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Early years · Early years inspection (CIF)

Childminder in Bristol

Inspected 14 Oct 2013 · published 16 Nov 2013 · URN EY374138

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Summary

Inadequate

Melissa Cox

What we read, and from where

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  • Inspection datesingle source

    14 Oct 2013

  • Inspectors verified

    Melissa Cox

  • Overall effectiveness verified

    Inadequate

  • URN verified

    EY374138

Page 1 of 12
Page 1 of the report

Deep dive

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In plain English

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Grade profile

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  • OverallInadequate

Tone of the report

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−71Very criticalmore positive than 9% of reports of this type graded Inadequate
OutstandingGoodMetRINot metInadequate

Reads more critically than most reports of this type graded Inadequate.

Markers show where typical reports of each grade sit.

Praiseenjoyeffectivevery wellaccuratecaringengagingpositiveclear
Criticismfailedbreachesinadequatenot metweaknessesweaknot effectivelacks

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FindingsAbout the inspectionWhat needs to improve positive critical
  • Findings247w−83
  • What needs to improve2106w−66

Strengths

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No standout praise found.

Concerns

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Next steps

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Anatomy of the report

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Pages
12
Words of findings
2,296
longer than usual (typical 907)
Reading level
Hard
Flesch 44, typical 48
Average sentence
22 words
Next steps
8
typical 7
Hedged sentences
12%
“some”, “not always”, “most”…

Where the words go

Findings 8%What needs to improve 64%About the inspection 28%

Full report text

Inspection date

Previous inspection date 14/10/2013 30/05/2012

p.1

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

p.1

This provision is inadequate

 The childminder has failed to provide Ofsted with details of an adult working on the premises. As a result, Ofsted has been unable to complete suitability checks. These are breaches of legal requirements that compromise children's safety.  The childminder has a not met a number of safeguarding requirements including those relating to hygiene and risk assessments of her home. These have a negative impact on children's health and safety.  Children are not making suitable progress in their learning because the childminder does not provide a supportive range of activities or experiences to meet their individual needs or challenge them in their learning.  The childminder does not liaise with parents sufficiently regarding their children's learning and development or gain information about their progress at home. This means she is not able to meet children's individual needs and promote continuity in

p.1

This provision is inadequate

learning between home and the setting.  Monitoring procedures in the setting are ineffective in identifying weaknesses and the childminder does not effectively review or evaluate her provision.

p.1

It has the following strengths

 Children attend community groups and participate in a range of experiences outside the childminder's home that provides some value to their learning.

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 majority of inspection time was spent with the childminder and her co-minder observing her practice with the minded children.  The inspector looked at children's information and development records.

p.2

Inspection activities

 The inspector engaged in ongoing discussion with the childminder and samples of policies and other records, were checked.

p.2

Inspection activities

 The inspector discussed the process of self-evaluation and how the childminder obtains the views of all the users.

p.2

Information about the setting

The childminder registered in 2008. She lives with her husband and three school age children in Knowle, Bristol. All areas of the property are used for childminding and there is an enclosed decked area and front garden for outside play. The childminder works from her home with a co-childminder on a Monday and Tuesday and also employs assistants who she works with on a Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. The childminder does not work on Fridays.

p.3

Information about the setting

The childminder is registered on the Early Years Register and both the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. Currently there are thirteen children on roll, of these, seven are in the early years age range. The childminder is eligible for funding for the provision of free early education to children aged three and four years. The childminder is qualified to degree level and has obtained Early Years Professional Status (EYPS). She has pet cats.

p.3

must:

 notify Ofsted of any change in the persons aged 16 years or older living or working on childminding premises, with particular regard to the employment of an assistant

p.4

must:

 ensure there is a clear and well-understood policy, and procedure, for assessing any risks to children's safety, which identifies aspects of the environment that need to be checked on a regular basis, includes when and by whom those aspects will be checked, and how the risk will be removed or minimised

p.4

must:

 keep the premises and equipment clean and take necessary steps to prevent the spread of infection and to promote the good health of children attending the setting and be aware of and comply with, requirements of health and safety legislation (including hygiene requirements)

p.4

must:

 ensure at least one person who has a current paediatric first aid certificate that is local authority approved and relevant for workers caring for young children is on the premises at all times when children are present, and must accompany children on outings including school runs

p.4

must:

 obtain and share information regularly with parents, carers and other settings to promote an effective two-way flow of information that informs planning and supports effective teaching

p.4

must:

 improve knowledge of the learning and development requirements in order to consider the individual needs, interests, and stage of development of each child and use this information to identify their next steps and plan a challenging and enjoyable experience for each child in all of the areas of learning and development

p.4

who attend

Children's learning and development is not supported effectively. The childminder lacks sufficient understanding of how to practically support children in their learning through purposeful interactions or plan to meet their specific needs. Although she is generally attentive, she lacks secure skills to fully engage and question children in their play in order to build on and extend children's prior learning. For example, during a planned adult directed activity, the childminder quickly loses her direction. This is because she is unsure of how to link what the child already knows to the task on offer and then support them further through appropriate modelling at a level specific to their needs. This leads to children become easily distracted and some leave the room to engage in self-chosen play. As a result, children do not acquire the skills and attitudes necessary to prepare them for their next stage in learning and school.

p.4

who attend

This lack of motivation demonstrated by the children in their play is due to weak planning of activities, which currently comprises of a list of daily planned ideas. While this range of experiences offers children some variation in the day, it does not routinely link to what adults expect children to learn in order to ensure that they progress in their learning. Some observations of children in their play have informed what is on offer in the day. For example, the childminder observes that some children enjoy playing with cars, so these are available for them on the days they attend. However because the childminder has not considered how to build on this interest to further challenge and extend the children's learning, they make limited progress overall as they occupy themselves with the toys rather than engaging in well focused and motivating, adult supported play. In addition, there is not always sufficient differentiation in activities to address each child's age and

p.5

who attend

stage of development, so older and younger children who are mixed in one planned play activity are not well enough supported to meet their individual needs.

p.5

who attend

Partnerships with parents are positive but not sufficiently focussed on promoting parental involvement in children's learning. Suitable systems are in place to engage parents in their child's learning. Parents are provided with information about how their child is doing as they view records of activities their children have undertaken. They are also invited to be included in setting targets for their child's future learning. However, because the childminder has failed to make accurate observations of where children are in their learning, or suitably address areas where they have fallen behind, this partnership is not effective in meet children's specific learning needs. Neither does it provide parents with secure information on their child's learning. As a result, she is not able to provide them with accurate or up-to-date details of their child's progress and development or help them offer continuity in children's learning at home.

p.5

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

Children are generally settled in the childminder's home and receive some levels of support from the childminder and other adults who are on hand to monitor children in their play. The childminder provides children with an adequate range of toys. However, some of the resources are not easily accessible because the learning environment is cluttered and messy, which limits children's choice and independence. Children generally respect the behaviour rules and behave in a way that is appropriate for their age by sharing toys, taking turns and listening to the childminder and their friends. Good manners are encouraged and children are appropriately praised throughout the day for their achievements.

p.5

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

There are some opportunities for children to develop an understanding of healthy lifestyles, as they enjoy a range of fruit at snack time and engage in daily cooking activities such as bread making, for example. Resources for hand washing are within reach of children, which encourages children's independence. Consequently, older children show a developing awareness of washing their own hands before snack time and lunch. However, overall, hygiene procedures do not promote children's good health as areas of the environment, such as counter tops in the kitchen and the hallway play spaces are unclean. The childminder has also failed to ensure that her assistant has a first aid qualification that is local authority approved,specific to her role. These weaknesses do not support children's health or well-being and are breaches of legal requirements.

p.5

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

Children have opportunities to develop their physical skills as they engage in some physical play in the outdoor play space, when adults take them outside to play. This area is resourced to provide children with opportunities to jump, climb and enjoy the fresh air. However, the garden area is not used well enough to support children's learning because poor planning and adult interactions limit children's learning potential. In addition, adults have not addressed all the safety aspects of the areas used in outdoor play by preparing it for the day; for example, securing the gate to prevent children accessing the road. This gives children a false sense of security in the setting and does not build on their awareness of safety.

p.6

provision

Safeguarding responsibilities have not been met. Children's safety is compromised as the childminder does not have robust procedures for identifying risks in the areas of her garden and home that are accessed by children. For example, the main entrance and porch doors, which lead directly to the outdoor area and road are kept purposely unlocked by the childminder. During the day children are often left unsupervised in their play as the childminder engages in tasks in other areas of the home. As a result, children are able to open the doors without her noticing and may leave the property without adult supervision. There is a further risk of children leaving the garden as the small garden gate does not have a lock fitted and on the day of the inspection had been left open by an adult because it is difficult to close.

p.6

provision

Children's welfare cannot be assured. The childminder has failed to provide Ofsted with details of another adult working on the premises, who is present when children are attending and is currently working as an assistant with direct access to children. By failing to do this, Ofsted have not been able to complete suitability checks on this individual. These are breaches of legal requirements and put children's safety at risk. In addition, the provider has failed to meet the associated requirements of the Childcare Register. The childminder has an adequate understanding of the reporting procedures to follow if she has a concern about a child in her care.

p.6

provision

Self-evaluation and monitoring procedures overall are weak. The childminder does not have a secure or on-going monitoring procedure to monitor and evaluate the quality of care or the educational provision and has become complacent in her approach to monitoring her own and the practice of her assistants. She has relied heavily on her previous inspection judgement and her local authority network status as a benchmark for her effectiveness and has therefore conducted very little evaluation of her own. As a result, she had not been effective in identifying key areas for immediate improvement to promote children's well-being or safety. This includes managing the practise of those adults she employs as assistants or tackling the inequalities in activities for some children and lack of support for others. This has affected the progress that some children make because the quality of adult interactions and the educational programme on offer do not

p.6

provision

meet their specific needs. The action set at the last inspection has been met and the childminder now keeps an accurate record of children's attendance, but has failed to sufficiently meet previous recommendations in respects to improving planning or supporting children's learning. Parents have some opportunities to input their views or feedback on the service through questionnaires and discussions. However, these comments have not yet been used to inform changes within the setting to improve outcomes for the children. The childminder is aware of the need to work in partnership with other providers but has yet to establish effective ways to do this because this is a new arrangement for a child in her care.

p.7

The Childcare Register

The requirements for the compulsory part of the Childcare Register are

p.7

actions)

The requirements for the voluntary part of the Childcare Register are

p.7

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

 inform Ofsted of the following: the name, date of birth, address and telephone number of any person aged 16 or over working or living on the premises and the name date of birth, address and telephone number of any person working with children. (compulsory part of the Childcare Register)  ensure an appropriate first aid qualification is obtained (compulsory part of the Childcare Register)  ensure that any person having unsupervised contact with children is suitable to be in regular contact with children and an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service check has been obtained through Ofsted in respect of that person (compulsory part of the Childcare Register)  ensure that all necessary measures are taken to minimise any identified risks(compulsory part of the Childcare Register)  ensure that a child is unable to leave the premises unsupervised (compulsory part of the Childcare Register)  inform Ofsted of the following: the name, date of birth, address and telephone

p.7

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

number of any person aged 16 or over working or living on the premises and the name date of birth, address and telephone number of any person working with children. (voluntary part of the Childcare Register)  ensure an appropriate first aid qualification is obtained (voluntary part of the Childcare Register)  ensure that any person having unsupervised contact with children is suitable to be in regular contact with children and an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service check has been obtained through Ofsted in respect of that person (voluntary part of the Childcare Register)  ensure that a child is unable to leave the premises unsupervised (voluntary part of the Childcare Register)  ensure that all necessary measures are taken to minimise any identified risks(voluntary part of the Childcare Register)

p.7

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.9

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.9

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.10

Setting details

Unique reference number EY374138 Local authority Bristol City Inspection number 838137 Type of provision Childminder Registration category Childminder Age range of children 0 - 8 Total number of places 5 Number of children on roll 13

p.10

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.10

Type of provision

For the purposes of this inspection the following definitions apply:

p.10

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.10

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.10

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.11

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.11

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.12

Type of provision

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

p.12

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