Childminder in Hertfordshire

Inspection date

Previous inspection date 28/01/2013 10/12/2009

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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

 The childminder provides a warm, welcoming and stimulating environment in which children are secure, happy and confident to express themselves.  Children benefit from a wide range of accessible play resources which meet individual children's interests and keep them motivated.  Children are supported to move on to nursery and school as they are introduced sensitively to the transition and are developing the necessary skills to help them embrace new experiences with self-confidence.

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It is not yet good because

 The childminder is unaware of what action to take if an allegation is made against herself or a member of the household. Therefore, children are not fully safeguarded should this occur.  Insufficient information is gained with regard to children's starting points, in order that the childminder can ascertain which development band children are working at and use this information to promote further development and consistency.  Children lack consistency and continuity in their learning and development because parents are not sufficiently encouraged to share information about their child's learning and development at home.

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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 two main playrooms downstairs and the kitchen.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector spoke to the childminder at appropriate times throughout the inspection.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at children's learning journeys, planning documentation, a selection of policies and children's records.  The inspector also took account of some parental questionnaires.

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Information about the setting

The childminder was registered in 2003 on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. She lives with her two adult children and one child aged 15 years in Stevenage, Hertfordshire. The whole of the ground floor and the rear garden are used for childminding. The family has two dogs, guinea pigs and African land snails. The childminder works alongside her daughter, who is also a registered childminder, and there are currently 28 children on roll, ten of whom are in the early years age group and attend for a variety of sessions. She operates all year round from 6.30am to 6pm, Monday to Friday, except for Bank Holidays.

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must:

 ensure knowledge of the procedure to follow in the event of an allegation being made against the childminder or a member of the household is secure.

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

 develop methods of consistent collection of the information about children's developmental abilities when they start to ensure that it is used to effectively plan and to meet their needs and interests, for example, by using an 'all about me' booklet

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

 help parents to consistently share what they know about their child, in relation to their ongoing learning and development at home, and provide further opportunities for them to contribute to their child's learning record.

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who attend

The childminder's knowledge and understanding of the Early Years Foundation Stage is sound. She is able to observe children and works closely with her co-childminder in ascertaining where children are in their learning. She then uses this information to plan future activities to support children in making progress. The childminder uses 'Development Matters in the Early Years Foundation Stage' to assess the development bands that children are working. However, insufficient information is obtained from parents to support her identification of their starting points. Therefore, this information is not consistently used to support planning for children's progress in all areas of learning.

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who attend

Children are able to self-select from a broad range of accessible resources which meet their interests, keeping them motivated. The childminder knows the children well and this helps her to provide appropriate play resources and experiences for them. For example, children who enjoy music and exploring their senses are provided with interactive and sensory toys that they can operate to make noises or light up. Children develop physically, using their feet to move themselves along on ride-on toys, carefully negotiating obstacles and making the sound of a fire engine siren.

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who attend

The childminder engages in children's play, asking open ended questions and describing what they are doing as they put the figures in the doll's house, supporting their language development. Children can relate their play to their own home experiences, for example, they talk about the doll having a wash in the bath needing a towel because it is wet. They pretend to make dinner, skilfully using the spatula to move the wool 'noodles' from the wok to the bowls. The childminder encourages hand-and-eye coordination as she suggests they try to pick up the 'noodles' with chopsticks. Children play imaginatively, dressing up as tigers and crawling across the floor making roaring sounds. Children are therefore gaining a generally satisfactory range of skills to support their future learning.

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who attend

The childminder encourages children to recognise their name as she writes it on their individual cups. Children consolidate this as they notice their name written on their pictures. They are given lots of opportunities to create and make marks, and start singing spontaneously as they draw their pictures. The childminder uses everyday routines to develop children's understanding of number, counting the steps and the poppers on vests as she changes their nappies. Children are able to operate simple equipment, pressing buttons on interactive toys to make sounds and activating the ball to light up.

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who attend

Children's learning is not always consolidated and extended effectively because the childminder does not consistently encourage parents to contribute to the learning journeys or share information about learning at home. She talks to parents at initial visits, gaining information regarding children's likes and dislikes and their care routines in order to support her in meeting their needs.

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

Children are forming warm relationships with the childminder. They feel secure and comfortable in the setting and are confident to express themselves, seeking out the childminder to share their achievements. She ensures that children are happy to be left when they initially visit with their parents and offers further settling-in visits in response to children's needs.

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

The childminder agrees methods of behaviour management with parents and children often continue to follow these strategies at home, for example, taking themselves to another part of the room to calm down. Children are given careful reminders about following the house rules. The childminder provides a well-balanced diet with fruit and vegetables, and works with parents to meet any specific dietary requirements. Children benefit from fresh air and exercise as they walk to and from school daily and take the dogs for walks in the woods. The childminder has a large selection of climbing apparatus in the garden for differing abilities and children use this equipment in developing their physical skills. Children are becoming competent at managing their personal needs, for example, they clear up after lunch, putting their rubbish into the recycling bin and putting their plate into the sink for washing. Children learn about keeping themselves safe as the

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

childminder gives them boundaries while walking to school, for example, not going further than the lamp post. Children know to keep the childminder in sight while playing in the woods and taking the dogs for walks.

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

Children's personal, social and emotional development is encouraged as they have lots of opportunities to mix and interact with other children at the childminder's home. They enjoy going to collect the older children from the local schools and nurseries, and this helps them to become familiar with the settings. The childminder talks to them about what to expect when they go and encourages the use of books that describe first experiences. Children role play being at school, pretending to be the teacher and 'taking the register'. These activities ensure that children are reasonably prepared for transitions to other settings. The childminder supports the older children in readiness for school as they share their reading books and do their homework.

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provision

The childminder understands her responsibility in meeting the learning and development requirements and works closely with her co-childminder to assess where children are in the learning. Along with her co-childminder, she reviews her assessment of children to monitor children's progress and identify any intervention needed to ensure that gaps are closing. However, information on children's starting points is not consistently gathered to inform this process. She has a sound understanding of the procedure to follow if she has any safeguarding concerns and has recently attended safeguarding training. However, the childminder lacks knowledge of what action is to be taken if an allegation is made against herself or a member of the household. Consequently, children are not fully safeguarded should this occur. This is also a breach of the Childcare Register requirements with regard to children's welfare. Children move around safely within the environment because the

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provision

childminder conducts risk assessments and daily visual checks to ensure that there are no potential hazards.

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provision

Although the childminder verbally shares information about the children's care, little information is shared about their learning and development. The systems for parents to contribute to their child's learning record are not engaging all parents to ensure consistency and continuity. The childminder has made links with other settings delivering the Early Years Foundation Stage. For example, she regularly attends open days where she takes the opportunity to look at what the children are learning in the setting and talks to the staff to enable her to further support children's learning. The childminder uses questionnaires to gain feedback from parents on how to improve the setting. She is able to identify the areas to develop and devise an action plan to improve her practice.

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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 and implement a written statement of procedures to be followed for the protection of children, intended to safeguard the children being cared for from abuse or neglect (Arrangements for safeguarding children).  take action as specified in the compulsory part of the Childcare Register (Arrangements for safeguarding children).

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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 EY256419 Local authority Hertfordshire Inspection number 819754 Type of provision Childminder Registration category Childminder Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 8 Number of children on roll 28

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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. 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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