Childminder in Lancashire

Inspection date

Previous inspection date 02/10/2012 18/02/2010

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early years provision

This inspection: 2 Previous inspection: Not Met How well the early years provision meets the needs of the range of children who attend The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children 2 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 2

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This provision is good

 Children are progressing well towards the early learning goals. They are interested and keen learners who display the characteristics of effective learning when they explore freely and operate independently in the setting.  Children freely access an exciting and stimulating range of toys and indoor activities, presented at their height in low-level storage units or permanently accessible as part of continuous play provision.  Children's personal, social and emotional skills are positively fostered. The childminder promotes their independence and self-help skills very effectively and she makes good use of community resources to extend children's social experiences.  Children develop secure attachments with the childminder who provides calm, nurturing support, tailored to their individual care needs and routines. Consequently, they are very settled and confident.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 Whilst children have good access to fresh air and exercise, they do not have access to the childminder's outside area for play and exploration  The childminder does not always allow children sufficient time to fully explore activities and to sustain their attention.

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Information about this inspection

Inspections of registered early years provision are scheduled:  at least once in every inspection cycle. The current cycle ends on 31 July 2016  more frequently where Ofsted identifies a need to do so, for example where provision was previously judged as inadequate  brought forward in the inspection cycle where Ofsted has received information that suggests the provision may not be meeting the legal requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage; or where assessment of the provision identifies a need for early inspection  prioritised for inspection where we have received information that the provision is not meeting the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage and which suggests children may not be safe  at the completion of an investigation into failure to comply with the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage.

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Information about this inspection

The provision is also registered on the voluntary and compulsory parts of the Childcare Register. This report includes a judgment about compliance with the requirements of that register.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector observed activities in the playroom, the kitchen and the lounge.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector spoke with the childminder at appropriate times throughout observations of the provision and during a quiet period after the children's lunch.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at children's learning journeys, planning documentation, training and improvement information and a selection of policies and children's records.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector took account of the views of parents documented in the childminder's own parent survey.

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Information about the setting

The childminder was registered in 2002. She is registered on the Early Years Register and both the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. She lives with her partner and three children aged seven, nine and 11 years in the semi-rural area of Mereclough, Burnley. The majority of the ground floor cottage is used for childminding purposes, including the lounge, play room, bathroom, a child's bedroom for sleeping and the dining-kitchen for meal times and messy activities. There are a small number of internal steps in the home. There is an enclosed outside area although this is not currently used for childminding. The family has a pet dog.

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Information about the setting

The childminder takes children to and from the local primary school. She attends groups at the local children's centre and visits local parks with the children. She provides care each weekday. At present the childminder has six children on roll, two of whom are in the early years age range and attend on a part-time basis.

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To further improve the quality of the early years provision the provider should:

 review access to the outside area, increasing children's opportunities to develop an understanding of how to be safe and manage risks relative to their age whilst allowing as much opportunity as possible for children to move freely between indoors and outdoors

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To further improve the quality of the early years provision the provider should:

 support children to maintain focus on their activity for a period of time ensuring they have uninterrupted time to play and explore.

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who attend

The childminder demonstrates a good knowledge of the seven areas of learning and how children learn through stimulating play experiences. She provides them with an exciting range of planned, adult-led activities as well as providing good opportunities for them to explore a wide range of resources and engage in self-initiated play. She instinctively and spontaneously provides relevant experiences that meet their individual needs and she captures moments, quickly responding to their interests. For example, when a child hears the rain on the conservatory roof, the childminder supports her to listen, notice and then change the weather chart in the playroom accordingly.

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who attend

The childminder obtains clear information about the children on entry to her provision. She uses this information to inform her assessment of their capabilities so she can provide relevant activities for them. Assessment is secure. Regular, clear and meaningful observations are simply yet effectively evaluated, linked to relevant areas of learning and used to identify appropriate next steps. Photographs are also used to support the observation record. Additionally, the childminder uses a further assessment tracker to help her identify gaps in children's learning. These trackers demonstrate that children are achieving well and have made some good progress during the time they have been in the childminder's care. The childminder has not yet completed the recently implemented check at age two. However, she has very clear systems in place to enable her to do this and has already started to discuss this with parents.

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who attend

Children enthusiastically make choices over their play and learning indoors. They confidently move between the activities put out for them and they select further resources from the low-level storage units in the inviting playroom. They enjoy initiating role play using the puppet theatre, which is a part of continuous play provision. Here children demonstrate an awareness of the structure of stories, principle characters and expression in story speech. They use the puppets imaginatively, for example, saying 'snap, snap, snap' as they handle the crocodile. 'I'm a puppet show' one child says, whilst making another puppet dance. 'Where's the princess gone?'. The well planned environment effectively supports children's independence.

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who attend

Children are provided with good opportunities to paint and to express themselves creatively. An adult-led painting activity, aimed at developing children's knowledge of and recognition of prime colours, presents an excellent opportunity for younger children to feel the texture of the paint and to begin to make marks using tools and equipment. They make circular movements using their hands on the painted paper. The childminder skilfully extends their early language by adding a relevant running commentary, describing the 'round and round' movements being made in addition to the colours being explored. However, she does not always give them long enough to sustain concentration as she cleans the child's hands swiftly at the first sign of distraction and moves on to another activity.

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who attend

Children explore confidently in the childminder's home due to the wide range of interesting experiences on offer. Babies use their curiosity to investigate the musical instruments. They move the sensory sticks up and down the wooden glockenspiel to effect different sounds and to bang on the drum. A wide range of mediums are provided to extend children's play experiences. For example, using vehicles to make tracks in flour, or using shaving foam in sealed bags to provide a sensory experience.

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The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children

Children settle well due to an effective admission process. Time is taken to establish relationships and to obtain useful information from parents about children's general starting points, detailed care needs and home backgrounds. This is done during pre-visits and the completion of an 'all about me' record from home. As a result, the childminder is able to talk to children about their family and experiences familiar to them. This helps them develop a positive sense of themselves. The calm and nurturing care they receive from the childminder means that children enjoy her attention and affection. Babies quickly settle to sleep and are immediately comforted by the childminder's presence when they wake. Older children demonstrate growing self-confidence when they sing a repertoire of songs for the group.

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The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children

The promotion of healthy and safe lifestyles is given high regard. High standards of hygiene are adopted and children are becoming confident with self-care routines when they independently wash hands using their own flannel and towel and clean their teeth. They learn to make healthy food choices and independently access water from the fridge dispenser when they are thirsty. The childminder conducts comprehensive risk assessments of her home and outings. As a result, children move freely and safely between the kitchen, lounge and playroom to access planned activities or resources of their choice. However, there are few opportunities to enable children to learn how to manage risks. The childminder does not use her outside area as she feels it would be unsafe. She has not had the confidence to challenge this thought process and has not thoroughly assessed what could be done to manage children's safety whilst also helping

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The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children

them learn how to be safe in this area. This means childminder's outdoor space is not used effectively as an enabling environment. However, daily outdoor activities are provided as children enjoy regular trips to the large play equipment at the children's centre or local park and enjoy tending plants at the allotment.

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The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children

Regular outings into the community and attendance at groups support children's understanding of the wider world and extend their social experiences. This helps them develop social confidence and prepares them well for their future transitions to nursery or school.

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provision

Since the last inspection the childminder has worked hard to attend to all actions raised and as a result she has significantly improved her childminding provision. After a period out of childmindming practice and having lacked knowledge and required documentation she has completely reviewed, reflected and transformed her provision. She is keen and committed to continually developing her understanding of requirements and good practice through training and by using her established links with her local authority and other providers. She has implemented some new ideas to enhance her provision and to support children's learning and development. For example, since her last inspection she has refurbished one room of the house to become a designated and welcoming playroom. She has refreshed many resources and now has them very well organised in photographically labelled storage boxes so children can access toys of their choice. Using the guidance

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provision

provided by her advisors and the tools she has accessed from some training, the childminder now has a secure system for observing, assessing and for monitoring children's learning. Having reviewed and updated all her documentation she is confident that all required information is kept and is well maintained. She has a renewed confidence in her abilities and an accurate appraisal of her strengths and weaknesses. This leads to some relevant yet challenging plans for further improvement.

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provision

Effective communication with parents and others makes a strong contribution to meeting children's care and learning needs. Daily discussions, activity sheets, communication books and phone texts are just some of the communication methods used. Satisfaction survey questionnaires result in highly positive comments from parents. Typical comments received are that 'It is clear that all the children she cares for love her loads', and that children have 'many different opportunities to experience loads of activities'.

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provision

Children are effectively protected from harm as the childminder demonstrates a secure knowledge of safeguarding issues and procedures. She understands both the learning and development and the safeguarding and welfare requirements of the Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage and delivers them effectively.

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The Childcare Register

The requirements for the compulsory part of the Childcare Register are Met The requirements for the voluntary part of the Childcare Register are Met

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Grade Judgement Description

Grade 1 Outstanding Outstanding provision is highly effective in meeting the needs of all children exceptionally well. This ensures that children are very well prepared for the next stage of their learning. Grade 2 Good Good provision is effective in delivering provision that meets the needs of all children well. This ensures children are ready for the next stage of their learning. Grade 3 Satisfactory Satisfactory provision is performing less well than expectations in one or more of the key areas. It requires improvement in order to be good. Grade 4 Inadequate Provision that is inadequate requires significant improvement and/or enforcement. The provision is failing to give children an acceptable standard of early years education and/or is not meeting the safeguarding and welfare requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. It will be inspected again within 12 months of the date of this inspection.

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Grade Judgement Description

Met The provision has no children on roll. The inspection judgement is that the provider continues to meet the requirements for registration. Not Met The provision has no children on roll. The inspection judgement is that the provider does not meet the requirements for registration.

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Inspection

This inspection was carried out by Ofsted under Sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 on the quality and standards of provision that is registered on the Early Years Register. The registered person must ensure that this provision complies with the statutory framework for children’s learning, development and care, known as the Early Years Foundation Stage.

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Setting details

Unique reference number EY236417 Local authority Lancashire Inspection number 706352 Type of provision Childminder Registration category Childminder Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 5 Number of children on roll 6

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Telephone number

set out in the guidance ‘raising concerns and making complaints about Ofsted', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. If you would like Ofsted to send you a copy of the guidance, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk.

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Type of provision

For the purposes of this inspection the following definitions apply:

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Type of provision

Full-time provision is that which operates for more than three hours. These are usually known as nurseries, nursery schools and pre-schools and must deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage. They are registered on the Early Years Register and pay the higher fee for registration.

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Type of provision

Sessional provision operates for more than two hours but does not exceed three hours in any one day. These are usually known as pre-schools, kindergartens or nursery schools and must deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage. They are registered on the Early Years Register and pay the lower fee for registration.

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Type of provision

Childminders care for one or more children where individual children attend for a period of more than two hours in any one day. They operate from domestic premises that are usually their own home. They are registered on the Early Years Register and must deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage.

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Type of provision

Out of school provision may be sessional or full-time provision and is delivered before or after school and/or in the summer holidays. They are registered on the Early Years Register and must deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage. Where children receive their Early Years Foundation Stage in school these providers do not have to deliver the learning and development requirements in full but should complement the experiences children receive in school. 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,

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Type of provision

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 4234, 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. To receive regular email alerts about new publications, including survey reports and school inspection reports, please visit our website and go to ‘Subscribe’.

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Type of provision

T: 0300 123 4234 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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