Childminder in Devon

Inspection date

Previous inspection date 08/05/2014 Not Applicable

p.1

early years provision

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

p.1

This provision is inadequate

 The childminder fails to meet the needs of the children at all times. She leaves children with her co-childminder knowing that this will leave her co-childminder with too many children to supervise and look after  The childminder does not have a thorough understanding of how to help keep children safe, with particular regard to procedures for allegations of abuse  Children are not challenged in their learning and development because t he childminder fails to accurately assess children's ongoing development, to identify and plan to address gaps in their learning, and children are not always encouraged to undertake tasks that help them to become more independent.  The childminder does not work in partnership with all other settings that children attend. Therefore she cannot be sure that her provision complements the experiences children have elsewhere.

p.1

It has the following strengths

 The childminder establishes warm relationships with children, which helps them to settle in quickly. She frequently praises children's achievements to boost their self- esteem and confidence.  The childminder supports parents' involvement in their children's experiences, to extend learning opportunities.

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 inspector sampled documentation, including planning and children's observation records.  The inspector took account of the childminder's self-evaluation record.  The inspector took account of the views of parents.  The inspector observed children in all areas of setting, both indoors and outdoors.

p.2

Inspection activities

 The inspector held discussions with the childminder and assistant to confirm procedures.

p.2

Information about the setting

The childminder registered in 2013. She lives with her husband and three children, all aged over 17 years, in Clyst St. Mary, Exeter, in Devon. Childminding mainly takes place on the ground floor. Children sleep in bedrooms on the first floor. There is a large garden for outside play. The childminder is registered on the Early Years Register and both the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. She works with a co-childminder at her premises and also employs an assistant. There are currently nine children on roll. The family has two dogs and two cats.

p.3

must:

 maintain appropriate adult-to-child ratios at all times to meet the needs of all children

p.3

must:

 enhance knowledge of safeguarding procedures with particular regard to reporting concerns in relation to allegations of abuse

p.3

must:

 implement assessment arrangements to identify children's level of development, including any strengths and gaps in their learning and plan activities based upon all children's next steps for learning

p.3

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

 provide further opportunities for children to engage in tasks that help to develop their independence.

p.3

who attend

The childminder regularly leaves children with her co-childminder and her minded children. The childminder does not consider the negative effect this has on children's learning and development. She does not check that her colleague can offer children sufficient attention to meet their individual needs. Observations during the inspection showed that the co- childminder struggled to meet children's individual needs and children were not suitably occupied. Therefore, the childminder has failed to ensure that children's individual needs are met adequately.

p.3

who attend

When the childminder is physically present she ensures that she provides a sufficient range of resources to interest children. These are labelled with photographs and stored at low level, to allow children to make choices in their play. In the garden, children practise their balancing skills when using tree stumps as stepping stones. The childminder supports children's language development when reading stories by asking questions about the accompanying illustrations. This helps children to maintain focus on the activity. She also engages younger children by repeating key words, which expands their vocabulary. For example, after naming the characters in a story, the childminder provides a child with associated toys, which allows him to build connections between what is physical and the spoken word. This means that children are acquiring good communication skills.

p.4

who attend

The childminder obtains information from parents regarding children's current skills and completes observations of children during initial sessions. The information gathered helps her to plan appropriately for children soon after they begin attending the setting. The childminder plans daily adult-led activities based on general observations of children's interests and abilities. This means that children enjoy their time at the setting and make some progress in their learning. However, her system for assessing where child are in their learning is poor and she does not have an accurate awareness of children's abilities and whether there are any gaps in their learning. She does not use any guidance to check whether children are progressing as expected for their age and stage of development. She is of the opinion that children are making appropriate progress and thinks that one child may be very able for their age, but says she cannot be sure of this. Consequently,

p.4

who attend

activities planned do not provide adequate levels of challenge for more able children, or help to close gaps in children's learning. The childminder completes required assessments for children aged between two and three years, to summarise her assessment of their progress in the prime areas of learning.

p.4

who attend

The childminder writes a newsletter to keep parents involved with changes and important messages. Parents receive home liaison books which detail general care information and the activities their children have participated in. The childminder and parents share children's special achievements. The childminder invites parents to attend regular parents' evenings to share their children's learning journals. This all supports parents to extend children's learning opportunities at home.

p.4

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

The childminder fails to meet children's individual needs and promote their well-being at all times. She routinely takes children to and from school and sometimes leaves the young children she cares for with her co-childminder. This means that the co-childminder has too many children and this is a breach of ratio requirements. The childminder has not considered the consequences of this arrangement. Such an occurrence took place at the time of this inspection. It was found that at times the co-childminder struggled to meet each child's needs and to supervise them adequately. Therefore the childminder compromises children's welfare and safety.

p.4

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

Children are allocated to one of the childminders on entry to the setting. This is to give children a chance to develop a relationship with a special person and to have someone to oversee their care and liaise with their parents. This arrangement is flexible and the childminders happily make changes if a child forms a stronger relationship with the other childminder. This supports children to settle in quickly. The childminder establishes warm relationships with children. For example, she maintains eye contact and uses exciting tones as she talks to a young child while changing their nappy. This gives children reassurance and confidence to explore their surroundings. However, the childminder is not able to effectively meet the emotional and care needs of all children because organisation and deployment of adults within the setting is not always well-considered. For example, when the co-childminder went outdoors to prepare the environment for play, four young

p.5

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

children are left for a short time with the childminder. During this time, she reads a story to the two-year-old children, leaving the two younger children sitting in high chairs with no stimulation.

p.5

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

The childminder praises children's achievements, which helps boost their self-esteem and motivation levels. For example, children keenly tidy away their toys in order to receive a sticker for their efforts. She encourages children to dress themselves in appropriate outdoor clothing. Older children support the younger ones to put their boots on, which demonstrates caring relationships. However, the adults do not consider other ways to further children's independence and self-care skills. Children generally behave appropriately because they are reminded of expectations. For example, a child climbed onto a table but immediately got down when prompted by the childminder. This adequately supports the child's emotional and social development.

p.5

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

Children can help themselves to drinking water throughout the day when they get thirsty. The childminder provides nutritious snacks to teach children the value of a wholesome diet. Children are encouraged to wash their hands at appropriate times and are supplied with individual hand cloths, distinguishable by their different coloured labels. The childminder maintains relevant documentation, such as medication records and accident forms. This all helps to promote children's health. She risk assesses outing destinations in advance, to consider the suitability of different environments.

p.5

provision

The childminder has established satisfactory relationships with parents, to keep them involved in their children's experiences. However, partnerships with other settings that children attend are not fully effective in sharing information regarding children's development. Some information about children's care and abilities are shared with the pre- school children attend. However, no attempt has been made to develop partnership working with the nursery other children attend. The childminder has no way of knowing if her provision enhances the experiences the children have in the nursery. Additionally, the childminder does not have a thorough understanding of her statutory responsibility to carefully monitor children's achievements to identify their strengths and gaps in learning. As a result, the childminder is not able to accurately ascertain every child's current stage of learning. Therefore, planned activities are not adequately focused on meeting the

p.5

provision

development needs for each child. Furthermore, childminding arrangements do not always foster children's well-being because the childminder leaves the children without adequate supervision.

p.6

provision

The childminder follows appropriate recruitment and vetting procedures to ensure the suitability of all assistants. She maintains relevant documentation to support her practice and promote children's health and safety. Parents receive a copy of policies and procedures to keep them informed of routines and procedures. The childminder has undertaken all required training, including safeguarding training, and consequently has sufficient knowledge to correctly report child protection concerns. However, she has limited awareness of the procedures to follow in the event of an allegation against household members or those providing childcare. This means that she is not able to take immediate action to safeguard children. Other safety measures are satisfactory in promoting children's safety and helping them to learn to keep themselves safe.

p.6

provision

The childminder works together with her co-childminder to evaluate the quality of the provision. She takes into account the views of parents gathered using feedback forms, to gain ideas for improvement. Parents recently commented that they wanted to learn more about the educational programmes that the childminder provides. Consequently, she obtained and distributed a relevant information booklet. This demonstrates a reflective approach, whereby the views of parents are valued.

p.6

The Childcare Register

The requirements for the compulsory part of the Childcare Register are

p.6

actions)

The requirements for the voluntary part of the Childcare Register are

p.6

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

 keep and implement a written statement of procedures to be followed for the protection of children, intended to safeguard the children being cared for from abuse or neglect (compulsory part of the Childcare Register)  keep and implement a written statement of procedures to be followed for the protection of children, intended to safeguard the children being cared for from abuse or neglect (voluntary 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.8

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.8

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.9

Setting details

Unique reference number EY466595 Local authority Devon Inspection number 938524 Type of provision Childminder Registration category Childminder Age range of children 0 - 8 Total number of places 6 Number of children on roll 9

p.9

Name of provider

Date of previous inspection not applicable

p.9

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.9

Type of provision

For the purposes of this inspection the following definitions apply:

p.9

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.9

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.9

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.10

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.10

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.11

Type of provision

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

p.11