attended by children and the sharing of children's learning diaries. Parents are invited to contribute their valuable views and comments about the provision. They demonstrate that they are highly satisfied and note observations of their child's learning. One parent writes that her son notices, 'diamonds, rectangles, squares and circles on our walk to the childminder's home'. Parents express their gratitude for the childminder's support and flexibility to meet changing needs.

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the early years provision

The childminder is highly committed to providing the best possible care for children. She attends regular training and shares her excellent practice with other childminders through a local support group. She has high expectations of herself and makes clear and thoughtful self-evaluations to identify areas for future development. For example, she identified the need for improving opportunities for children to play and learn outside in all weathers. She obtained funding and has created an exciting and well-managed play space in her rear garden where children love to explore. There is a wonderful range of resources provided to stimulate and support children's learning. Resources are very well stored and made easily accessible to children in clear pictorially labelled boxes. The childminder has identified that she could further improve storage by adding printed words to the photographic labels to help children begin to recognise everyday words. The

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the early years provision

childminder is committed to sustainability and provides a wide range of recycled, domestic and natural objects for children to use. Her home is welcoming, child- friendly and well equipped to meet the needs of each child. The childminder actively promotes equality and diversity by carefully working with parents to understand and learn about the home backgrounds of each child. She adapts activities to meet individual learning needs and include all children. Each child is recognised and valued as a very special and unique being and they have many chances to learn about the rich diversity of their community and the wider world.

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and outcomes for children

Children are eager and enthusiastic learners who love to explore and experiment and benefit from the sensitive and intuitive support of the childminder. They are busily engaged with their own play, sometimes working alongside others and at times playing together. The childminder creates a harmonious environment where children are free to express themselves and are challenged to extend their learning in all activities. For example, when reading a favourite story, the childminder asks This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 children to predict future events and to explain why the main character looks sad. One child suggests that 'it's because the caterpillar has eaten too much!' After enjoying the book the children go into the garden to build a 'house' for the caterpillar. The childminder explains that it is called a chrysalis, which the children attempt to pronounce with varying degrees of success. Through talking about

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and outcomes for children

other stories the childminder helps children link objects in pictures with real life situations. For example, they recall sliding down the fire fighters' pole in the local park. Children have a very good sense of their local community and enjoy exchanging experiences from their own lives. The childminder offers a fantastic range of activities to promote learning in all areas. The children enjoy developing physical skills in the nearby woods to build shelters and whittle wood. At the same time they observe the changing seasons and talk about the people they meet. In the garden, children happily play with ride-on toys and the childminder helps build a garage under the table for them to park the cars. Throughout their play the childminder helps children develop their speech and language skills, giving children new words and encouraging them to use words in the context of their games. For example, reminding a child the 'brm brm' he is riding in is actually called a car.

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and outcomes for children

When playing with water and brushes children make marks on the path and 'print' with wet pebbles on the path. They competently use early number skills to count items and compare quantities when filling and emptying containers in the sand tray. When children search for resources in the shed the childminder finds a pirate's bandanna, this stimulates the children to make treasure chests with a variety of junk materials. They are experienced at expressing themselves creatively and even the youngest child expertly peels off sticky 'jewels' and decorates his chest with 'sapphires and rubies'. Their beautifully illustrated learning diaries clearly demonstrate the vast range of exciting learning activities they enjoy and show their excellent progress in all areas of learning. The diaries celebrate children's achievements, demonstrate their progress and identify their next steps in learning. The childminder uses these records to plan for next steps in learning.

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and outcomes for children

Parents regularly share these records and comment on their children's learning.

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and outcomes for children

Children learn to keep themselves safe and benefit from clear boundaries. They understand the simple rules of the house and behave extremely well. The childminder uses sensitive interactions to help children feel secure and learn to cooperate with others. They have very good communication skills in relation to their ages and stages of development and begin to show care and consideration for each other. The individual health and dietary needs of each child are identified and met through the excellent partnerships built with parents and others. Children learn about healthy lifestyles through growing fruit and vegetables in the garden and learning to recognise when they are ready to eat. They happily cut their fruit at snack time and learn good hygiene routines. Through attendance at a local network group children are participating in a project to promote speech and oral health. Children learn to make choices when selecting toys and resources to

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and outcomes for children

support and develop their play. They show great curiosity and an eagerness to explore and experiment. These skills will help support and extend their learning in all areas. Children are encouraged to develop good independence skills and enjoy sharing activities to learn more about the lives of others. Parents and children are delighted with the friendly and caring support and attention to detail which promotes the best possible outcomes for each child. 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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