Smith, Gemma

Inspection date

Previous inspection date 24/04/2014 Not Applicable

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early years provision

This inspection: 2 Previous inspection: Not Applicable 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 2 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 2

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This provision is good

 Children make good progress in their learning, because the quality of teaching is good. The childminder demonstrates a strong knowledge of the seven areas of learning and plans appropriate, individual and challenging experiences for children.  Children settle well in the childminder's home and form close and caring relationships with her. The relationships are aided by the effective settling-in procedures that the childminder implements, which actively involves parents in the settling-in process.  Children are well protected from harm, as the childminder has secure knowledge of her responsibilities with regards to protecting children. She regularly updates her safeguarding knowledge through appropriate training.  Partnerships with parents and others are effective. The childminder provides parents with clear information about their children's day and invites them to play an active part in identifying their children's next stages of learning.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 Opportunities for children to fully guide their own play and learning are not maximised to their fully potential, as some of the childminder's resources are not presented in a way, which enables children to make effective choices in play.

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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 lounge, dining room and garden. She also viewed all areas of the childminder's home used for childminding purposes.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector held discussions with the childminder and children at appropriate times during the inspection.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at evidence of the checks used to assess the suitability of all adults living on the premises and viewed proof of the childminder's qualifications and training.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at a range of records, including children's personal details, accident and medication records, written policies, the daily attendance register, risk assessments, information about children's learning and development and a selection of other relevant documents.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector took account of the views of parents and carers spoken to at the time of the inspection and through written comments shared in the children's development records.

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Information about the setting

The childminder was registered in 2012 on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. She lives with her partner and two children aged one and three years in a house in Colchester, Essex. The whole of the ground floor, two bedrooms on the first floor and the rear garden are used for childminding. The childminder attends the local library and visits a local day nursery activity session. She visits the shops and park on a regular basis. The childminder collects children from the local schools and pre-schools. There are currently nine children on roll, three of whom are in the early years age group and attend for a variety of sessions. The childminder operates all year round from 7am to 6pm, Monday to Friday, except bank holidays and family holidays. She is a member of Professional Association for Childcare and Early Years.

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

 build on ways to enable children to guide their own play and learning, for example, through choosing cards or photographs of the wider selection of resources available.

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who attend

Children benefit from the wide range of planned and freely chosen learning opportunities, provided for them by the childminder. The childminder uses her childcare knowledge effectively to plan an exciting educational programme, which is tailored to meet each child's individual learning requirements. The well-considered use of observations and assessments means that the childminder has a sharp focus on children's learning and knows exactly how each child is progressing. The childminder works closely with parents to identify children's next steps in learning and to share development, which happens outside of her home. Parents are invited to view their children's development records and to comment on the progress they believe their children are making in the childminder's care. Parental comments seen through this process demonstrates that they are pleased with the way in which their children are developing and believe that this is often attributed

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who attend

to the childminder's knowledge and expertise.

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who attend

Children are keen and motivated to learn. They participate well in both planned and freely chosen experiences. They enjoy the interaction they receive from the childminder. The childminder sits with children throughout the day, supporting their learning well through clear questions and effective explanations. Children enjoy looking at books and sit comfortably with the childminder for a favourite story. The childminder has presented a corner of her lounge as a book corner with cushions and an extensive range of books for children to choose from. Children's literacy skills are expertly promoted through the use of labelling within the childminder's home. They see that print has meaning and become familiar with letters and phonics through the use of these colourful visual aids. The use of visual aids, indoors and outdoors, also promotes children's knowledge of numbers and are used to reflect diversity, as many of the pictures are of people from the wider world.

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who attend

Children have very good opportunities to learn in an outdoor environment as the childminder sets her garden out with a wide and exciting range of equipment, which covers all seven areas of learning. She provides opportunities for children to use the garden throughout the day and to choose when they play indoors or outdoors. Good use is also made of the local community to enhance children's learning. For example, they visit woods to explore insects and nature. The wide and well-planned range of activities and experiences offered to children, enables them to make good progress across all seven areas of learning. Older children approaching school age, are prepared for this transition in their life, by learning to become more independent and learning to listen for instructions.

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

Children are very settled and comfortable in the childminder's care. She has effective systems for settling children, which involve parents and other family members. This results in children settling quickly in her care. It also provides secure opportunities for her to develop a good knowledge of the children's individual needs and requirements. Children behave well as they follow the childminder's calm and gentle instructions. The childminder demonstrates a good understanding of age-related behaviour and deals with this appropriately to ensure that children understand right from wrong, but are not punished for exploring the boundaries. The childminder's gentle manner enables her to act as a good role model for children and create a relaxed and comfortable ambience within her home. The childminder recognises the importance of children being emotionally well- balanced and focusses on this through her delivery of all aspects of her care.

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

The environment in which children play and learn is bright, welcoming and attractive. The childminder presents colourful laminated posters and learning aids around the dining room and lounge, which create an environment that is rich in print and effective for children's learning. The childminder presents a selection of toys in low-level storage boxes in the lounge and has a wider selection stored in her garage. While this provides some opportunities for children to make choices over their play, it does not fully enable children to guide their own learning. Through discussions at the time of the inspection, the childminder considered ways of enabling children to make more choices, for example, through a photographic book of the equipment she has available.

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

Children learn about keeping healthy and safe in the childminder's care. They enjoy a range of well-balanced and healthy snacks and meals, prepared by the childminder. Children sit together at the dining table to eat and use this important time of the day to develop social skills and good table manners, as the childminder sits with them, encouraging them to eat and to chat quietly. Children remain well hydrated, as the childminder regularly refreshes their drinking bottles with fresh water. They are beginning to learn to take some risks, which enable them to understand safety. For example, they make use of a wide range of large scale outdoor play equipment in the garden, negotiating climbing and balancing. Children are provided with opportunities to develop their self-confidence and self-esteem through the childminder's effective use of praise and encouragement. The childminder prepares children for their next stages of learning. For

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

example, by visiting local attractions and places, such as the day nursery where she worked, she provides opportunities for children to become familiar with new people and new surroundings.

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provision

Children are well protected from harm, as the childminder has a good understanding of safeguarding policies and procedures and follows them effectively. Clear written policies on safeguarding children, ensure that parents and others using the childminder's service are aware of the procedures she would follow to protect children. All adults living on the premises are vetted and proof of the checks used to assess their suitability are available on file. The childminder keeps children safe as she effectively risk assesses her home and checks it daily for safety. When taking children on outings, she conducts thorough risk assessments of the outing venue and means of transport to and from it. Children learn about emergency procedures, as they practise evacuating the childminder's home, through regular fire evacuation exercises. A clear record is available to show how often these are practised and the effectiveness of the evacuation.

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provision

The childminder has close links with a local nursery and the practitioners working there. This provides a good forum for her to discuss changes in childcare and to review good practice. She has a good knowledge of the Statutory framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage and uses her knowledge to implement a well-considered educational programme for the children she is currently childminding. The childminder reviews and evaluates the effectiveness of her planning each week and re-visits activities that have worked well or improves on those that she feels could be further enhanced. The childminder works closely with the local authority development worker to review her provision and to devise actions plans and targets for improvement. The childminder is working through her list of targets for improvement and plans to develop her knowledge through the range of on-line training courses now available. Parents are encouraged to

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provision

provide the childminder with verbal feedback on their views of her provision. She has plans in place to formalise this process slightly by asking parents to complete a short questionnaire, as she is mindful that her current process does not allow for anonymity of the parents' views.

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provision

Partnerships with parents are secure. The childminder provides parents with a good amount of clearly written information about her and her childminding provision prior to them choosing her service. She then communicates daily, both through a hand-over discussion on collection of the child and through a written daily diary. At present, none of the children the childminder cares for attend another early years setting. However, in anticipation for a family she intends to care for over the coming months, who do use another setting, she has devised a letter, inviting them to work in partnership with her.

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The Childcare Register

The requirements for the compulsory part of the Childcare Register are Met The requirements for the voluntary part of the Childcare Register are Met

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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 EY451464 Local authority Essex Inspection number 910947 Type of provision Childminder Registration category Childminder Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 4 Number of children on roll 9

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Name of provider

Date of previous inspection not applicable

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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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