McCabe, Amanda

Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY438524 Inspection date 08/05/2012 Inspector Diane Turner

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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 has been registered since November 2011. She lives with her husband and three children aged 10, eight and five years in a semi-detached house on the outskirts of Beverley in East Yorkshire. All of the ground floor of the childminder's home is used for childminding purposes and there is an enclosed garden for outdoor play to the rear of the premises. A rabbit is kept as a pet.

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Description of the childminding

The childminder has an early years qualification at degree level, is a member of the National Childminding Association and is registered by Ofsted on the Early Years Register and both the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. She is registered to care for five children under eight years at any one time, of whom three may be in the early years age group. There are currently six children on roll, of whom four are within the early years age group. They all currently attend on a part-time basis.

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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 cared for in a very welcoming and child-orientated environment where their individual needs are known and met effectively. Children are provided with a good range of activities and a particular strength of the setting is the learning experiences they are able to take part in outdoors. Good attention is paid to promoting children's safety and the partnerships with parents are highly effective overall. A system is in place to monitor the quality of the service, however, this is not fully developed to ensure areas for future improvement are accurately targeted.

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further?

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

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further?

 extend the system for self-evaluation to identify strengths and areas for future development in order to prioritise improvement  provide more opportunities for parents to contribute to their children's learning and development to secure a firmer collaborative approach towards children's progress.

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the early years provision

The childminder has good arrangements for safeguarding children. She has a thorough understanding of her responsibilities in terms of child protection issues and minimises any risks to children's safety very effectively in all areas, adapting her practice as and when any changes occur. Smoke detectors are checked on a weekly basis to ensure they remain in working order and the childminder practises This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 the evacuation procedures for the home with the children each month. A good range of policies and procedures are in place and documentation is maintained to a good standard which enables the childminder to manage her service efficiently. The childminder organises her home effectively, providing a good range of resources for the children to play with and child-height furniture to ensure they can take part in activities comfortably. Photographs of the children at play and

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the early years provision

examples of their art work are displayed which shows their learning is valued and their efforts appreciated.

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the early years provision

The childminder has a clear ethos for her service and describes how she wants to support each child to reach their full potential. She has attended some training since registration such as, a course to improve her knowledge of gender issues in play, which shows she is starting to develop her practice. However, her system for self-evaluation is not fully embedded and is currently not fully effective in identifying areas for future improvement. The childminder gives good attention to promoting equality and diversity. She gathers a good amount of information about each child's individual needs and knows the particular learning style of each one, carefully planning activities to meet these. The children have access to a good range of resources that enable them to learn about the wider world and through celebrating festivals at the local childminder group they learn about the cultures and beliefs of others.

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the early years provision

The childminder has good links with providers of other early years settings the children attend. The reciprocal sharing of information that results is very effective in promoting mutual respect and a shared approach to the children's care and learning. Overall, the childminder engages very well with all parents. She ensures her policies are readily available for them to view and provides copies of certain policies. Information is passed on daily through informal chats, with diaries also being provided for the youngest to record their care routines and activities they have enjoyed. Parents have regular opportunities to view their child's progress record, however, the process of encouraging them to share their observations and knowledge of their children's learning is not yet fully established. This means the childminder may not be fully aware of the progress children make in their home environment. Parents' comments about the service they receive are very positive,

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the early years provision

with recent questionnaires showing that they find the childminder easy to communicate with and that they are very happy with the service she provides.

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and outcomes for children

The childminder has a good understanding of how children learn and develop. She has good systems in place to track their developmental progress and provides a wide range of purposeful and stimulating activities that capture their interest. For example, they are able to choose freely from the toys and they are also offered planned activities, such as, learning to use a camera and rolling marbles in paint which focus on particular aspects of their development. The childminder gives high priority to fostering children's learning in the outdoor environment. For example, she raises their awareness of insectssuch as, ants in the garden, providing This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 magnifying glasses so they can examine them more closely. She enables them to explore pretend sea creatures in a water tray and dig in sand and makes good use of valuable learning experiences the local area offers. For example, she takes the

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and outcomes for children

children to the local childminder each week so they can socialise and make new friends and enables them to enjoy outings to a nearby aquarium and children's farm to raise their awareness of living things.

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and outcomes for children

The childminder interacts skilfully with the children as they play. For example, she helps them to develop their communication skills and increase their vocabulary by teaching them the names of toy dinosaurs and shows them how to make pretend cakes as they play with dough. The childminder develops close and trusting relationships with the children to promote their emotional well-being. Consequently, they feel safe in her care, behave well and become inquisitive and active learners who develop good skills for the future. The children are actively encouraged to become independent. For example, they learn to put on their wellingtons before going outside and when they visit the childminder's allotment they take charge of feeing the chickens , gathering the eggs they lay and watering the fruit and vegetable plants. This also offers them very good first-hand opportunities to learn about food sourcing and healthy eating.

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and outcomes for children

The childminder very skilfully promotes children's understanding of number operations. For example, she encourages them to count how many eggs the chickens have laid and how many candles they have used as they make pretend cakes. The childminder provides good opportunities for the children to benefit from physical exercise and to follow good hygiene routines. For example, the children relish playing out in the garden where they delight in demonstrating good control of their bodies as they climb the steps to the slide. They regularly visit the park and run around on the grassed area opposite the childminder's home and they learn the importance of washing their hands before eating. Activities, such as, using large tweezers to pick up rice, filling containers with dried beans and rolling out dough, allows the children to develop good control of their small muscles. 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 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 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 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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