Childminder in Warwickshire

Inspection date

Previous inspection date 22/01/2013 03/02/2009

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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 3 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 3

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This provision is satisfactory

 Children are very content in the childminder's care and benefit from attention from two different adults.  Children's opportunities for developing confidence in speaking and in reading books are well supported by the childminder.  There is a flexible and relaxed partnership with parents, who are very content with the care provided. The childminder has strong links with the local school and nursery.

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It is not yet good because

 The childminder lacks a secure understanding of the new Early Years Foundation Stage Framework particularly with regard to the prime and specific areas of learning.  Opportunities to involve parents and carers in children's learning have not been fully developed to extend children's development.  There is scope to improve the range of resources available to ensure children experience play opportunities across all areas of learning which also fully promote their interests.

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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 compulsory part 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 play sessions with books and puzzles and children's lunch time.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector spoke with the childminder and her co-childminder at appropriate times throughout the inspection.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at children's files and development folders, planning documentation and a selection of policies and daily records.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector took account of the written views of parents, children and other providers.

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Information about the setting

The childminder was registered in 1991 on the Early Years Register and on the compulsory part of the Childcare Register. She lives with her husband, who is also her co-childminder, and one adult child in Bedworth, Warwickshire. The childminder has overall responsibility for childminding practice. Her co-childminder works in a supportive role and there are also two other assistants. Most of the ground floor of the house is used for childminding, along with the bathroom upstairs. There is a fully enclosed garden for outside play. The family has a pet cat.

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Information about the setting

There are currently 18 children on roll who attend for a variety of sessions, four of whom are within the early years age range. The childminder takes and collects children from the local school and nursery.

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must:

 develop knowledge and understanding of the seven areas of learning in order to fully promote children's development.

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

 develop further opportunities for parents and carers to contribute to and share in children's progress

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

 extend the range of play opportunities available for children, particularly with regard to physical development and the use of different creative materials.

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who attend

The childminder is clearly committed to providing a welcoming and secure environment for children where they can relax and play with resources that interest them. She offers them her time and attention and uses her own knowledge of them to provide play and learning opportunities that suit their stage of development. This ensures they are making sound progress in their learning and development. Although she has a satisfactory general understanding of how to support children's learning and development, she has not updated her knowledge in line with the new framework which means that some aspects of children's development are not fully challenged. She has a reasonable range of resources in the playroom which children easily access and they are given choices about what they want to do. However, the selection of play opportunities, particularly in relation to creative and physical play, are a little limited which impacts on children's learning experiences in

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who attend

Children attending after school relax in front of the television or join in board games. Younger children arrive happily after nursery and spontaneously seek out either childminder so they can excitedly read through favourite books. The childminder engages with them through the use of effective questions and prompts, and responds to make learning fun, gently asking them to look again if they are not quite right. Children are confident talkers as the childminder encourages them to share events from school and nursery, showing great interest in what they say. They happily respond to questions about the stories, explaining the colours and the names of items.

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who attend

Children are developing an understanding of numbers and sizes as they find the puzzle pieces, recognise shapes and count objects. They recount how they make a snowman with different sizes for the body parts and then 'make a smile with my fingers'. Children use imagination as they play with the dolls or the farm animals or enjoy making dens with blankets and pegs outside in the summer and then share together in a picnic. They have some opportunities to draw and practise their early writing skills and all children particularly enjoyed the Christmas drawing competition. Children of different ages are cared for together and the childminder ensures they are all content in her care. They know the routine well and have strong relationships with the childminder, who respects them as individuals and gives them good attention. Therefore, they are developing strong social skills, such as sharing, listening and working together, which supports their ability to

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who attend

settle and engage well at other settings, such as nursery and school.

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who attend

The childminder seeks general information from parents so she can plan around their interests and abilities from the start. She organises the day around children's preferences and choices and engages to extend their learning. She observes children as they play and is starting to capture some of these through photos and written records and then uses these to plan for the following week, generally identifying how she can adapt or extend the activity to support their interest or individual development. She responds well to the children, offering encouragement and prompts. Children are therefore confident to initiate their own play and show enthusiasm to engage and enjoy their learning to a sound level.

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

Children's welfare is generally well promoted in this setting through most daily routines and regular reminders from the childminder. Children move confidently between the rooms and clearly know the procedures for walking sensibly to and from school and having a clear regard for the green cross code. They have opportunities to practise regular fire evacuation drills with the childminder so they know the route out in an emergency. Most food is provided by parents, but the childminder is aware of encouraging healthy eating and therefore talks to children so they understand why certain food promotes their health. She provides drinks at all times, and children particularly like her hot chocolate in cold weather and treat day on Thursdays. Children move freely and confidently around the setting and have access to a safe garden for play in the better weather. They have opportunities to develop their physical skills and coordination as they regularly walk to and

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

from school. However, resources to support physical play outside are somewhat limited.

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

Children build very warm and comfortable relationships with both childminders and are content to seek out cuddles or sit together on the chair to enjoy shared books. Children are given time and attention as they settle in after nursery, when the childminder shows genuine interest in what they have been doing by encouraging them to talk about their day. Children are comfortable with the childminder, who engages well with them to encourage their interest and make learning fun. She offers them praise for their achievements and always gives them her attention. This helps children feel secure and grow in confidence so they are well prepared for transitions to nursery and school. As the childminder also has support from two other assistants, children are learning to build relationships with different adults. Also, as part of a large group who assemble in the house after school, they are learning to understand how to share time and resources and

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provision

The childminder has a sound understanding of her role and responsibilities in protecting children from potential harm or neglect and how to pass on concerns appropriately. She has useful information displayed and has attended recent training to update her knowledge in this area. She is clear about procedures to protect children's welfare, such as safe collection, and has all the relevant documentation relating to children's details and parental consents in place. Children's safety is well protected as the childminder maintains a safe environment and reminds children of practices to ensure their safety. She uses both visual and written methods to address any hazards so that children can move safety around inside and outside.

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provision

The childminder is committed to providing a welcoming and caring environment for children of different ages and has addressed the areas for improvement raised at the last inspection. Although she has a sound knowledge of how to generally support children's learning and development, she does not have a fully secure understanding of the changes in the Early Years Framework and the prime and specific areas of learning. This impacts on her ability to provide suitable challenges in some aspects of children's development. The childminder shows a suitable commitment to continuous improvement as she has attended several training courses since the last inspection. She has started to evaluate her practice and has sought the views of others to provide a large collection of very positive comments from parents, children and providers, such as the nursery teacher.

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provision

Partnership with parents is open and friendly, and for many has been a well-established and very reliable service over the years. Both the childminder or her co-childminder always ensure daily information is exchanged through informal discussion. She offers a flexible settling-in process so that children and parents get to know the provision well and the childminder can make her own observations of each child's development and interests. She has started to encourage parents to complete the 'all about me' section within her documentation so that she gains useful knowledge about children's interests and routines. This helps to support an easier settling-in process. However, opportunities to continue to involve parents in children's learning and development through seeking information about their play at home or effectively sharing details of their ongoing progress at the childminder's are not fully maximised. The childminder has experience of working with

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provision

children with more specific needs and knows to liaise with parents and others to ensure they are appropriately supported. She has strong links with the local nursery and school and would confidently initiate discussion with other practitioners so they can work together to aid children's transitions and support any aspects of their development.

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The Childcare Register

The requirements for the compulsory 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 201340 Local authority Warwickshire Inspection number 817951 Type of provision Childminder Registration category Childminder Age range of children 0 - 8 Total number of places 6 Number of children on roll 18

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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. 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

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Type of provision

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.

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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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