Childminder in Surrey

Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY310516 Inspection date 28/07/2011 Inspector Jane Nelson

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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

Children only attend this setting before and/or after the school day and/or during the school holidays. The judgements in this report reflect the quality of early years provision offered to children during those periods.

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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 2005. She lives with her husband, adult daughter and children aged 15 and 11 years in a house in Ashford, Middlesex, close to shops, parks, schools and public transport links. The living room, dining room, kitchen, a bedroom and toilet on the ground floor of the childminder's home are used for childminding. There is access to an enclosed garden at the rear. The family have a Bichon Frise dog, and three cats. The childminder is registered on the Early Years Register, and on the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. She is registered to care for a maximum of four children under eight, three of whom may be in the early years age range, at any one time. She is currently caring for four children in the early years age range and currently has an exception to ratios condition in place to provide care for siblings. The childminder is a member of the Surrey Childminding Network.

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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's individual learning and development is excellent. They are encouraged by the childminder's supportive interaction and the well-planned and broad range of activities and play experiences she provides. Different forms of self-evaluation are used effectively by the childminder to review her practice, update knowledge and identify most areas where development is needed. Partnerships with parents are good overall, resulting in information being shared well and children feeling secure. Partnerships with others are less effective. Most documentation is well- organised and information clearly recorded.

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further?

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

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further?

 develop strategies to work in partnership with other settings children attend to ensure there is continuity in their learning.  improve the two-way flow of information with parents enabling them to contribute to children's learning and development, and further develop the use of observations and assessment to continually inform future planning

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the early years provision

The childminder has a clear understanding of safeguarding issues and is aware of the procedures to follow should concerns arise or an allegation be made relating to This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 herself. She has recently attended training relating to safeguarding to update her knowledge. Risk assessments are used effectively to minimise potential hazards. The childminder's home is welcoming and space in the home is very well organised to enable children to play, eat, sleep and move around independently and safely. The required records relating to risk assessment are in place, extended to include outings, and are regularly reviewed. Records reflect that the evacuation procedure is practiced with children regularly.

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the early years provision

The childminder demonstrates a strong commitment to continuous improvement. For example, she has recently completed a National Vocational Level Qualification to level 3 in home-based childcare, and regularly attends training to develop and update her knowledge. Self-evaluation is used effectively by the childminder to look for new ideas and plan different experiences for children to support their learning and encourage their development. For example, children have recently been awarded certificates following their successful participation in fire drills and take pride in recognising their own and each other's names on the certificates. Older children are being supported in preparing for the imminent transfer to school through activities encouraging their pre-reading and writing skills and practical use of numbers in counting and games. Good use is made of local resources such as children's centres to complement the range of home based play activities. Each

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the early years provision

child is recognised and valued as an individual. Resources reflect diversity positively, to help children to recognise and respect differences. Greetings in different languages are displayed and children explore different cultural festivals throughout the year.

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the early years provision

Partnerships with parents are good and relationships are well established with some parents returning with younger siblings to be cared for by the childminder. Parents praise the childminder and all comment how happy their children are in her care. Most comment on the range of outings the childminder provides and how well their children are progressing and developing in her care. Observations relating to children's development are recorded and their progress tracked using Learning Journals. This demonstrates that they make very good progress given their starting points. Records are not fully extended to include more detailed assessment during times of approaching transition such as when children start school, or developed to include parents' contributions. Photographs and examples of children's creative work are displayed in scrap books which children take great pride in looking at and recognising themselves as babies. The childminder is aware

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the early years provision

of the need to work in partnership with other settings children attend, although strategies to implement this are not yet fully effective.

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and outcomes for children

Children's learning and development are strongly supported through the good range of well-planned play experiences and the emotional security the childminder provides. Children are happy and secure. They thoroughly enjoy their time with the childminder, and benefit from the interaction with her own children. Older children concentrate and persist at activities, such as developing their cutting skills by using This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 the scissors successfully to cut a straight line, and writing their names. They make their views known to the childminder and their wishes, where possible, are considered and suggestions followed. Younger children's enjoyment is demonstrated by their high level of concentration in the activities they enjoy. For example, they chalk on the chalk board in the garden and use a glue stick to fix pictures of food to a paper plate during a gluing activity.

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and outcomes for children

Children are developing and using skills they will benefit from in the future through their play and as they investigate their environment. They show they are confident and independent learners, in particular recognising their own names and writing these confidently. Children read and refer to words and numbers on the sun screen bottle, talking about the colour of the sun cream. They recognise numbers on the bottle and link this to the price of the cream, saying it costs '20 pounds'. Children then talk about the number five they see. The childminder explains that is 50, which is a much bigger number. Children know the sun screen will protect their skin from the sun on a hot day and that they need to wear their hats in the sun. Children behave well they listen, work together and participate in negotiations with the childminder, particularly making their views about fruit at snack time known. Snack time is a social time, and children help to set the table choosing which table

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and outcomes for children

mat they will each have today. They sit comfortably at the table, chatting to the childminder as they eat, talking about their favourite fruits and deciding which ones they don't like as much.

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and outcomes for children

Children practice good hygiene procedures as part of their daily routine and know they need to wash hands before eating as there are germs on their hands. The accessibility of the toilet on the ground floor encourages older children's independence. Children are learning about their own safety through planned experiences when they take part in regular fire drills. They talk about needing to stand by the gate when they hear the childminder say 'fire' and proudly point to their fire drill certificates displayed on the wall. Children have daily opportunities for outdoor play and exercise. They have great fun playing outside, navigating space and balancing on scooters. Older children learn to make safe small jumps on the scooter by watching and copying the childminder's son. Children count the numbers they can see on the ground as they jump skilfully on a hopscotch puzzle. They blow bubbles, carefully holding the bottle, blowing bubbles through the hoop

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and outcomes for children

and watching them float away on the wind.

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and outcomes for children

Children regularly visit local children's centres with the childminder where they socialise in a larger group of children and participate in the local community. They see the wider world reflected in the range of play resources, such as books and play figures they use daily. Children enjoy trips to various places of interest with the childminder and when looking through photographs they recall the big fishes they saw when visiting the aquarium. 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 1 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 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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