Childminder in Trafford

Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number 318546 Inspection date 12/07/2012 Inspector Julie Firth

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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 registered in 2000. She lives in the Urmston area of Trafford with her husband, adult child and child aged 13 years. The home is close to shops, parks, schools and public transport links. The family have two dogs.

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Description of the childminding

The whole of the ground floor is used for childminding, the bathroom and toilet are also on the ground floor. There is an enclosed garden for outside play. The childminder is registered on the Early Years Register and both the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register to care for a maximum of six children aged under eight years at any one time, of whom, no more than three may be in the early years age range and of whom, no more than one may be under one year old. There is currently one child attending in this age range. The childminder is supported by Trafford Sure Start.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Overall the quality of the provision is satisfactory.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

The childminder provides a warm, welcoming and caring atmosphere and takes suitable steps to promote children's safety. Planning, observation and assessment is developing across the Early Years Foundation Stage but some systems are not fully effective. Parents are starting to become involved in their children's learning. However, there are no systems in place to ensure the continuity of care and education with the local school. Systems for self-evaluation are in place and are starting to identify future improvements and monitor the provision.

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further?

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

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further?

 devise a system to strengthen the link with the local school to enhance continuity of care and education for children attending the setting  include all children in regular fire evacuation drills and record details in a fire log book of any problems encountered and how these were resolved  develop planning, to ensure children are involved in a good balance of challenging child and adult-led activities  develop tracking systems to monitor children's progress across all areas of their learning.

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the early years provision

There are suitable arrangements in place to safeguard and promote children's welfare. There is a written policy in place and the childminder records all incoming injuries and events that occur outside her home. This ensures the safety of the children in her care. The premises are safe and secure. Risk assessments for This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 indoors and outdoors are in place and reviewed to ensure that risks to children are minimised. Furthermore, the register is kept up-to-date and records children's actual times of arrival and departure. A suitable range of toys and equipment both indoors and outdoors is maintained and generally accessible and children can move freely around the ground floor. Equality and diversity is promoted generally well and children have some opportunities to access resources or activities that will help to develop positive attitudes towards diversity. For example, they create a Dragon

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the early years provision

The childminder is establishing suitable relationships with parents and they are are provided with sufficient information about the childminder's provision. A regular two-way exchange of verbal communication ensures that parents are kept informed about their children's well-being and achievements. For example, they comment on their children's development recorded in their individual learning journal. Furthermore, the childminder is working closely with Sure Start and is aware of the developments required to enhance quality of care and learning around the Early Years Foundation Stage. However, as the children are ready to attend the local school and nursery, systems are not effective to enable the continuity of care and education. This results in limited information sharing of their development. There are some arrangements in place for self-evaluation. For example, the childminder regularly asks parents about their views and suggestions

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the early years provision

and takes these on board to improve her provision. She is beginning to review her practice to improve outcomes for children and the provision overall.

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and outcomes for children

The childminder's appropriate knowledge of the Early Years Foundation Stage ensures that children are supported in their learning. The childminder joins in with children's play, asking questions to promote language development and introduces activities to encourages children to recognise numbers and colours. Children are content and settled and they have a positive relationship with the childminder and develop a sense of belonging. She is asking parents for their children's starting points and some observations are carried out and generally used well to identify next steps in children's learning. However, as planning is in the early stages there is a lack of adult-led activities. This results in children not having enough challenge in some areas of learning. She is starting to track some progress but as children in the Foundation Stage are new to the setting, systems are still in the early stages. This results in limited detail in some areas of learning to identify any gaps that

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and outcomes for children

Children are happy to play independently and they confidently make choices about what they want to play with. They learn how to dress themselves, visit the bathroom on their own and mix with others at the local childminding group. They have access to a few programmable toys, board games and puzzles to encourage discovery and thinking. Children have access to some role play activities and have creative opportunities, such as, during arts and crafts, using glue, glitter and paint to make a birthday card for a family member. Furthermore, they collect leaves to make a collage. The childminder ensures they have access to books and learn new This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 familiar words. She is starting to label some items in the room to enable them to recognise print. However, children have few opportunities to calculate or write the letters of their name, which indicates they are not always stretched enough in

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and outcomes for children

some areas of their learning. Children have regular access to outdoor play using a suitable variety of equipment to promote their balancing and climbing skills when attending the local park. They also enjoy playing with bats and balls in the childminder's rear garden.

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and outcomes for children

The childminder promotes the health and well-being of children, by taking suitable steps to prevent the spread of infection. Children practise road safety with the childminder and fire appliances are regularly checked. However, evacuations are not practised with younger children and there is also no log book kept of when an evacuation took place, any problems encountered and how they were resolved. The childminder encourages children to be polite, share toys and learn to respect each other's wishes and needs. Strategies used to manage children's behaviour are positive and she gives sensitive explanations according to their age and maturity. This helps them to begin to understand right from wrong. Children's self-esteem and confidence is promoted through praise and encouragement and the childminder is a good role model to the 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 3 The effectiveness with which the setting promotes equality and diversity The effectiveness of safeguarding 3 The effectiveness of the setting’s self-evaluation, including the steps taken to promote improvement The effectiveness of partnerships 3 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 3

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Stage

The extent to which children achieve and enjoy their learning 3 The extent to which children feel safe 3 The extent to which children adopt healthy lifestyles 3 The extent to which children make a positive contribution 3 The extent to which children develop skills for the future 3

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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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