Childminder in Hertfordshire

Inspection date

Previous inspection date 17/04/2014 14/02/2013

p.1

early years provision

This inspection: 4 Previous inspection: Met 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 a weak understanding of the safeguarding and welfare requirements. The learning and development requirements are not met. This means that children are not engaged or stimulated, and their progress is not assessed against the typical expectations for their age. Therefore, children are not adequately supported in their learning.  The childminder does not follow correct safeguarding procedures to report a concern about a child.  The childminder does not use effective behaviour management methods to promote children's understanding of safe and acceptable behaviour.  The childminder is unable to provide detailed information and records relating to children's attendance, their individual details or needs, accident and medication records or any complaints and how they were investigated.  The childminder does not work effectively in partnership with parents or other providers. Therefore, children do not benefit from continuity of care and learning.

p.1

It has the following strengths

 The childminder takes children to music groups and activities at the local children's centre.

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 compulsory part of the Childcare Register. This report includes a judgment about compliance with the requirements of that register.

p.2

Inspection activities

 The inspector observed the childminder and children in the home.

p.2

Inspection activities

 The inspector and childminder discussed the activities that she provides for children, and the inspector looked at photographs of children at play.

p.2

Inspection activities

 The childminder was unable to provide children's information or records of their needs, their attendance or any progress records or assessments.

p.2

Information about the setting

The childminder was registered in 2011 and is on the Early Years Register and the compulsory part of the Childcare Register. She lives with her husband and two children aged five and four years old in Stevenage, Hertfordshire. The whole of the ground floor and the rear garden are used for childminding. The childminder attends activities at the local children's centre. She visits shops and parks on a regular basis. She is able to collect children from local schools and pre-schools. There is currently one child on roll who is in the early years age group, and attends for a variety of sessions. The childminder operates all year round, from 7am to 6pm, Monday to Friday, except bank holidays and family holidays.

p.3

must:

 improve knowledge and understanding of all aspects of the Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage, and ensure that it is implemented

p.3

must:

 undertake ongoing observational assessments of children, in order to understand their level of achievement, and in order to plan and provide for their learning, so that they make good progress towards the early learning goals

p.3

must:

 improve knowledge and understanding of how to protect children, including the procedures to follow if there is a concern about a child, in line with the guidance and procedures of the Local Safeguarding Children Board, and implement the procedures when necessary

p.3

must:

 improve knowledge and understanding of managing children's behaviour in order to teach children how and why to behave appropriately

p.3

must:

 provide the required records and information to ensure the safe and efficient management of the setting, and to ensure the needs of all children are met. These include records of children's details, accident and medication records, and attendance records

p.3

must:

 ensure that a record of any complaints is kept

p.3

must:

 develop the two-way flow of information with parents and with other providers to support children's continuity of care and learning.

p.3

who attend

The childminder has a weak understanding of the learning and development requirements. As a result, children do not have their needs met successfully. The activities she provides are limited and are not tailored to the individual needs of children, and educational programmes do not adequately cover the seven areas of learning. Children are bored and wander aimlessly between the rooms because the childminder does not effectively engage them in meaningful play activities. Interaction with children is subdued and teaching is ineffective. The childminder sits with children and provides resources, such as cars and building blocks. However, she does not promote children's creative and critical thinking because she does not effectively talk about what they are doing, and there is limited conversation. Children's personal, social and communication skills are weak and they have little enthusiasm for learning. As a result, children make poor progress in the prime areas

p.4

who attend

of learning. For example, children are not allowed to access resources for themselves from drawers in the living room. Consequently, their ideas and sense of exploration are not encouraged. This has a negative impact upon children's self-confidence to initiate play and choose their own resources.

p.4

who attend

Children are not displaying the characteristics of effective learning. Their social skills are poor, for example, children run and wrestle in the lounge. The childminder is not successful in distracting them or teaching to understand how to behave safely and responsibly. Children are not effectively supported, monitored or assessed to ensure that they will have the skills they need to be ready for the next stage in their learning and be well prepared for school. The childminder states that parents are involved in completing an information form about their children when they first start. However, she was unable to produce evidence of any records on children at the inspection. This means that the childminder is not able to effectively identify children's strengths or any areas where children's progress is less than expected. Consequently, any children who may be in need of early intervention are not identified, and therefore not effectively supported in their

p.4

who attend

learning and development. This is a breach of legal requirements. Ongoing information sharing with parents is weak and focussed mainly on care practices. Therefore, parents are not aware of what their children are learning or what progress they are making, so children are not supported to extend their learning at home.

p.4

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

Children's emotional well-being is not effectively supported because the childminder is not effective in managing children's behaviour. Consequently, children are not engaged in activities, which leads to boredom. Children are told not to run in the home but continue to do so, despite the childminder telling them not to. Consequently, children are not showing enough understanding of how to keep themselves healthy and safe, relative to their age, and they are not prepared adequately for the transition to pre-school or school. The environment and resources are poor, and not used well enough to provide stimulation for children. For example, on arrival, the childminder was lying on the sofa and children only had two cars to play with.

p.4

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

Care practices are variable and basic. The childminder has no records or information on children's individual care needs. Therefore, she does not have sufficient information to promote the welfare of children. There is no information or evidence on how well the childminder provides food or supports the good hygiene of children. Children have some opportunities for physical exercise, but these are not planned to meet their individual needs. The childminder does not provide or use resources well enough to support children's interest and exploration. This results in children being bored and unenthusiastic. Visits to activities, such as music group, and activities at the local children's centre are provided but not necessarily planned to meet their own needs.

p.5

provision

The inspection was prioritised following a concern being raised about the childminder's ability to manage children's behaviour and how she supervised children. A concern was also raised regarding the number of children that the childminder cares for at any one time. The inspection found that the childminder has no records on the children, and has no attendance register; therefore she is unable to prove that she is working within the required ratios. The childminder's management of behaviour of children present during the inspection was ineffective as children continue to run indoors. Therefore, the childminder's management of her setting is inadequate, because she does not adequately implement the safeguarding and welfare requirements. Children's safety is not robustly protected because the childminder has not reported concerns regarding the well-being of a child in her care. She does not have an effective safeguarding policy and does not implement local

p.5

provision

authority safeguarding procedures when the need arises. The childminder shows a basic understanding of keeping children safe in her home, conducting some risk assessments. Children's well-being is compromised because she does not keep records of accidents or any medication administered. These significant weaknesses in practice are breaches of the requirements of the Statutory framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage and are also breaches of the requirements of the Childcare Register.

p.5

provision

The childminder does not have sufficient understanding of the learning and development requirements of the Statutory framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage. Therefore, she is unable to monitor the effectiveness of her support for children's learning. She has undertaken an approved local authority childminding course, but her practice is weak. She displays an ineffectual understanding of how children learn, which has a significant impact upon the poor progress that children make while in her care. This is a breach of the learning and development requirements. Partnerships with parents and other agencies are inadequate because the childminder does not have sufficient knowledge of children's care, learning and development needs to be able to share this. Therefore children are not fully protected and do not benefit from continuity of care and learning.

p.5

The Childcare Register

The requirements for the compulsory part of the Childcare Register are

p.6

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

 ensure familiarity with issues of child protection and keep a written statement of procedures to follow to protect children and report concerns (compulsory part of the Childcare Register)  ensure that children's behaviour is managed in a positive way which promotes their understanding (compulsory part of the Childcare Register)  ensure all complaints are fully investigated and reported (compulsory part of the Childcare Register)  ensure that the required records of each child are kept, including a daily record of the days and times of attendance, accidents and any medication administered. (compulsory part of the Childcare Register)

p.6

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

p.7

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.

p.7

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.8

Setting details

Unique reference number EY430613 Local authority Hertfordshire Inspection number 968768 Type of provision Childminder Registration category Childminder Age range of children 0 - 8 Total number of places 4 Number of children on roll 1

p.8

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.8

Type of provision

For the purposes of this inspection the following definitions apply:

p.8

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.8

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.8

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.9

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.9

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.10

Type of provision

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

p.10