Childminder in Gloucestershire

Inspection date

Previous inspection date 28/04/2014 08/05/2013

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early years provision

This inspection: 3 Previous inspection: 4 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 3 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 3

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This provision requires improvement

 Children are happy and comfortable in the childminder's care and feel safe in her home.  Children make appropriate progress in their language and communication because the childminder talks to them constantly as they play.  The childminder has an appropriate understanding about the safeguarding procedures to follow to ensure children are kept safe.  The childminder has completed an evaluation of her practice and is working hard to improve the care she provides.

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It is not yet good because

 The childminder does not fully encourage children's mathematical development to build on what they already know.  The childminder does not have a clear awareness about what she would do if a parent fails to collect their child at the end of the day.  The childminder does not regularly practise emergency evacuation with all the children in her care to help them learn about their own safety.  Children cannot always easily access the resource folder to help to select resources for themselves.

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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 childminder's home.  The inspector had discussions with the childminder and the children.  The inspector took into account information in letters from parents and carers.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector sampled a range of documentation including children's records, learning journals, the progress check at age two details and safeguarding policies and procedures.

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Information about the setting

The childminder registered in 1990. She lives with her husband in a detached property in the Reddings area of Cheltenham, Gloucestershire. The childminder uses several areas of the house for childminding, including the sitting room and kitchen/dining area. There are two upstairs bedrooms available for sleep provision. There is an enclosed rear garden with grass and patio surfaces for outdoor play. There is also a paddock where the childminder keeps a sheep, a goat and chickens. The family also has a dog. The childminder is registered on the Early Years Register and both the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. She offers care from Monday to Wednesday; this includes care before, during and after school and during school holidays. The childminder currently has three children on roll who are all in the early years age group. She is available to drive to the local school and pre-school to take and collect children.

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must:

 improve the educational programme for mathematics during play and daily activities to support children's understanding of number and counting skills

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must:

 ensure there is a clear understanding about the procedure to be followed in the event of a parent failing to collect a child and share this information with parents.

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

 improve all children's awareness of safety by practising regular fire evacuation procedures

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

 continue to support children's free choice and independence to select resources through easy access to the resource folder.

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who attend

Children make satisfactory progress in most areas of their learning and the childminder has a suitable awareness about how children learn and develop through many years experience. The childminder has recently started to complete observations and assessments on the children in her care, this means she is able to start to identify more clearly children's abilities and next steps in their learning. She has also started to share with parents their child's progress in a more formal way and now provides them with a written summary of their child's development between the ages of two- and three-years- old.

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who attend

The childminder has an established routine for the time she cares for the children, which includes frequent trips around the local area, for example, to toddler groups and the library. Children also visit the childminder's animals and enjoy collecting the eggs laid by the chickens. This helps children start to learn about the world around them and supports their physical development. They regularly visit the childminder's sheep and goat and children enjoy talking about the animals they can see from the window. Children enjoy looking at their special books which include photographs of themselves and their friends. They talk happily about experiences and what they were doing when the pictures were taken. Children talk constantly and repeat to the childminder what she has told them they will be doing later in the day, such as going to get food for the animals and going to the park. The childminder is adequately aware of the need to allow children to finish what

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who attend

they are saying; she asks them questions to help them think, such as 'what did you have for tea?' Children enjoy role play and enjoy being able to dress dolls and change their nappies and the childminder provides baby wipes for the children when they ask to change their dolls' nappies.

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who attend

Children develop some independence in learning as the childminder puts out a suitable selection of resources on the floor before children arrive. The childminder has produced a folder with pictures of a small selection of available resources that are stored in her cupboard; this has helped children to be able to make an independent choice of what they would like to play with. However, this folder is not always easily available for the children to look at without asking the childminder for it. This means that children are not always being given a choice of other activities they may like to play with. Children request the baskets with fruit and cans, so the childminder takes the child to the cupboard and they get them. They then talk about what is in the baskets and the childminder uses open questions to help the child recognise the fruit and cans. They pretend to make a fruit salad and as the child brings the fruit to the childminder, she says what the fruit is. The

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who attend

childminder misses opportunities to develop the child's understanding of mathematical language because she does not include counting how many pieces of fruit there are and how many baskets the children have. The childminder does encourage children to gain some independence during hand washing procedures. As a result, children generally acquire the skills and attitudes to help them progress satisfactorily to their next stages of learning.

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

The childminder has a suitable understanding about safeguarding issues. She completes daily checks around the home to ensure the area is safe and risks are minimised before the children arrive. The children demonstrate they are comfortable and happy in the childminder's care. They come into her home with enthusiasm, asking where the other members of the family are. They greet the childminder's husband with enthusiasm. The childminder offers cuddles and reassurance to the children during the day; she shows great care and concern for the children in her care. As a result, children have developed close bonds with the childminder.

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

The childminder follows children's individual routines, such as eating and sleeping so they have continuity in their care. Children are well behaved and understand the rules of the setting, such as taking their shoes off before coming into the main areas. The childminder reminds them to say 'please' and 'thank you' when asking or given items so they develop good social skills.

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

The childminder helps children understand about healthy lifestyles. She provides healthy snacks, such as grapes and drinks. Children understand they need to sit down to eat and sit well on the settee with their bowl of fruit and drink as they have a snack. Children chat happily with the childminder about the animals in the paddock that they can see as they eat. As the animals make a noise the children talk about which one is making the noise. Children are beginning to learn about healthy personal hygiene practices. They know they need to wash their hands before eating, after touching the animals and being outside.

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

Children have regular access to fresh air and exercise. They regularly play in the garden during the warmer weather where they can use a slide and sit and ride toys. As the children do not have regular access to the garden in the winter months the childminder takes children out around the local area to visit parks, the shops and other groups. This helps to develop their physical development adequately.

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provision

The childminder has made some progress in her awareness and understanding of meeting the safeguarding and welfare requirements. She has recently completed training on safeguarding and is now more confident about the procedures to follow should she have any concerns about children in her care. She also has a suitable understanding about what she needs to do if an allegation is made against herself or a person living on the premises. She now understands the importance of informing Ofsted of significant incidents or changes to her provision. The childminder has reviewed and updated her written policies and procedures to reflect her increased knowledge of safeguarding. However, the childminder is unsure about the procedure she would follow in the event of a parent failing to collect their child at the end of the day and as a result has not been able to share this information with parents. Although the childminder does not carry out written risk

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provision

assessments, she is very clear about the procedures she follows for outings and checks she does to ensure the home is safe before children arrive. The childminder has a clear emergency evacuation procedure in place but she does not regularly practise fire drills with the children to help them learn about keeping themselves safe.

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provision

The childminder has worked hard to increase her knowledge of the learning and development requirements since her last inspection. She now carries out suitable observations and assessments on the children in her care. This has enabled her to recognise more effectively where children are making progress and to identify their next steps. The childminder now shares children's learning journals with their parents so they are aware of the progress their children make.

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provision

The partnership with parents is well established and information seen from them indicates they are very pleased and happy with the care the childminder provides. The childminder shares information with parents through daily diaries. She has obtained all the necessary parental permissions to enable her to meet requirements and care for children in line with their parents' wishes. The childminder is sharing information with other early years settings children attend, which means that all adults are able to contribute to the children's learning and development.

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provision

Since her last inspection the childminder has improved her practice and knowledge. She completed safeguarding training, which has improved her knowledge. The childminder realises she still needs to continue with these improvements to ensure she is fully aware of the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. The childminder has recently completed a detailed evaluation of her practice and has been able to identify that she still needs to make changes to her practice to help her improve outcomes for children further. This demonstrates her drive to improve the care she provides.

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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 101215 Local authority Gloucestershire Inspection number 923507 Type of provision Childminder Registration category Childminder Age range of children 0 - 8 Total number of places 6 Number of children on roll 3

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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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