Childminder in Barnet

Inspection date

Previous inspection date 16/08/2013 25/08/2009

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early years provision

This inspection: 4 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 4 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 4

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This provision is inadequate

 The required suitability checks have not been carried out on all persons over the age of 16 who live in the home. This puts children's welfare at risk.  Accident records are not robust enough to demonstrate the nature of an incident, who was involved and what first aid was administered. This compromises children's welfare, particularly in the event of a child requiring additional medical treatment.  Risk assessments are not used effectively for all areas of the provision, which means that some risks are not always minimised. This compromises children's safety.  Outdoors, children do not have access to a range of activities that promote interest and stimulus across all areas of learning.  Self-evaluation and continuous improvement systems are not yet fully effective at identifying and addressing all strengths and weaknesses in practice.

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It has the following strengths

 The childminder calmly and kindly interacts with the children in her care, using her sound knowledge of their individual interests.  The childminder has a sound understanding of the areas of learning and how children learn.

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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

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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.

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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 care routines in the living room and garden. All other areas which children have access to were observed, including the ground floor sitting room where they sleep.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector spoke with the childminder at appropriate times throughout the inspection.  The inspector observed a specific activity which was discussed with the childminder.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector checked a sample of documents, including children's development records.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector took into account the views of parents who were spoken to on the day.

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Information about the setting

The childminder registered in 2007. She lives with her husband and three children in Hendon, in the London Borough of Barnet. The house is located within easy reach of transport routes. There are a number of steps leading to the house. The whole ground floor of the home is used for childminding purposes, which includes the front room, bedroom, living/dining room, kitchen and toilet. The rear garden is available for outside play. The childminder is currently caring for three children in the early years age group. The childminder is registered on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. The childminder supports children for whom English is an additional language. The provision is open all year from 8am to 6pm Monday to Friday, except for holidays agreed in advance.

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must:

 obtain an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service check for every person over the age of 16 who lives on the premises where childcare is provided

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must:

 keep accurate written records of accidents or injuries and first aid treatment

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must:

 provide a greater range of activities outdoors that cover all areas of learning to encourage children who learn best outdoors to experiment across the curriculum

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must:

 ensure the systems used to foster continuous improvement are robust; make sure that self-evaluation identifies priorities and targets for improvement based on rigorous monitoring of practice.

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must:

 ensure that risk assessments cover all areas of the provision, clearly identifying and minimising risks to children, particularly in relation to the front steps of the house.

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

 provide a greater range of activities outdoors that cover all areas of learning to encourage children who learn best outdoors to experiment across the curriculum.

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who attend

The childminder demonstrates a sound knowledge of how children learn. She facilitates children's learning across all areas of learning appropriately. The childminder provides a suitable range of activities that foster children's interests and extend their knowledge. For instance, while playing with play dough, the childminder extends children's language skills through the introduction of words such as 'rolling', which they repeat for the first time. This helps prepare children for their future learning.

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who attend

There is a range of resources provided for children indoors that they can generally choose for themselves or seek assistance from the childminder. For example, children ask the childminder to pass books from a high shelf. Outdoors, there is some suitable equipment to develop physical play, such as a slide, trampoline, scooter, tricycle and rocker. However, resources that support children's learning across all areas are not always easily available to children and remain in the shed. This limits children's ability to investigate and explore all areas of learning, including literacy and creativity, in the outdoor environment. This is especially relevant to those children who enjoy spending a considerable length of time outdoors.

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who attend

The childminder has established suitable systems to observe and assess children's progress. Information from parents about their child's starting points is recorded. This information is particularly useful for children who are learning English as an additional language, as the childminder requests important words in children's first language from parents which helps her meet their care needs. These records demonstrate that the childminder knows what stage of development the children are at and where their interests lie. She uses these to plan activities that help children progress further in their development. The childminder undertakes the necessary progress checks for children between the ages of two and three years of age and shares her findings with parents.

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who attend

Children enjoy participating in activities with the childminder, both indoors and out. The childminder responds to their requests, altering her plans to suit their interests as the session progresses. Planned activities are appropriate; however, these are not always successful and the childminder does not always effectively evaluate why this is. For instance, while a painting activity based at the kitchen table enabled children to develop their creative, physical and language skills, painting was tricky as children found it difficult to reach due to the height of the table.

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who attend

Parents are informed about their children's progress regularly through informal chats when they drop off or collect their child. The shared information enables parents to gain an insight into what activities their children are favouring, helping them to provide for their interests in the home environment.

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

The childminder's systems are not robust enough to fully ensure children are kept safe. This compromises children's well-being. The childminder keeps some written records for accidents; however these do not always show the date of the accident, where the accident occurred or the first aid given. For example, some forms were not filled in completely; of those sampled two only had a date and signature of a parent but no details of the injury and treatment given. In addition, one only showed the date and where the accident occurred, there were no details that the parent had been notified of what happened, no details of who the child was, what the accident was and how it was treated. This compromises children's safety. It is also a failure to meet safeguarding and welfare requirements relating to the Statutory framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage and also the associated requirements of the Childcare Register. Furthermore, certain areas

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

of the provision have not been suitably risk assessed. The use of a generic risk assessment form to check safety compliance has meant that certain areas that are unique to the childminder's property have not been given due thought and attention. For example, the childminder has not given consideration to risks that the raised front door steps have to children as there are no hand rails and a drop down on to concrete. She has also not considered the potential hazards of the step down into the toilet or the step out into the garden. As a result, potential risks to children have not been considered sufficiently. Additionally the childminder is not always vigilant in ensuring that children are wearing appropriate clothing for their chosen activity to keep them safe. For instance, children play outside in indoor shoes and these have no grip on the damp grass, which heightens the risk of an accident happening.

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

The childminder has created a calm and attractive environment, into which children quickly settle on arrival. Children are aware of the routines of the setting and behave well, with great emphasis placed upon sharing. They are encouraged to develop their independence while carrying out their routines, such as hand washing and eating their packed lunches, which they do well. Resources are clean, well-kept and are fit for purpose, providing appropriate challenge and interest to children. Children have frequent access to the outdoor area and participate in regular play that supports their physical development.

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

Children are helped to prepare for their move to nursery or school suitably. The childminder talks to parents to find out about the expectations of the new setting and works with parents to help prepare the children. Through teaching the children the names of their new teachers and talking about the move, the childminder helps children prepare for their new experiences.

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provision

The childminder has not fully understood the importance of undertaking suitability checks on adults who live in the home in a timely fashion, despite reminders from Ofsted. As such, some of the required checks for persons over the age of 16 who live in the household have not been undertaken. This is a breach of the safeguarding and welfare requirements relating both to the Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage and to the Childcare Register. As a result, children's welfare and well-being are not fully safeguarded.

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provision

The childminder demonstrates a suitable understanding of child protection procedures. She is aware of the signs to look out for and understands who she would contact if she had any concerns. The childminder has a sound knowledge of the learning and development requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. She understands how to plan experiences that engage children and help them develop their skills across the areas of learning. She uses appropriate resources to help her identify children's developmental stages and plan for future learning.

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provision

Since the previous inspection, the childminder has put systems in place to address the action and recommendation set at the last inspection. Children now have access to their own bedding, which is used during sleep times. A system for assessing risks has been implemented. However, this is not thorough enough and does not successfully identify areas that give greatest concern. For example, the childminder cares for pre-school age children who generally require support on steps and stairs. These steps are steep, with no hand rails and have an open drop down to concrete at the side. Although these steps are not used every day, the childminder confirmed that on occasions the children do use these.

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provision

The childminder does some evaluation of her provision and has identified some areas to improve. However, her systems for evaluation are not fully effective in identifying all areas of practice that can be improved and lack clear vision as to where the major areas for improvement lie. Parents' views are sought verbally and are used to help improve children's experiences. Parents are generally happy with the care and education that the childminder provides. While the childminder has not had the need to work with other professionals to support children's specific learning needs, she is aware of where to seek advice or support if necessary.

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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:

 obtain an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service check for any person in regular contact with children (compulsory part of the Childcare Register)  ensure that all necessary measures are taken to minimise risks (compulsory part of the Childcare Register)  keep records of accidents which occur on the premises (compulsory part of the Childcare Register).  obtain an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service check for any person in regular contact with children (voluntary part of the Childcare Register)  ensure that all necessary measures are taken to minimise risks (voluntary part of the Childcare Register)  keep records of accidents which occur on the premises (voluntary part of the Childcare Register).

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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 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.

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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 EY359278 Local authority Barnet Inspection number 837959 Type of provision Childminder Registration category Childminder Age range of children 0 - 8 Total number of places 6 Number of children on roll 3

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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.

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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, which are usually the childminder’s 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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