Childminder in Kingston upon Thames

Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY303066 Inspection date 19/03/2012 Inspector Susan McCourt

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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 2005 and is on the Early Years Register, and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. She lives with her husband and two children aged eight and 12. They live in a residential part of Chessington in Surrey. The whole of the ground floor is available to minded children and there is a garden for outdoor play.

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Description of the childminding

The childminder is registered to care for six children. She currently cares for eight children through the week, four of whom are in the early years age range. The childminder has a qualification at NVQ level 3 in Childcare, Learning and Development.

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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 skilled at meeting children's individual needs. She keeps them exceptionally safe and has an extremely well-resourced learning environment. Overall, the childminder fosters children's learning and development well. The childminder has embedded her good practice and seeks to enhance what she provides via her self-evaluation. She therefore has a good capacity for continuous improvement.

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further?

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

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further?

 improve the use of open questions to promote children's problem solving and language for thinking.

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the early years provision

The childminder's safeguarding practice is exemplary. She has a great understanding of the need to take action should she have concerns about a child in her care, and parents know that she will put the welfare of the child first. All adults in the house are checked as to their suitability to be with children. She pays great attention to detail in her risk assessment and policies. The risk assessment covers all aspects of her home, activities and outings and demonstrates her thoughtfulness in considering the children's safety at all times. In considering her procedure for lost children for example, she tailors her approach to the different places she visits, which reflects the different circumstances she must account for. This means that children's welfare is extremely well supported. The childminder's This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 documentation is well maintained and organised, which underpins children's well-

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the early years provision

being. The childminder's stated aim is to treat children as individuals and to provide a balance of unstructured and structured activities. She carries this out very ably and reflects on her practice as part of her self-evaluation process. She attends a range of short courses to improve her knowledge and understanding of children's development and other professional issues.

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the early years provision

The childminder's resources are exemplary. She has organised her home to provide a safe and comfortable place for children to explore freely. Toys and play equipment are easily accessible in each room which helps to develop children's independence, and they are comprised of natural and found objects as well as conventional play items. The childminder tailors the learning environment to each child's interests so that children can move between activities and still be highly engaged at all times. She is alongside the children as a safe and playful companion, showing the same delight and interest as the children as they make their discoveries. Her play equipment reflects a diverse society, and the childminder is good at making different festivals authentic to the child. For example, for Chinese New Year, she took children to an oriental supermarket where they could choose things to eat for the occasion. The childminder is also

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the early years provision

skilled at addressing achievement gaps, in that she will bring out all aspects of learning in whatever the child is doing. For example, she includes mark-making activities outside, which supports active children who may be reluctant writers. The childminder builds close working relationships with parents and gives them good information about their child's progress through the Foundation Stage. Parents frequently add to the care diary which helps the childminder give consistent care. The childminder supports children at times of transition by helping to settle children into their new schools. She also follows any advice such as from speech therapists, in order to give children coherent support in their learning and development.

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and outcomes for children

The childminder creates an interesting and stimulating learning environment where children can be active, independent learners. She gets to know the individual children very well so that she can support their interests and stage of development. In this way, a child who is rapidly picking up new words and is also very interested in animals, enjoys playing with zoo and farm animals and imitating the noises they make. The childminder makes observations of where children are in their development and plans a variety of activities and experiences around appropriate themes. When learning about fish, children benefited from interesting craft activities such as making an aquarium using junk modelling techniques as well as an outing to an aquarium. The childminder has a good understanding of the Foundation Stage and tracks children's development. Children make good progress as a result.

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and outcomes for children

Children can feel exceptionally safe and secure with their childminder. She gets to know them and their families very well, which means that when children talk about This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 a member of their wider family, she knows who they mean. Children demonstrate an exceptional sense of belonging as they have their own photographs and names present in the learning environment as well as their own work. Posters which describe their achievements reflect the pride children feel in reaching a goal such as pedalling a bike for the first time. Children feel very secure and show this by snuggling in for stories as well as approaching new experiences with great confidence. Children have good opportunities to live healthy lifestyles. The childminder's home is very clean and she rigorously follows good hygiene routines. Children learn to take care of their personal hygiene well as a result, which reduces

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and outcomes for children

the risk of cross-contamination. Children benefit from healthy meals and snacks regularly through the day. They sit up at the table to eat, which promotes a sociable mealtime. They relish physical activities such as ride-on toys and enjoy trips to soft play and activity centres, as well as local parks.

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and outcomes for children

Children thrive in this setting as they are continually involved in their play. The childminder provides a language-rich environment where she is always role- modelling new vocabulary and helping children with their language for communication. However, the childminder's use of open questions is not as consistent in promoting language for thinking to the same good standard. Children spontaneously look at books, enjoy stories, and join in with action songs. Children have time to explore and respond at their own pace which helps them to be relaxed about their play. Children are well-behaved and are happy to take responsibility for helping to tidy, for example. They share their toys and take turns, which develops their cooperative play. Children learn to count through daily routines, such as seeing how many pieces of banana they have at snack time. They learn about shapes and how things fit together as they assemble train tracks

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and outcomes for children

and complete puzzles. Children enjoy exploring technological toys such as tills, phones and cameras. Overall, they build good skills for the future. 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 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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