Childminder in Nottinghamshire

Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY263348 Inspection date 27/10/2011 Inspector Janice Hughes

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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 2003. She lives with her partner and 11-year-old child in a semi-detached house, close to Mansfield town centre. The whole of the ground floor and the back bedroom and bathroom on the first floor of the childminder's house are used for childminding purposes. There is a fully enclosed garden for outside play. The family have a pet fish.

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Description of the childminding

The childminder is registered on the Early Years Register and on both the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. She is registered to care for six children at any one time and is currently minding nine children, all of whom attend on a part-time basis. Six of these children are in the early years age range.

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Description of the childminding

The childminder has a level 3 early years and education qualification and she is a member of the National Childminding Association. She also attends the local childminder and parent, carer and toddler group.

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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 settled and confident in the care of this responsive and affectionate childminder. They make good progress overall in their development and learning in relation to their individual starting points. Excellent procedures are in place to safeguard and promote children's safety and welfare. The childminder works very well with parents and other professionals to ensure all children are included and to promote a continuous learning experience. She is fully committed to reflecting upon her practice and has an effective understanding of how to use self-evaluation to demonstrate her continuous improvement.

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further?

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

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further?

 ensure the existing observations match to the expectations of the early learning goals.

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the early years provision

Children are protected exceptionally well because the childminder has a strong knowledge and understanding of safeguarding procedures. She has an excellent understanding the action she must take if she was to have concerns about a child in her care and knows who she would need to contact to report her concerns. Household members are known to Ofsted to enable appropriate checks to be undertaken. The childminder has robust systems in place to promote children's safety, for example, socket covers, and daily checks ensure that all areas of the This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 home are safe for use. Risk assessments cover all aspects of the home and garden, and include outings away from the home setting. A robust, written emergency and accident policy ensures that children are suitably cared for in the event of an emergency. Evacuation plans are in place and regularly practised with

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the early years provision

children, which ensures that they are aware of the appropriate procedures to follow in an emergency.

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the early years provision

Space is skilfully organised in the home to provide a broad and effective range of different activities and experiences. A wide and varied selection of resources are readily available for the children. There is a play cupboard and toys are stored in low boxes for all children to easily access and enhance their play and learning. The childminder spends time with the children, interacting effectively in a natural and sensitive way and ensuring they are supported. For example, she kneels and lies on the floor to participate in the children's play and encourage their learning. She demonstrates a positive attitude to inclusion and offers a warm welcome to all children. She promotes children's understanding about their local community by visiting child-orientated venues. They learn in a purposeful way about the wider society and diversity during walks and trips to local shops and amenities. The childminder is fully committed to evaluating her provision. She shows a willingness

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the early years provision

to make continuous improvements, making use of self-evaluation as a tool to develop her service. She accesses training opportunities, and these courses aid her in knowing how to help children to learn and develop more effectively.

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the early years provision

Highly positive relationships with all parents are reflected in written comments made by parents, who report their children settle extremely well, make very good progress and enjoy attending the setting. The childminder is fully committed to developing working relationship with parents. Regular exchanges of information ensure the needs of the children are met. She creates a welcoming home where children feel happy and valued. The childminder fully understands the benefits of developing partnerships with other providers involved in children's care, when the need arises, to promote continuity. As a result, children's individual needs are identified and met very effectively. She liaises very well with other childcare professionals. This helps the childminder to develop her knowledge and understanding of childcare.

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and outcomes for children

Children enjoy themselves and are happy in this inclusive, homely environment. They demonstrate their independence as they select different toys and resources to play with. Children are supported to make good progress in all areas of their development because the childminder has a strong knowledge of how to support children's learning. She gets to know the children in her care very well. She makes efficient use of information provided by parents and undertakes observations of children's achievements and interests. This enables her to plan a suitable range of activities to support their individual learning and needs. The childminder systematically observes and assesses individual children's progress. However, the observations are not yet fully effective in matching to the expectations of the early learning goals. As a consequence, some children may not reach their full potential 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 provides a broad range of activities to stimulate children's interest and support their learning and development. For example, the children become engaged in playing with the home corner, which extends to them going shopping and making a healthy pretend lunch for the childminder to enjoy. This helps children to develop their sense of creativity and their curiosity. Children's physical skills develop effectively when using the varied range of outdoor play equipment, such as wheeled toys, tricycles and the slide. Walks to their local amenities and use of the equipment at their local parks offer challenges to further advance their physical skills. The childminder provides a purposeful approach to children learning about being keeping safe and being healthy, for example, through activities, such as cooking, where she discusses the knives being dangerous and why the children need to wash their hands. Children demonstrate that they feel safe and secure in

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and outcomes for children

the environment and know the boundaries. They behave well and learn to show consideration for others during their play, for example, sharing the play dough tools to roll out the dough. Lots of praise is used to help children develop good self-esteem and understand when they have done well. Children demonstrate very good manners, remembering to say 'please' and 'thank you' at relevant times. They learn about similarities and differences in themselves and others as the childminder uses everyday experiences and discussions about things children notice as they play. Resources and stories, as well as activities, such as celebrating festivals, also support this area of learning.

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and outcomes for children

Children's language and communication skills are promoted effectively by the childminder through constant conversation, questions and individual attention. They are well supported by the childminder to express themselves because she take time to listen to them and values what they say. Children initiate their own craft activities and show high levels of interest in mark making, looking at books and listening to stories. They are eager to choose their favourite book, and snuggle to read them on the sofa with the childminder, joining in and repeating the familiar parts of the story. Children are beginning to recognise and show good interest in numbers. They count with confidence in sequence to ten while playing with shapes and identify some numbers in books. Children also develop an interest in technology and enjoy using simple interactive toys and games, which helps them to successfully gain skills for the future.

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and outcomes for children

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 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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