Childminder in Durham

Inspection date

Previous inspection date 23/08/2013 15/02/2010

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early years provision

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

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This provision is inadequate

 The childminder does not always ensure that children are within her or her assistant's sight or hearing at all times.  At times, the childminder does not maintain the required adult-to-child ratio to ensure the safety and welfare of children.  The premises are not secure to ensure unauthorised persons are unable gain entry and to ensure children are unable to leave the premises unsupervised.  The systems for observation and assessment do not always ensure that the next steps for learning are clearly identified.  Written permission has not been obtained from all parents or carers to take children on outings.  Self-evaluation does not clearly identify the strengths and weaknesses of the provision or take into account the views of children and their parents.  There is scope to provide opportunities for children to move freely between the indoor and outdoor environment to enable them to choose where they wish to play and

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This provision is inadequate

benefit further from playing in the fresh air.

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It has the following strengths

 The childminder and her assistant are warm and caring. As a result, children settle easily into their care and develop close attachments to them.

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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 spoke with the childminder, her assistant and the children at appropriate times throughout the inspection.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at a selection of documentation including children's records and the childminder's certificates.  The inspector observed care and activities in the lounge and dining room.  The inspector viewed the premises, toys and equipment.

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Information about the setting

The childminder was registered in 2004 and is on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. She lives with her husband and two children aged 14 and 11 years in Murton, Seaham. The childminder works with an assistant.

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Information about the setting

The childminder takes children on outings and to activities in community settings. She also takes children to local shops and parks.

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Information about the setting

There are currently 11 children on roll, of whom nine are in the early years age group. The childminder operates Monday to Friday all year round, except Bank Holidays and family holidays.

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must:

 ensure that staffing arrangements are organised to meet the needs of all children, and ensure that children are adequately supervised and within sight or hearing at all times

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must:

 ensure adult-to-child ratios are maintained in line with the legal requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage, to help ensure the safety and welfare of children

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must:

 ensure the premises are secure to prevent unauthorised persons entering and to prevent children from leaving unsupervised

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must:

 strengthen the arrangements for observation and assessment of children's learning, and use this information when planning the next steps for each child to help them make the optimum progress in their development

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must:

 obtain written permission from parents or carers to take children on outings

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must:

 strengthen the self-evaluation process to identify areas for improvement and to show how these will be addressed to raise the overall quality of the childminding provision.

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

 extend the opportunities for children to play in the fresh air and make choices about where they wish to play. For example, enable them to move freely between the indoor and outdoor environment.

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who attend

The childminder has a satisfactory understanding of how children learn and provides a varied range of activities that cover all areas of learning. On the whole, children are making steady progress in relation to their starting points. This is because the quality of teaching is sound and children engage in activities that interest and stimulate them. The childminder supplements the activities she provides in the home by taking children to local community groups where they participate in well-planned sessions. She observes children's progress and makes some records of these. However, she does not routinely use her findings to help her when planning for the next steps in their learning. Therefore, she cannot be certain that she is helping children to make as much progress as possible. The childminder works with an assistant, which offers her the opportunity to provide activities both indoors and outdoors simultaneously, while ensuring they are supervised

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who attend

appropriately. However, she does not take advantage of this and children are not given the option to choose where they wish to play.

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who attend

The childminder demonstrates satisfactory teaching skills to help children learn. Both she and her assistant interact appropriately with children to extend their learning. They are warm and caring and provide children with praise and encouragement to raise their self- esteem and promote their independence. The childminder takes children to community settings where they engage in creative and messy play activities, which allows them to explore their senses. For example, young children experience the feeling of cornflour, water and dough, and delight in using finger paints. The childminder encourages children to look at the colours and shapes of objects as they play and when they are out in the environment. She uses words, such as 'big' and 'small', to promote children's understanding of size as they play with shape sorters, and counts in everyday routines to increase their understanding of number. The childminder and her assistant take children

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who attend

on lots of outings and trips so they can explore the environment and engage in new experiences. She liaises well with childminding colleagues to organise joint play sessions and special events, such as sports days. This gives children the opportunity to play in larger groups, which promotes their social skills and helps to prepare them for their move into school.

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who attend

The childminder has satisfactory procedures in place to keep parents informed about their child's learning. This is generally by means of verbal feedback and parents occasionally looking at children's records. The childminder seeks information about what children have been doing at home so she can take this into account when planning activities.

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

Overall, children's well-being is compromised because the childminder fails to meet some of the safeguarding and welfare requirements. Despite this, children form affectionate relationships with the childminder and her assistant. They approach them confidently, holding out their hands to be picked up and cuddling into them when they are tired. Flexible settling-in procedures help children to adjust at a pace that reflects their needs and parental requirements. Information is gathered about each child's personal care and some areas of development prior to their placement. This ensures that the childminder has sufficient information to adequately support children's well-being as they move into her care.

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

All childminding areas are clean to help reduce the risk of cross-infection. Pictorial prompts remind children how to wash their hands properly, and the childminder and her assistant talk to them about the importance of this. The childminder takes children out daily and uses local parks so they can experience using a range of different equipment, such as slides and climbing apparatus. Consequently, they develop confidence and some awareness of safety as they take calculated risks and learn new skills. Meals and snacks are suitably healthy and children help themselves to readily available drinks throughout the day.

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

The childminder takes younger children to school with her to collect older children, and this familiarity helps to begin to prepare them for the transition to school. Regular attendance at community groups provides children with a wider range of experiences and enhances their social skills. Children behave well because the childminder and her assistant are calm, caring and good role models. They support children in sharing and taking turns, and encourage them to be kind towards each other. Consequently, children are relaxed and happily play alongside each other.

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provision

Leadership and management is inadequate. There are breaches of the safeguarding and welfare requirements that have an impact on the safety and well-being of children. There are also breaches of the requirements for the Childcare Register. The childminder demonstrates a satisfactory understanding of the learning and development requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. She monitors activities to ensure that all areas of learning are covered when planning activities, but there is scope to scrutinise the information from her observations further to help her when planning for the next steps in children's learning.

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provision

This inspection took place following the receipt of concerns relating to the number of children the childminder cares for and the supervision of the children. The inspection found that children are not fully safeguarded. The childminder does not ensure that children are within sight or hearing of herself or her assistant at all times. Additionally, on several occasions the childminder has cared for more children than her childminding registration allows. She conducts risk assessments and takes some steps to keep children safe, such as preventing their access to harmful substances and keeping them safe when they are on outings with her or her assistant. However, she has not identified the potential risk to children from leaving the front door of the premises unlocked. The childminder has a suitable understanding of child protection procedures. She has completed safeguarding training and updated her written policy in line with the Local Safeguarding Children Board

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provision

procedures. She works with an assistant who is known to Ofsted and who has completed paediatric training. The childminder ensures the assistant works within the policies and procedures of the setting.

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provision

Overall, systems for self-evaluation are limited. The childminder has not identified where she fails to meet legal requirements for the safeguarding and welfare of children. Although parents are spoken to on a daily basis, the childminder does not effectively seek their views to help her establish areas for development. This restricts her ability to consistently develop her service. However, the childminder demonstrates a willingness and ability to make the necessary improvements quickly and is keen to work in partnership with local authority advisers to help her do so.

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provision

The childminder and her assistant share information with parents about their child's day through verbal exchanges and daily diaries. Parental permission where required are obtained for most children; however, it has not consistently been obtained in relation to taking children on outings. This is a requirement of her childminding registration to help safeguard children and ensure that parents are informed about all aspects of their child's care. The childminder is fully aware of the benefits of sharing information with other providers of the Early Years Foundation Stage and has forged links with local nurseries and schools. She endeavours to liaise with early years practitioners working in these settings to support children's ongoing development and consistency of care.

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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 all necessary measures are taken to minimise risks; this specifically refers to the security of the premises (compulsory part of the Childcare Register)  ensure that all necessary measures are taken to minimise risks; this specifically refers to the security of 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 EY266104 Local authority Durham Inspection number 933381 Type of provision Childminder Registration category Childminder Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 12 Number of children on roll 11

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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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