Thorpe, Jane Elizabeth

Inspection date

Previous inspection date 13/12/2012 09/01/2009

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early years provision

This inspection: 3 Previous inspection: 3 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 3

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This provision is satisfactory

 Strong emphasis is placed on supporting children's personal, social and emotional development. Children are well cared for within this nurturing environment, where they develop strong attachments to the caring childminder.  Information gathered from parents is appropriately used to support children's individual care needs.  The childminder provides a welcoming environment, where toys and resources are well organised within a designated playroom. This allows children to make decisions about their play, linked to their interests.

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It is not yet good because

 Observations and assessments of children are not used effectively to build on their learning to ensure that they make as much progress as they can.  Opportunities to develop partnerships with parents and other settings are not yet fully embedded in order to complement children's learning.  Children's well-being is not fully assured because the childminder does not keep accurate attendance records.  The process for self-evaluation is not fully embedded to accurately assess the quality and impact of the provision in supporting children's learning and development.

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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 and interaction between the childminder and children in the home.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at observations and assessments records for children and other record keeping.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector spoke with the childminder at appropriate times throughout the observations.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector observed the organisation and safety of the home, toys and equipment.

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Information about the setting

The childminder was registered in 2008 on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. She lives with her husband and son aged 10 years in a house in the Whalley Range area of Manchester. The family has a pet dog. The childminder uses the whole of the ground floor and the rear and side garden for childminding purposes. She takes children to local groups and visits the park on a regular basis.

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Information about the setting

There are currently 12 children on roll, three of whom are in the early years age group who attend for a variety of sessions and nine are school-age children who attend before and after school. She operates Monday to Friday all year round, except for family holidays.

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must:

 make use of ongoing observation and assessment of each child's progress, taking account of their starting points, interests, and stage of development and use this information to identify the next steps in their learning  keep a daily record of the names of the children being cared for and their hours of attendance.

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

 enhance systems to involve parents in the ongoing observation and assessment process to enable the childminder to precisely monitor children's progress

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

 improve the links with other early years settings that children attend, to share information about children's progress and complement their learning and development

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

 develop effective systems for self-evaluation that identify targets to ensure that the quality of children's learning, development and care continues to improve.

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who attend

The childminder demonstrates a basic knowledge of the revised Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage, in relation to the learning and development requirements. The educational programmes provide a suitable range of activities to enable children to make satisfactory progress in their learning and development. The childminder has begun to observe and assess children's progress towards the early learning goals. She is using the guidance Development Matters in the Early Years Foundation Stage to identify the children's developmental stages. However, she is not yet using her observations effectively to plan for children's individual needs and next steps in their learning. Therefore, although children are making suitable progress, the lack of planning means children are not consistently challenged to maximise their learning.

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who attend

The childminder is very attentive and engages well with the children. She follows their lead and joins in with their chosen activities, which encourages their play and exploration. For example, children get out the cups and they both have 'tea' together. They have fun singing familiar rhymes using finger puppets and use musical instruments to express themselves creatively. Children's early communication and language skills are well promoted. The childminder uses clear speech and repetition to reinforce children's developing language, adding words to what children say to increase their vocabulary. Children are keen to copy the words that she uses, such as naming the colours of the bricks. Children's interest in making marks is supported through opportunities for them to use different media, such as chalks and crayons, both indoors and outdoors.

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who attend

Children develop their small muscles and coordination as they press buttons on the toy microwave and play a range of different musical instruments. They show good perseverance skills as they build towers with colourful bricks. They develop their problem solving skills, as they sort and match beads to order the colour and size in which they have to be stacked. The childminder uses these everyday opportunities to promote counting and matching skills. Children have daily walks and the childminder uses the time to discuss the environment, such as the weather and changes in the seasons. Children are introduced to the growing and planting of seeds and the importance of caring for the environment. Visits to local groups help children to develop their social skills and prepares them for transitions to nursery and school.

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who attend

Although detailed information is shared with parents about children's care routines, less emphasis is placed on sharing information in relation to their learning and development both on starting on ongoing. As a result, there is no baseline from which to monitor children's progress and parents are not fully involved in their children's learning and development. Whilst the childminder has yet to implement the two-year-old progress check she has discussed this with parents and is developing systems to ensure this can be completed appropriately.

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

The childminder provides a homely environment where children's emotional well-being is supported and nurtured extremely well. She uses information gathered from the parents about their likes, dislikes and routines and uses this to help them settle and cater for their individual care needs well. This provides a strong foundation for young children to develop their independence and exploration and to develop skills for future learning. Children confidently move around the childminder's home and show that they are settled and content in her care. They are able to easily access a wide selection of resources and are given opportunities to make their own choices. The childminder shows them genuine warmth and acceptance, valuing their individual characters and responding positively to their requests.

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

Children's behaviour is good. The childminder praises their achievements, promoting children's confidence and self-esteem well. Children enjoy taking on responsibilities by helping to tidy up or getting out different toys. The childminder supports children appropriately as she provides a range of opportunities for them to share and take turns. Consequently, they play cooperatively and learn how to cooperate and compromise. Children are confident in making their needs known, for example, when they need to wash their hands or change an activity. Everyday routines, such as hand washing, develop children's understanding about good hygiene practices and support their self-care skills. The childminder also displays posters around her home to remind children about good hygiene practices. Children are learning to take responsibility for their own safety as they are taught about how to keep themselves safe. For example, they learn about walking

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

safely when on outings. The children are also familiar with fire safety because they regularly practise the emergency evacuation procedure with the childminder.

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

Children learn about healthy lifestyles through the promotion of healthy eating. They are provided with healthy nutritious snacks and a freshly prepared midday meal that considers children's individual needs and preferences. For example, some children particularly enjoy pasta dishes and this is acknowledged in the menus. Children are provided with daily opportunities for fresh air and to participate in energetic play. Access to the childminder's garden and visits to the park provide good opportunities for children to test out their physical skills, such as running, climbing and balancing.

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provision

The childminder demonstrates that she has an adequate understanding of the Early Years Foundation Stage safeguarding and welfare requirements. However, she is still in the early stages of implementing the learning and development requirements and as a result, her observation and planning systems are not always used effectively to plan challenging experiences for children. She has a sound understanding of her role in protecting and safeguarding children from harm. She has appropriate procedures in place for reporting child protection concerns. She makes sure that the environment is safe and secure through daily safety checks and more thorough risk assessments. As a result, children are kept safe.

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provision

Records are adequately maintained. However, children's well-being is not fully assured because the childminder does not keep an accurate record of their attendance. This is a breach of a legal requirement and is also a breach of the requirements for the Childcare Register. The childminder demonstrates a satisfactory capacity to maintain continuous improvement. She has made suitable progress since the last inspection. For example, she risk assesses all outings to ensure children's safety and she has a clear understanding about the procedures to follow if an allegation is made against her or a member of the family. She has also introduced a system for tracking children's progress, however, planning systems are not fully embedded to ensure they meet the individual needs of the children. As a result, further recommendations have been made in relation to learning and development.

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provision

Following attendance at training, the childminder has made improvements to her outdoor area to provide better experiences for the children. Although she is aware of some areas for improvement, for example, her continued implementation of the learning and development requirements, self-evaluation is not yet extended to fully cover the monitoring of the educational programmes or formally identify areas for improvement. The childminder works well with parents building relationships to obtain information about individual children, detailing their likes, dislikes and routines to ensure consistency in their care. The childminder has considered ways to develop partnerships with other settings where children attend, such as school and nursery. However, she has not yet fully embraced the process with regard to sharing information about children's learning and development, in order for her to complement their learning.

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The Childcare Register

The requirements for the compulsory part of the Childcare Register are

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actions)

The requirements for the voluntary part of the Childcare Register are

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To meet the requirements of the Childcare Register the provider must:

 keep a daily record of the names of the children looked after on the premises and their hours of attendance (Records to be kept) (both parts of the Childcare Register)  take action as specified above (Records to be kept).

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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 EY370236 Local authority Manchester Inspection number 821242 Type of provision Childminder Registration category Childminder Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 6 Number of children on roll 12

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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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