Childminder in Swindon

Inspection date

Previous inspection date 20/11/2012 01/04/2009

p.1

early years provision

This inspection: 2 Previous inspection: 2 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 1 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 2

p.1

This provision is good

 Children feel exceptionally safe and secure in the childminder's care; they are welcomed warmly by the childminder, her co-worker and the other children so they feel valued and part of the group.  Children are happy, well motivated and eager to learn because they are interested in the activities and resources provided by the childminder. She carefully monitors their achievements to plan suitably challenging activities. As a result, all children make good progress.  The childminder has a thorough knowledge of child protection and is clear about what she must do should a concern arise. As a result children are safeguarded exceptionally well.  The childminder keeps parents well informed about all aspects of their child's care and learning. This builds trusting relationships and provides continuity in their care.

p.1

It is not yet outstanding because

 The childminder does not consistently help parents to share what they know about their children's achievements at home, including at the outset of care to gain a more complete picture of children's interests and the progress they make.  The childminder does not support fully children's early reading skills and encourage their love of books by displaying a wide range of books from which children can easily see and choose.

p.1

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.

p.2

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.

p.2

Inspection activities

 The inspector spent the majority of time with the childminder observing her practice and the minded children. This took place in the childminder's home.

p.2

Inspection activities

 The inspector made observations on how the childminder works with her co-minder to determine the various strengths that they each bring to the setting.

p.2

Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at children's information and development records. These were discussed with the childminder to assess her understanding of the child's developmental milestones and how she plans for children's next steps.

p.2

Inspection activities

 The inspector discussed with the childminder her understanding of the welfare requirements and samples of policies and other records were checked.

p.2

Inspection activities

 The inspector discussed the process of self-evaluation and how the childminder obtains the views of all the users to ensure her setting meets their needs and her plans for future improvement.

p.2

Inspection activities

 The inspector spoke with two parents of minded children and noted written comments from several other parents.

p.2

Information about the setting

The childminder registered in 1994. She is on the Early Years Register and on the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. The childminder lives with her husband and teenage child, in the residential area of Woodhall Park, Swindon. The whole of the house is used for childminding and there is a fully enclosed garden for outside play. The childminder works with her husband, who is also a registered childminder. The childminder has overall responsibility for childminding and her co-minder works in a supportive role. Together they have a total of 24 children on roll, 11 of these are in the early years age range and 10 are older children, over eight years old. The childminder walks or drives to local schools to take and collect children. The childminder currently supports children who are learning English as an additional language. The childminder has partnership arrangements with other early years settings, including the local nursery and

p.3

Information about the setting

school. The childminder holds a level 3 qualification in Home-based Childcare. She has also attended a number of workshops. She is a member of an accredited network of childminders.

p.3

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

 engage parents further in their children's development and learning; help parents share what they know about their children's achievements, including at the outset of care to gain a more complete picture of children's interests and the progress they make

p.3

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

 develop further children's early reading skills by displaying a wide range of books which they can easily see and choose from. Consider regularly taking children to the library to borrow books.

p.3

who attend

The childminder regularly attends training and has a very good knowledge and understanding of how children learn and develop through play. She provides a stimulating and welcoming environment so that children are eager to join in. There is very good range of high quality resources that children can easily reach for themselves and this helps them become highly independent. Boxes of toys are well organised and clearly labelled with words and photographs so that even the youngest can choose what to play with.

p.4

who attend

The childminder accurately assesses children's development, with contributions from her co-childminder, and effectively plans activities and experiences that interest and challenge each child. She works well with her co-childminder to make sure that each child has plenty of individual attention and she spends much of her time talking and listening to the children. She asks skilful questions that encourage children to think and try new ways of doing things. As a result, children make good progress in all areas of their development, especially as they learn to communicate and to develop social and emotional skills. This prepares them well for their future learning. Where assessments show that children's development is below that expected for their age, the childminder takes prompt action to seek or provide additional support where needed. For example, she has attended speech and language training. She uses this knowledge to assess accurately children's speech

p.4

who attend

development and uses recommended activities to help children consistently improve.

p.4

who attend

The childminder and her co-minder work extremely well together, so that they can meet the needs of different groups of children. For example, she takes the youngest children to a toddler group, at which they enjoy and learn new social skills. Her co-minder stays with the older children, where they can enjoy activities better suited to their age. When working together they can more easily supervise children and keep them safe, which allows them to enjoy frequent outings. These broaden children's experiences and add significantly to their enjoyment. For example, they are able to safely take a small group of children swimming each week. During the holidays, children enjoy exciting outings, such as a day at the seaside. The childminder uses opportunities like this to broaden children's knowledge and help them link ideas. For example, prior to the outing they discussed life under the sea, made pictures, read stories and moved like different animals. They visited

p.4

who attend

an underwater centre, which gave them plenty to talk about and helped consolidate their knowledge. Children develop a positive attitude to people's differences through discussion and the good example set by the childminder, as they meet a range of people in various situations.

p.4

who attend

The childminder has good and generally effective relationships with parents and they speak very highly of the care their children receive. They receive copies of policies and procedures that outline how the care and learning are organised. The childminder seeks information from parents at the outset so that she can continue home routines and help children settle quickly. However, she does not always make full use of parents' knowledge to help her gauge children's level of development on admission. Parents are kept extremely well informed about their child's care and learning through daily discussions, regular texts, emails and access to their learning and development records. These are well illustrated with photographs and examples of children's work that give parents a real insight into their child's time with the childminder. However, parents are not fully encouraged to support and share information about their children's learning at home.

p.4

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

All children thrive in this nurturing environment. They build very close bonds with the childminder and her co-minder and know that either is always ready to provide a reassuring cuddle or help when needed. This helps children settle extremely well and they demonstrate a strong feeling of security, for example, as they go readily for an afternoon nap. Children become highly independent in managing their personal care and making choices in their play. The childminder has organised her home extremely well to enable children to move freely and safely between rooms so they confidently and enthusiastically explore all the resources on offer.

p.5

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

The children learn to be highly sensitive to others needs and all are involved in welcoming and helping one another. For example, they run to greet a new arrival, excitedly calling her name and the child beams with pleasure at her welcoming party. Children and families from all backgrounds are warmly welcomed and children learning English as an additional language are given very good support, so they make very good progress. Children demonstrate a great maturity as they learn how to behave safely indoors and outside. The youngest children learn quickly how to negotiate safely a short flight of stairs on their tummies and how to behave near water when they go swimming or visit the lake. The childminder and her co-minder work closely with parents to ensure that children receive consistent messages about acceptable boundaries. Parents say the childminder has offered exceptionally helpful advice in managing difficult behaviour at home.

p.5

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

Consequently, children's behaviour is exemplary.

p.5

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

The childminder gives children clear messages about the importance of a healthy diet and regular exercise. They sit together to enjoy healthy and tasty meals, freshly prepared by the co-childminder. They often cook together which further increases their understanding of healthy eating. The childminder holds babies closely while they bottle feed, which adds to their sense of security. Children have plenty of exciting opportunities to be physically active, for example, playing in the well-resourced garden or running and climbing in the park and woods. The younger children frequently go to collect older children from school or nursery and so become familiar with the places they will attend in the future. The childminder supports children's social skills exceptionally skilfully so they behave appropriately and make friends easily. They are very well prepared for starting school or moving to other settings.

p.5

provision

The childminder takes the lead role in organising the provision with her co-childminder. She undertakes regular training to keep up to date with current practice. For example, she is fully conversant with the recent changes to the learning and care requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. She accurately assesses her strengths and knows the areas she needs to develop, such as attending training on how to complete two-year-old children's progress checks. The childminder takes overall responsibility for maintaining appropriate records. All the required documentation is in place and maintained appropriately to ensure children's safety and wellbeing. The childminder constantly reviews the quality of what she provides. She actively includes the views of her co-minder, parents, children and her network and local authority development worker. She produces monthly action plans, which help focus her efforts on areas that have the greatest impact to benefit children. She enthusiastically

p.5

provision

Throughout the day, the childminder discusses with her co-minder the success of different activities. They agree how they can develop children's skills and build on their interests. This means that she can tailor activities to match children's individual stages of development so that children enjoy their learning and make good progress. She gives additional support to individual children with identified needs so that gaps in learning are closing. The childminder has established effective arrangements to share information with other early years providers, to ensure continuity in children's care, learning and development. She works closely with parents to ensure children's care needs are met exceptionally well. However, she does not make full use of children's achievements at home, which would enhance their progress further.

p.6

provision

The childminder has a thorough understanding of her responsibilities to safeguard children. She has attended advanced training in child protection and has an excellent knowledge of what she or her co-minder must do if concerns arise. She works effectively with the appropriate agencies to help keep children safe. The childminder makes children aware of their own safety, without making them fearful, throughout the day. She takes every opportunity to teach or remind them, for example, to put on seat belts or hold on to the buggy near the road. She used a visit to the police station to help them understand better how to keep themselves safe. She and her co-childminder have undertaken comprehensive risk assessments of her home and outings to minimise any potential hazards.

p.6

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

p.6

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.

p.7

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.

p.7

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.

p.7

Setting details

Unique reference number 108991 Local authority Swindon Inspection number 839559 Type of provision Childminder Registration category Childminder Age range of children 0 - 8 Total number of places 12 Number of children on roll 24

p.7

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.

p.8

Type of provision

For the purposes of this inspection the following definitions apply:

p.8

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.

p.8

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.

p.8

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.

p.8

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,

p.8

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’.

p.9

Type of provision

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

p.9