Childminder in Luton

Inspection date

Previous inspection date 19/08/2013 02/07/2010

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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 areas registered for children's use are not always suitable as the garden is unsafe.  When children attempt to choose the toys they want to play with they sometimes fall on them causing them to become distressed.  Children do not make good enough progress in their communication and language skills because when the childminder identifies their learning does not meet expectations, she fails to put into place suitable strategies to support them.  The childminder does not readily gather accurate information from parents about children's learning at home. Consequently, observations and assessments are weak and do not clearly identify children's next steps in learning.  The childminder does not always effectively manage children's behaviour. This poses a risk to children's well-being.  The childminder is not always a positive role model for children as she speaks to them in a manner that is unsupportive, impacting upon their self-esteem.

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This provision is inadequate

 The childminder imposes routines for eating and drinking that are not fully flexible to help children to learn about their own need for nourishment.

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It has the following strengths

 The childminder has a willingness to improve upon the quality of care she provides and is working closely with local authority workers to tackle weak areas.

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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 in the living room and playroom.  The inspector had discussions with the childminder.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector sampled a range of documentation including children's records, safeguarding procedures and parents' information packs.

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Information about the setting

The childminder registered in 1987. She lives with her husband and two grown-up children in Luton, Bedfordshire. The whole of the ground floor of the childminder's house is used for childminding except for the kitchen. The garden is currently unsuitable for outside play. The family has no pets. The childminder provides care on each weekday between 8am and 6pm. She is registered on the Early Years Register and the voluntary and compulsory parts of the Childcare Register. There are currently five children on roll, four of whom are in early years age range.

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enforcement action:

We will issue a Welfare Requirements Notice requiring the provider to:

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enforcement action:

ensure that all areas registered for childminding are safe for children's use; in particular relation to the garden by removing hazardous items and securely blocking off areas which pose a threat to children

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enforcement action:

manage children's behaviour in positive ways ensuring that physical intervention is used only when absolutely necessary to prevent serious harm and discussions about behaviour are positive and supportive

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enforcement action:

take steps to ensure that accidents are prevented by storing toys for children's easy reach in a way that is safe.

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must:

 provide suitable support for children whose development causes concerns to ensure that they make satisfactory progress in all prime areas; especially in the area of communication and language

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must:

 establish a two-way flow of information with parents to fully understand children's abilities and to plan suitably for their next steps in learning.

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

 ensure that routines are fully flexible and meet individual children's needs as they learn about their own appetite and thirst.

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who attend

This inspection was brought forward as the result of a concern related to the suitability of the childminder's interactions with children while attending a local children's centre. Ofsted needed to investigate the concern and carried out an unannounced visit to the childminder's home. The childminder confirmed that she had spoken to children in a nature which was abrupt and unsupportive and had handled them roughly. As a result, children had become distressed by her actions and she did not respond quickly enough to comfort them. Furthermore, the investigating officer found that the childminder's home was unsafe and not suitable for childminding due to extreme clutter and hazardous items within children's reach. The childminder's registration needed to be suspended while immediate action was taken. The childminder took action to address some of the issues raised and continues to be registered. However, at the time of inspection the garden was

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who attend

found to be unsuitable for children to use as hazardous materials were accessible to them. This means that children cannot play in the garden to support the development of their large muscles. Children have some opportunity to develop their smaller muscles as they play with the toy kitchen and role play making dinner. They make believe and offer 'dinner' to the childminder as they use their imagination. Children are able to make some choices about what they play with. They move between the living room and the playroom as they follow their interests. However, storage arrangements are unsafe and when children try to choose toys to play with they fall on them causing them to become upset.

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who attend

Children look at books and point out things within them that interest them. Children seek comfort in each other when they see dinosaurs in a book and enjoy flicking through the pages. The childminder recognises when children's communication and language causes concern as they do not talk. However, she does not put into place any strategies to support children and cannot explain how she plans to develop this aspect of their development. Furthermore, upon discussion with some parents they express that children do speak at home. The childminder does extend upon this dialogue with parents to discover children's actual abilities, as a consequence, she is unable to identify their next steps in learning and assessments of what children can do are not fully accurate. This limits children's ability to make sufficient progress. Children's poor communication skills impact upon their all-round development as they are unable to express themselves clearly

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who attend

and become frustrated and upset, as a result. At times, activities are uninspiring and children lack motivation to learn. This means that they are unprepared for their future learning and readiness for school.

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who attend

The childminder is beginning to observe children and track their development. This is developing, as the childminder has yet to link these to what children can learn next to adequately move them forward.

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

The childminder does not always manage children's behaviour suitably and follow her policy for positive behaviour management. When children want to move around while they are drinking she grabs them by their arm until they sit down. This poses a risk to children's well-being as they could fall and injure themselves. Furthermore, the childminder does not always speak to children in a way that helps them to understand their actions and how they need to behave. Children generally get along well together. At times they become boisterous climb over each other and the childminder distracts them from doing this. The childminder takes children to groups outside of the home to help them to socialise with others. She gathers information from parents when children first start to ensure she follows their home routines. This also helps the childminder to help children to move smoothly between home and her care.

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

As the childminder does not always speak to children in supportive ways, they are not full secure in her care as this lowers their self-esteem. Children separate from parents without distress and are generally settled. They settle to sleep using comforters and cuddle each other expressing their fondness. The children occasionally invite the childminder to join in with their play and come to her to show her if they have hurt themselves.

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

The childminder discourages children from eating a snack before their lunch as parents wish for them to eat all of the lunch they provide. The childminder offers children a drink mid-morning. This means that children are not fully able to meet their own needs for nourishment. Children go for regular walks that help them to keep fit and active as part of their routine. The childminder changes children's nappies frequently to ensure their comfort.

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provision

The childminder's inability to maintain a safe environment impacts upon children's welfare. This is a breach in legal requirements for the Early Years Register and the voluntary and compulsory parts of the Childcare Register. The childminder knows how to identify the signs and symptoms that might cause her concern about children's well-being and explains the action she would take. She maintains registers of children's attendance and undertakes regular practice evacuations of her home. The childminder is starting to review her policies and procedures to ensure their suitability.

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provision

The childminder has not addressed all recommendations from the previous inspection and fails to act quickly enough when there are several breaches in legal requirements. This shows that she has a limited capacity to bring about improvements in quality for children. However, the childminder is willing to address weak areas. She develops action plans to target the most pressing areas and works closely with local authority development workers to monitor improvements. She has made progress in securing most of the areas where children play.

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provision

The childminder undertakes training to ensure that she meets requirements. She uses her learning to reflect upon the care she provides. The childminder works with other childminders and uses their examples and suggestions to develop her own documentation for recording children's progress. The childminder completes the progress check at age two for children. She shares this with parents. The childminder observes and is starting to monitor children's development. This is in its infancy and, as yet, does not fully provide an accurate record of children's abilities and does not identify how to help children to make sound progress in the future.

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provision

Parents are supportive of the childminder. She encourages them to share their ideas through regular questionnaires. The childminder uses this information to evaluate some of 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:

 ensure that the premises and equipment used for the purposes of childcare are safe and suitable for childcare (compulsory part of the Childcare Register)  ensure that children receiving childcare are kept safe from harm (compulsory part of the Childcare Register)  ensure that children's behaviour is managed in a suitable manner (compulsory part of the Childcare Register)  ensure that the premises and equipment used for the purposes of childcare are safe and suitable for childcare (voluntary part of the Childcare Register)  ensure that children receiving childcare are kept safe from harm (voluntary part of the Childcare Register)  ensure that children's behaviour is managed in a suitable manner (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 105197 Local authority Luton Inspection number 932525 Type of provision Childminder Registration category Childminder Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 6 Number of children on roll 5

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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

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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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