Childminder 124008

Inspection date

Previous inspection date 09/07/2013 02/06/2009

p.1

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

p.1

This provision is satisfactory

 Children have formed strong bonds and attachments with the childminder. This means that they are confident, happy, and sociable, and have a firm base from which they make good progress in relation to their starting points.  Well-established partnerships between the childminder, parents and other early years settings ensure that information is shared effectively and children gain consistency in their learning and development  The childminder's good practice enables children to do well, make good progress and be ready for school or the next stage in their learning.  Children are confident communicators and they make their needs clearly understood. The childminder is skilful in engaging and interacting with children, asking appropriate questions and developing children's language development through introducing new words and experiences.

p.1

It is not yet good because

 The childminder has not maintained a valid first aid qualification.  The outdoor area is not used to its full potential in providing extended opportunities for children to explore and learn about nature.

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

p.2

Information about this inspection

 scheduled more frequently where Ofsted identifies a need to do so, for example where provision was previously judged 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 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  scheduled 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 looked at the resources and equipment provided and how effectively they are organised to support children's play and learning.

p.2

Inspection activities

 The inspector spoke to the childminder and interacted with children throughout the inspection within various rooms of the home.

p.2

Inspection activities

 The inspector examined a selection of information and documentation relating to the children's safeguarding, welfare and developmental progress.  The inspector and childminder jointly observed and discussed a child-led activity.

p.2

Information about the setting

The childminder was registered in 1997 on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. She lives with her husband in Cheshunt, Hertfordshire. The whole of the ground floor and the fully enclosed the rear garden are used for childminding. The family has a pet dog. She visits the local farm, parks and play areas with the chilren on a regular basis. She collects children from the local schools and pre-schools.

p.3

Information about the setting

There are currently six children on roll, all of whom are in the early years age group and attend for a variety of sessions. The childminder operates all year round from 7am to 6pm, Monday to Friday, except bank holidays and family holidays. She is a member of the Professional Association for Childcare and Early Years.

p.3

must:

 obtain a valid first aid qualification.

p.3

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

 extend the use of the outdoor area to give children further opportunities to explore and learn about nature.

p.3

who attend

Children make good progress. They are happy, motivated and interested in the wide range of toys and activities. The childminder is skilful in engaging the children in play and extending their learning. For example, she invites toddlers to play with the hats, choosing whether to wear the fire fighter's hat, builder's hat or the police hat. Children giggle as they 'peek-a-boo' from behind the hats and try to put one on the very amenable pet dog. The childminder effectively draws out conversation and communication through fun activities. The children show enthusiasm for learning because they childminder rewards them with praise and recognition for their achievements.

p.3

who attend

Children show concentration and persistence in their chosen task. Young children learn to solve the problem of fitting different size cups into each other. Children beam with pride as they achieve their goal. The childminder's encouraging response gives children good levels of self-esteem and confidence in persisting with tasks.

p.3

who attend

Children learn through a wide range of play activities which the childminder provides encompassing all areas of learning. Toddlers are making very good progress in the prime areas of learning. They are confident; communicate at levels expected for their age, and display very competent physical skills. Close partnerships with parents and individually tailored settling in periods ensure that children quickly relax and feel at home in the childminder's care. Parents are involved in children's learning from the start. Information is shared during the initial visits and on an on-going basis. This ensures that the childminder has an accurate starting point from which she continually observes and monitors children's progress.

p.4

who attend

The childminder is good at using incidental opportunities to expand children's learning. For example, when a stray peacock visits the garden every day for a few weeks. The children learn how to feed it and to be safe near it. They learn about the different colours and that male peacocks are the brightly coloured ones. Children remember the incident and recall what happened through the childminder's photographs. The childminder's good practice promotes children's understanding and memory as well as the learning of new vocabulary.

p.4

who attend

Children regularly participate in physical exercise. They walk and run in parks and play areas. They regularly use toys and equipment in the garden. They choose from a broad range of tools and equipment, which are suitably challenging for the children, enabling them to develop their physical skills and abilities.

p.4

who attend

Children's high levels of confidence, self-esteem and independence show that they have the skills they need to be ready for the next stages in their lives.

p.4

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

Children are very happy and confident in the childminder's care. They display strong attachments to the childminder and spontaneously show affection. They freely choose toys from the playroom and bring them into the lounge, using the whole floor space to explore the movement and sounds of the cars. They use tools, such as, cutlery to feed themselves and easily reach their drinks when they are thirsty. They competently step up onto the dining chair to eat a yoghurt after cleaning their hands. This shows that children are competent in their self-help skills, appropriate to their age. The childminder supports this by only intervening if asked, for example, with the initial peeling of the lid; this gives the children the time to try for themselves, promoting their self-esteem and independence. Children are competent at managing their personal needs relative to their age. This is due to the childminder's good skills in supporting children's independence, especially in

p.4

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

personal care tasks, such as, toileting and dressing.

p.4

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

Children behave well because the childminder gives the children clear and consistent messages about what is safe and acceptable behaviour. Children gain an understanding of risk through exploring their environment, and their confidence shows that they feel safe in the childminder's home.

p.4

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

The children's emotional well-being and welfare are generally well supported by good care practices. The childminder has let her first aid qualification lapse. This means that she does not have the most up-to-date knowledge and understanding needed if a medical emergency occurs. However, she has attended training in the past and is able to demonstrate that she would act in children's best interests, if such a situation arose.

p.5

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

Children's understanding of eating healthily is enhanced by the provision of occasional opportunities for them to participate in activities, such as, planting strawberries and cress. They also help harvest the childminder's home grown cherries, peppers and courgettes. The childminder provides home cooked meals for the children, which further encourages children to adopt a healthy attitude towards their diet.

p.5

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

The childminder provides a welcoming, and well-resourced environment where children are happy and settle quickly. She has established close working partnerships with parents and other early years settings, which enables her to have a good knowledge of the children's likes and dislikes, interests, needs and abilities as early as possible.

p.5

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

The childminder prioritises the promotion of children's personal, social and emotional development which enables them to have the skills and feel confident to move on in their development.

p.5

provision

The childminder has a solid knowledge and understanding of the safeguarding and welfare requirements. She ensures that she keeps up-to-date with current safeguarding guidelines and procedures. For example, all adults working or living in the home have been checked to ensure that they are suitable to be around children. However, the childminder does not meet all of the statutory requirements as she has failed to maintain her first aid certificate.

p.5

provision

The childminder's good understanding of the learning and development requirements and the provision of a wide range of activities and resources, that enable children to make good progress in all seven areas of learning. The childminder effectively monitors the activities she provides to ensure that children have a broad and varied range of learning experiences. This effectively enables all children to consistently make good progress towards the early learning goals.

p.5

provision

The childminder's drive for improvement is clearly demonstrated by her continued professional development. Since her last inspection, the childminder has completed a level 3 qualification. She has made significant improvements to her practice. For example, she has produced comprehensive records and information, which support her practice. She conducts some robust risk assessments to help ensure that children are not exposed to any risks. She has established an effective system for monitoring and observing children's individual progress. She effectively uses this information to plan experiences to support children's next steps in their learning, taking into account their age and stage of development. She effectively prioritises the prime areas of learning for children under three-years old and she tailors children's activities to meet their individual learning needs.

p.5

provision

Well-established partnerships with parents and other settings are strong. They contribute to ensuring that any intervention or support would be obtained early and ensure that children's needs are generally well met. The childminder works closely with children's teachers and key persons in other settings that the children attend, such as, nursery and playschool. This is very effective in ensuring that information is shared confidentially and supports consistency in children's learning and development. For example, the childminder links themes, such as, road safety that children are learning about in the preschool to actual practice at the roadside. This helps children's learning to be re-enforced.

p.6

The Childcare Register

The requirements for the compulsory part of the Childcare Register are

p.6

actions)

The requirements for the voluntary part of the Childcare Register are

p.6

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

 obtain a valid first aid qualification. (Childminders and home childcarers must ensure that they have an appropiate first aid qualification)  obtain a valid first aid qualification.(Childminders and home childcarers must ensure that they have an appropiate first aid qualification)

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 action. 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.8

Setting details

Unique reference number 124008 Local authority Hertfordshire Inspection number 887250 Type of provision Childminder Registration category Childminder Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 6 Number of children on roll 6

p.8

Telephone number

set out in the guidance ‘Complaints procedure: 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, which are usually the childminder’s own home. They are registered on the Early Years Register and must deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage.

p.9

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.9

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.10

Type of provision

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

p.10