Childminder in Lincolnshire

Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY436794 Inspection date 09/07/2012 Inspector Anne Barnsley

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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 2011. She lives with her husband and two children aged 11 and 13 years in Waddington, Lincolnshire. The whole of the childminder's house is used for childminding and there is a fully enclosed garden for outside play. The family has two guinea pigs as pets.

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Description of the childminding

The childminder provides care from Monday to Friday all year round except for bank holidays and Christmas. She is registered to care for six children under eight years; of whom, no more than three may be in the early years age range and one may be under one year. She currently have one child on roll in the early years age range. She is registered on the Early Years Register and on the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register.

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Description of the childminding

The childminder is a member of the National Childminding Association and receives support 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

Children are cared for in a welcoming family home where safety is highly prioritised. They develop a strong sense of belonging and make good progress with their learning and development. Partnerships with parents is extremely well established, and is mostly in place with other professionals who are involved with the children. The childminder has an accurate understanding of her service and demonstrates good capacity to maintain continuous improvement.

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further?

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

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further?

 ensure that there are effective systems in place for working in partnership with all other settings that children attend.

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the early years provision

The childminder promotes children's safety extremely well as she is fully conversant with her duty to keep children safe and protect their welfare. She has completed training and can recognise signs that would alert her to a child at risk. As part of her ongoing development she is undertaking an advanced safeguarding course and a special educational needs co-ordinator course. This enhances her existing knowledge in addition to developing her knowledge of protecting vulnerable children. She has a comprehensive procedure, which is shared with parents so that they are fully informed of her duty to protect children. All other policies and procedures that are required for the safe and efficient management of This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 the setting are comprehensive and reviewed regularly. The childminder has clear processes in place to ensure that all adults who have close contact to children are

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the early years provision

vetted for their suitability and she supervises children closely when they go out and about. Thorough risk assessments and daily checks ensure that potential hazards are identified. She has highly effective safety measures in place to minimise these.

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the early years provision

The childminder operates an equal opportunities policy and welcomes all families to her setting. She actively promotes positive learning about diversity and would challenge discriminatory remarks or behaviour. She ensures that all children have settling-in periods with a parent and uses this time well to find out as much as she can about each child before they start. She gathers comprehensive information about each child, which enables her to plan effectively around their uniqueness. A stimulating range of activities, both on and off the premises, promote all areas of learning and development well. She has established extremely strong partnerships with parents and keeps them very well informed about their child's care and learning. Parents are able to contribute fully to their child's learning through a home-link diary and by viewing their learning journeys and planning. They comment on how well the childminder meets their child's needs through

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the early years provision

questionnaires that she uses to monitor quality. The link diaries are also used to liaise with other practitioners who share the care of the children. The effectiveness of this is not consistent as not all practitioners contribute as intended. The childminder has yet to consider ways that will encourage a two-way flow of information between all practitioners so that all children receive consistency in their learning and development.

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the early years provision

The childminder reflects well on practice and highlights realistic and challenging targets for improvements, which show vision and ambition. She has only been minding for a short time and has driven improvements very well. She talks to parents each day to seek their views and attends the Children's Centre where she consults with other practitioners and shares practice ideas. Since registration she has introduced many improvements to her setting, which have been prioritised well as they fully reflect the needs and interests of the children who attend. For example the outdoor area has been greatly enhanced as this is where the children like being best. Vegetable and sensory gardens have been developed and many resources have been obtained to promote outdoor learning. Indoors has been developed into a well-resourced, vibrant learning environment where children can make self-initiated choices. She is very proactive with training and has many

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the early years provision

courses booked, which have been well chosen as they provide a diverse knowledge base. She is also working towards accreditation so that she can offer funded education. These improvements are realistic and are highly likely to contribute well to improving outcomes for children. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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and outcomes for children

Children form a strong bond with the childminder as she is highly attentive to their needs and interacts with them in a gentle and kind manner. They are confident and show that they feel very safe and secure within the welcoming family home environment. The childminder understands children's preferences and interests and uses this knowledge well. She offers resources and follows home-routines to fully support children's independent play and developmental needs. For example, she currently minds very young children and focusses on developing their personal, social and emotional development, their physical development and their language skills. She carefully plans activities that she knows children enjoy and that link to these areas. She undertakes purposeful observations to assess their progress and to raise next steps in their learning and development.

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and outcomes for children

The childminder is very well organised and has made all resources available to children in baskets with labels and photos. The children self-select books to share with the childminder and show their enjoyment as they look at the pictures and copy the sounds that the animals make. They touch the different textures and react in different ways to the ones they like the feel of and the ones they do not like. They copy words and are making sense of language in correct contexts. Children show a clear understanding of language and what the childminder says to them, for example, becoming excited when she suggests hanging up their threaded beads to show mummy when she comes to collect them. Children receive lots of praise and recognition in this setting and are supported very well when learning new skills. The childminder is patient and encouraging and allows children time to try and to have a go before she helps. This enables children to develop

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and outcomes for children

perseverance skills and a sense of achievement when they succeed. One child is learning to thread with laces and different sized beads. Good progress is being made with hand-eye coordination and developing precision skills.

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and outcomes for children

Children greatly enjoy playing outdoors and emphasis is placed on outdoor play every day, regardless of the weather. Children have a mud garden where they play with diggers and cars. They grow vegetables, which the childminder calls 'funky vegetables' as she has chosen very unusual ones such as stripy tomatoes, yellow courgettes and purple carrots. Children have a sensory garden with various herbs which they pick, smell and taste. They enjoy playing in sand and water. They use their imaginations as well as their senses, such as using dinosaurs in the sand. The childminder has developed outdoor bags and boxes with resources that cover all areas of learning and all weather conditions. She has sunny day boxes, rainy day boxes, windy day boxes and investigation boxes. Children use ribbons in the wind to dance with and they use a fence as a weaving wall. This also has different coloured beads and numbers on it to help them develop early mathematical

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and outcomes for children

concepts. The childminder takes children out and about regularly so they learn about their environment. They visit the Children's Centre were they learn to socialise with other children and adults and where they engage in a wider range of activities in a different environment. This contributes to supporting them with their transition to other settings in the future. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 They have excellent opportunities to develop their understanding of safety and of developing healthy lifestyles. They use resources responsibility, and from a young age develop positive hygiene practices by washing their hands with soap and water as opposed to using wipes. The childminder makes this fun for them by encouraging them to rub their hands together to make the soap on their hands squeak. They sing a washing-hands-song, which helps very young children to

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and outcomes for children

enjoy the process from the start. Each child has their own towel, flannel and bedding and are set high standards by the childminder. Children eat healthy snacks, for example, of fruit, breadsticks, cheese and crackers, which they enjoy. Parents are provided with menus and with examples for healthy lunch boxes should children attend for lunch. They have high levels of fresh air and outdoor, physical play, and by growing their own vegetables they learn extremely well about healthy lifestyles and balanced diets. Children learn extremely well about keeping themselves safe as the childminder is an excellent role model who is highly safety conscious. They wear high visibility vests when they go out and they learn about road and fire safety. Children are very well behaved as they are treated with great respect and are given time to express their views and to think about what is being asked of them. Children are successfully learning the skills that they need for their

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and outcomes for children

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 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 1 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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