Childminder in North East Lincolnshire

Inspection date

Previous inspection date 21/11/2013 28/10/2011

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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 has breached a number of legal requirements, which is having a negative impact on children's care and learning. Improvements have not been adequately made and she is not monitoring her setting, resulting in significant weaknesses remaining.  Behaviour management strategies are inappropriate and the childminder does not oversee the work of her assistant, resulting in children's well-being not being protected.  The childminder is caring for more children than allowed and she has not considered how their needs will be met when she increases the number of younger children she provides care for. Records are also not always fully completed to ensure children's needs are met and parents' wishes adhered to.  Children's health and safety is not protected. The home is not securely maintained, family pets have access to areas children use, the car is not appropriately insured and relevant car seats are not always provided for children.

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This provision is inadequate

 The childminder is not supporting children's learning through effective teaching. Children's progress is not monitored, purposeful next steps in their learning are not identified and information relating to their progress is not shared with parents.

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It has the following strengths

 Babies basic care needs are appropriately met through the childminder knowing their individual routines.

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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 children's play inside and saw the outside play space.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector continually conducted joint observations with the childminder throughout the inspection.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector spoke with the childminder, her assistant and the children at appropriate times throughout the inspection.  The inspector looked at children's assessment records.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector checked evidence of suitability and qualifications of the childminder, her assistant and all people living in the home.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector took account of the views of parents and carers spoken to on the day of inspection.

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Information about the setting

The childminder was registered in 1991 and is on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. She lives with her partner and two adult children in a house in Grimsby, North East Lincolnshire. The childminder's partner also works as her assistant and when they work together the number of children being cared for can be increased. The whole of the ground floor and the rear garden are used for childminding. The family has a dog and cat as pets.

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Information about the setting

The childminder collects children from the local schools and pre-schools. There are currently nine children on roll, six of whom are in the early years age group and attend for a variety of sessions. She provides care all year round from 6.30am to 6.30pm, Monday to Friday, except for family holidays.

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enforcement action:

We will issue a Welfare Requirements Notice with a completion date of 7 February 2014 requiring the provider to:

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enforcement action:

ensure appropriate strategies are used to manage children's behaviour in line with each child's individual needs and abilities

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enforcement action:

ensure your assistant does not use or threaten any punishment which could adversely affect a child's well-being

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enforcement action:

consider the potential health and safety risk posed by pets freely accessing and using areas where children play, sleep and eat and take immediate action to protect children's well-being

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enforcement action:

ensure children's safety on outings by improving knowledge of current legislation relating to the use of car seats and immediately comply with these requirements when transporting children in a car; and ensure any vehicles being used to transport children are adequately insured

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enforcement action:

ensure an accurate daily record of children's attendance is maintained showing the names of children being cared for, their hours of arrival and departure and also detail when the assistant has worked with the children to verify how adult-to-child ratios are met

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enforcement action:

complete and maintain full records for each child within the setting, including information relating to their full name, date of birth and details on any health care or dietary needs to ensure these are met take all reasonable steps to prevent unauthorised persons entering the premises.

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enforcement action:

It is an offence not to comply with a Welfare Requirements Notice.

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must:

 demonstrate how you are accountable for the quality of the work of any assistants, and are satisfied that assistants are competent in the areas of work they undertake this is in relation to behaviour management and how this links into children's development

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must:

 ensure the requirement relating to childminder's caring for a maximum of six children under the age of eight years, of whom three may be young children and of these one may be under the age of one, is met at all times. When working with an assistant, ensure these ratios are maintained for each adult

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must:

 ensure children's learning is competently promoted by having a strong knowledge of the characteristics of effective teaching and learning and apply these characteristics continuously through positive interaction and engagement with children

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must:

 ensure the assistant holds a current paediatric first aid certificate if he is to be left in sole charge of the children for short periods of time

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must:

 ensure observational assessments monitor children's progress from their starting points; are used to identify and plan purposeful learning experiences to support children's good progress within all areas of learning; and are shared with parents

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must:

 promote hygiene practices by consistently washing hands

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must:

 obtain parents' permission to leave children with an assistant for short periods of time

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must:

 ensure effective systems are in place to ensure that people aged 16 or over likely to have regular contact with children (including those living or working on the premises) are suitable to do so, this includes submitting the relevant EY2 forms to Ofsted to allow suitability checks to be completed.

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who attend

Children are failing to make progress in their learning and development as teaching is weak. The childminder does not understand how children learn and develop and she is unfamiliar with the characteristics of effective teaching and learning. This results in her not reflecting on how children learn and not providing each child with purposeful learning experiences, which follow their interest or build on their prior skills and knowledge. For example, when an older children asks to do a puzzle they are told that they can only choose between two different puzzles because the childminder knows they can complete these. Although the child begins to protest as their interest is taken with another puzzle, they are provided with a puzzle of the childminder's choosing. The childminder does not follow the child's interest and gives no consideration into providing a challenging experience to extend the child's skills. The childminder is also providing care for more

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who attend

babies than requirements allow and this is having a negative impact on all children's learning experiences. The childminder spends the majority of time focusing on meeting the babies' personal care needs, resulting in her not spending quality time with each child to promote their learning. While babies are provided with free access to a developmentally appropriate range of toys and resources, the childminder does not spend any time playing with these younger children. Older children have to ask for their resources and when provided they predominantly play with these independently as the childminder's main focus remains the care of the babies. The childminder does note on one occasion that an older child is counting the pieces of the puzzle and she briefly joins in with the child and encourages them to continue to count up to ten. However, the childminder's focus is soon redirected to the younger children, leaving the older child to play alone. The results in the

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who attend

childminder being unable to fully support children's learning through her active engagement.

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who attend

Continued weaknesses within observations, assessment and planning result in children's learning not being monitored from their starting points. Although the childminder is working with her local authority advisor on her observational assessment systems, she has not made enough progress with these to support the effective delivery of the educational programmes. This results in the childminder being unaware of children's stages of development and it also results in her not identifying and planning appropriate next steps to support children's good progress in all areas. Although parents confirm that their children have made some progress since they started attending with the childminder, they also confirm that the childminder has provided them with little information on their children's development. The childminder explains how she is currently working with an older child on their speech and language skills, however, she does not role model effective

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who attend

language with any children and she does not question older children to extend their language skills. This is again as a direct result of her caring for more babies than requirements allow. The childminder is unable to spend any quality time with any of the children, especially older children, which is hindering their progress and development and ineffectively preparing them for starting school.

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

Children are settled and babies show secure emotional attachments to the childminder and her assistant. This is because the childminder works with parents and gathers appropriate initial information to enable her to meet children's basic care needs. This results in the childminder recognising when babies are tired or hungry and responding appropriately. However, the childminder has not considered how she will meet children's individual needs when she increases the number of babies she provides care for, resulting in her breaching this requirement. For example, the childminder only has one high chair, resulting in babies being fed one at a time while the others have to wait for their turn. This does not create an environment which meets their individual needs effectively or which promotes good social interaction at mealtimes. Children regularly get out in the fresh air as they walk to and from school, visit the park or play in the garden. This provides children with some

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

The childminder and her assistant do not use developmentally appropriate strategies to manage children's behaviour, especially older children. While the childminder does sometimes praise children and offer explanations, it is not consistent enough to support older children's awareness of the difference between right from wrong. The childminder also does not examine how caring for more younger babies is having a negative impact on older children's behaviour. For example, after spending time completing a puzzle, an older child tries to protect this from a baby by gently pushing them away. The childminder fails to recognise this is what the child is doing and the older child gets shouted at for not being kind to younger children. The assistant uses completely inappropriate strategies, using threatening language, as they have no regard for children's level of development. They regularly shout at the children, stating that they need to listen to the childminder or

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

they will be put on the 'naughty step' or he will 'tell their mum' all about their behaviour. This causes children to become distressed and shows a total disregard for children's well- being. The childminder allows her assistant to do this and is therefore failing to oversee their work to ensure they use appropriate strategies. This poor practice also results in children's health and safety not being reinforced as the environment does not help children to feel safe, settled and secure at all times.

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

Children's transition to school is promoted through some strategies. Children go on the school run with their older peers, which enables them to become familiar with the school environment. This provides children with some emotional security in preparation for starting school.

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provision

The childminder has failed to meet the statutory requirements for the Early Years Foundation Stage for younger children and the requirements for the Childcare Register for older children. The childminder has not made improvements to all recommendations and actions raised at previous inspections, which results in children's health, safety and learning being continually compromised. For example, the childminder has not considered the impact on children's health and safety of having family pets within the same rooms as children. The dog has free access to the area where children play, walking around the room and the toys. Babies crawl around the floor to access their toys, which they put in to their mouths and inconsistent hand washing practice also does not protect every child's well-being. The childminder has not risk assessed the potential hazard of allowing the cat and the dog to freely access all areas children use, resulting in children's safety being

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provision

compromised. For example, the cat is allowed in rooms where children sleep and although the childminder is always within hearing range of children, she does not always visually supervise them when the dog is within the same room. The childminder has not notified Ofsted of a new person living for at least two nights per week in the home, resulting in full suitability checks not being undertaken on this individual. The inspection was brought forward due to a complaint to Ofsted that raised concerns about the provider using inappropriate car seats when transporting children in a car and lack of supervision of children when they are playing in the garden. The inspection found that children's safety is not protected on outings in the car as appropriate insurance is not maintained for the vehicle and the childminder does not understand and comply with current legislation relating to the use of car seats. For example, the childminder does not take into account

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provision

the weight or height of the child when considering which type of car seat to use. This results in children's safety being compromised as they are sometimes placed in inappropriate car seats. During outside play the childminder does remain outside with children to ensure they are appropriately supervised and kept safe at this time. The childminder does not understand requirements relating to how many children she can provide care for when working alone or with an assistant. She has not considered how children's individual needs will be met when increasing the numbers of younger children she provides care for. The increase in numbers of younger children being cared for is having a detrimental effect on the childminder's abilities to provide a quality service which meets all children's needs and promotes their development. Paperwork and records are not maintained on all children. Although the childminder knows some information for each

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provision

child through their siblings records, detailed information on the newer child is not obtained to fully ensure their specific needs are met. Permission to allow the childminder's assistant to be in sole charge of the children has also not been sought to ensure parents' wishes are adhered to at all times. The childminder is also unable to verify that the assistant holds a current paediatric first-aid certificate to ensure children's well-being is protected when he is left in sole charge of the children. An attendance register is not completed to verify how many children the childminder cares for each day. The home is not securely maintained, resulting in people freely accessing the premises. Although the childminder has a satisfactory awareness of child protection issues and procedures, which enables her to safeguard children in this area, overall, children's health and safety is significantly compromised through poor practice and procedures.

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provision

Children's learning and development is not promoted. Although the childminder is booked onto a course relating to the implementation of the new Early Years Foundation Stage, she has not completed this quickly enough to ensure practice is improved. Although she has lots of years' experience as a childminder, she has not kept up to date with current practice and requirements, resulting in dramatic failings to promote learning and development and to protect children's health and safety. The childminder works with parents, gathering appropriate initial information to meet children's basic care needs. She keeps parents informed about how their children have been each day through verbal communication. However, information relating to children's progress is not relayed to parents as the childminder is not monitoring their development within the seven areas of learning. Parents confirm that they are mainly happy with the care the childminder

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provision

provides. The childminder is trying to develop links with other providers where the care of children is shared, to promote some consistency to their care. However, she does not evaluate the service she provides or the effectiveness of the educational programmes through self-evaluation. While she is working with a local authority advisor to improve practice in some areas, this is in the very early stages of development and children are therefore not benefitting from improved practice. Other significant weakness across the setting have not even been identified as targets for further development, resulting in continuous improvements not being made in all areas.

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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 children receiving childcare are kept safe from harm (compulsory part of the Childcare Register)  ensure that no one can enter the premises without the knowledge of a person who is caring for children on the premises (compulsory part of the Childcare Register)  ensure that children's behaviour is managed in a suitable manner (compulsory part of the Childcare Register)  keep records of the following and retain them for a period of two years: the name, home address and date of birth of each child who is looked after on the premises; a daily record of the names of the children looked after on the premises and their hours of attendance (compulsory part of the Childcare Register)  ensure that children receiving childcare are kept safe from harm (voluntary part of the Childcare Register)  ensure that no one can enter the premises without the knowledge of a person who is caring for children on the premises (voluntary part of the Childcare Register)

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

 ensure that children's behaviour is managed in a suitable manner (voluntary part of the Childcare Register)  keep records of the following and retain them for a period of two years: the name, home address and date of birth of each child who is looked after on the premises; a daily record of the names of the children looked after on the premises and their hours of attendance (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 Requires improvement The provision is not giving children a good standard of early years education and/or there are minor breaches of the safeguarding and welfare requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. It will be monitored and inspected within twelve months of the date of this inspection. 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

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Grade Judgement Description

the Early Years Foundation Stage. It will be monitored and inspected again within six months of the date of this inspection. 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 205638 Local authority North East Lincolnshire Inspection number 941461 Type of provision Childminder Registration category Childminder Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 12 Number of children on roll 9

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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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