Childminder in Lancashire

Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY417949 Inspection date 27/07/2011 Inspector Mrs Ferroza Saiyed

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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 2010 and lives with her father, in Burnley, Lancashire. She works with another registered childminder in the home and therefore, contingency arrangements are in place.

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Description of the childminding

The playroom, dining room and bathroom facilities on the ground floor are used for childminding. There is a fully enclosed outdoor play area to the rear of the property. The childminder attend other childcare groups in the area.

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Description of the childminding

The provision is registered on the Early Years Register and also the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. The childminder is registered to care for a maximum of six children under eight years, with three being in the Early Years Foundation Stage. The childminder when working with another childminder at this address, is registered to care for six children under eight, with six being in the early years age range and two of whom can be under one year of age. There are currently five children on roll in this age group who attend at various times. The childminder also offers care to children aged over five years. The childminder cares for children on weekdays from 7am to 6pm, 50 weeks of the year.

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Description of the childminding

The childminder is qualified to National Vocational Qualification Level 4 in Childcare. Advice, support and training are gained from the local authority.

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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

The childminder is effective in meeting the needs of all children through recognising their uniqueness. She provides an inclusive, welcoming and caring service. The homely environment makes children feel very safe. The good organisation, drive and motivation of the childminder ensures children are happy, and have very positive experiences. Children make good progress overall in their learning and development as they are eager to be actively engaged in their choice of interesting play activities. The childminder has developed effective procedures to work with parents; however, some required documents to promote children's welfare are not accurately completed. The childminder reflects on her practice, undertakes regular training and is extremely well placed to sustain improvement.

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further?

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

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further?

 update the record of risk assessment to include any assessments of risks for outings and trips  gather information from parents about their children's starting points, so progress can be linked with their learning and development. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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the early years provision

Children are well protected and safeguarded because the childminder is fully aware of her role and responsibility to protect children from any harm, and follows the local procedures. Children are safe and secure in the premises and the deployment of resources are extremely well organised. The environment is planned to enable the children to move freely and use an extensive range of equipment, furniture and toys to support their development and learning. The childminder has an up-to- date first aid certificate and have requested consent from parents to obtain emergency medical treatment. Consequently, children are very well protected. Written risk assessments of all areas of the home and yard along with daily checks and appropriate safety equipment ensure that children are kept safe within the home environment. However, records do not include risk assessments outings and trips. Nevertheless, children's safety is promoted on outings as the childminder

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the early years provision

implements good procedures, such as, carrying contact details for children and a first aid kit along with constant supervision of the children. Therefore, the impact is minimal.

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the early years provision

The childminder shows a strong commitment to supporting and enabling children to develop and learn and is actively using her knowledge, experience and the Early Years Foundation Stage Framework documents. She has undertaken extensive training and gained qualifications in childcare at level 3 and 4. She has accessed a variety of training workshops to keep up-to-date with the various childminding practices. She has made links with a local network of childminders and liaises with other professionals and agencies that support children and families. She ensures that she is complementing children's care and learning in liaison with the school where some children attend. The childminder recognises her strengths and weaknesses and has started a system of self-evaluation to identify strengths and priorities for development. This helps to promote outcomes for children exceedingly and promotes an environment of continuous improvement.

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the early years provision

The childminder has excellent partnerships with parents. They are valued as partners and are warmly greeted and fully included. She records all relevant needs in order to meet children's medical, health and routine requirements. However, detail about who has parental responsibility, have not been obtained from parents. This is legal requirement. Parents and children feel reassured as the childminder effectively communicates information on a daily basis both verbally and through the learning journeys. Parents are encouraged to contribute to the childminder's own self-assessment through questionnaires and suggestions. Parents have access to all organisational information, including the polices and procedures. All families are welcomed and included in the organisation. They see lots of information notices and displays of photographs and children's own pictures and drawings. Children have easy access to all toys, activities and facilities and

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the early years provision

learn about their local community and differences in people around them. Parents comment positively about the service they receive and state that the childminder is very friendly and professional, that children have fun in a safe environment and that children settle with the childminder and respond to the lovely smiling faces. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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and outcomes for children

The childminder is warm and very caring and children respond to this nurturing positively. They are happy in their play and laugh and smile a lot. The childminder has an understanding of the Early Years Foundation Stage. A good balance of child-led and adult-initiated experiences ensures that activities are appropriate for childrens ages and stages of development and cover all areas of learning. The childminder knows the children well and uses this to plan activities based upon their interests and needs. However, the systems to find out about children's starting points in relation to their learning and development are not fully robust. Nevertheless, ongoing observation is the main form of assessment and the childminder has developed a system for assessing the children. As a result, children are making very good progress in their learning and development. Individual files have been developed for each of the children. These include

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and outcomes for children

photographs and assessment of the children's learning. The observations to the expectations of the early learning goals and, the learning priorities are identified to inform future planning.

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and outcomes for children

Children are extremely happy and confident and most of all have lots of fun and enjoyment. The childminder skilfully promotes children's wellbeing and expertly promotes their active involvement in their own learning. The designated play area is planned so that it has accessible, interesting and stimulating resources available for all children. This enables them to access resources freely, encouraging independence, choice and decision-making. For example, child wants to play outdoors with his cars, whilst the two children sit with the childminder and look at books.

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and outcomes for children

The childminder interacts with the children constantly. She stimulates their curiosity and uses open-ended questions exceptionally well to encourage their language for thinking. For example, she asks children to reflect by asking, "Can you remember what animal we coloured for Chinese New Year?" When children respond with rabbit, she questions further about the food they eat, and children know that they eat carrots and cabbage. Children's language is very well fostered through conversation with the childminder who listens carefully and responds appropriately. Children's problem solving skills are promoted as the childminder uses mathematical language during everyday activities. The play environment is fully used to support learning and children gain exceptionally good skills for the future, such as measuring ingredients to make a cake and singing number rhymes. They concentrate well to fit the pieces into the jigsaws. Early writing skills are also

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and outcomes for children

evident as children attempt to use a wide variety of tools such as crayons, paint brushes and pencils to make marks. Children thoroughly enjoy creative experiences, and use their creativity to make valentine cards for their parents and talk about things that matter to them. This helps build children's confidence, and this is combined with lots of praise and encouragement and, consequently, childrens self-esteem is promoted.

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and outcomes for children

The childminder has a very clear understanding of differing cultures. Therefore, children are provided with a wealth of challenging opportunities to learn and This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 develop an awareness of the diverse culture in which they live, such as, making and tasting food from around the world like, pancakes from Poland and spaghetti bolognaise from Greece.

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and outcomes for children

The indoor space, the outdoor, visits to community groups and trips to places of interest, all allow children to discover new environments and promote highly stimulating experiences. This provides them with inspiring and challenging opportunities to develop social and intellectual skills. Children are welcomed into the childminder's home and are valued as individuals. They behave well and display good manners, such as saying please and thank you for snacks, meals and drinks. Children are well supported by the childminder, who has clear house rules in place to help children to begin to learn right from wrong. Children show respect for one another as their social skills develop, enhancing their positive disposition to learning. 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 1 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 1 The extent to which children adopt healthy lifestyles 2 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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