Childminder in Somerset

Inspection date

Previous inspection date 24/06/2014 14/01/2010

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early years provision

This inspection: 2 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 2 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 2

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This provision is good

 The childminder provides good support for children's key areas of development, which prepares them well for their next stage of learning.  The childminder supports children well in developing strong self-esteem and positive relationships.  This strong partnership with parents and other providers has a positive impact on children's care and development.  The childminder seeks effective training and continues to update her knowledge to ensure good outcomes for children.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 The childminder sometimes misses teaching opportunities to extend children's awareness of the world fully, for example by encouraging children to make predictions, notice the effect of the wind and identify the changes to the ingredients in cooking.

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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 inside and outdoors.  The inspector carried out a joint observation with the childminder  The inspector checked safeguarding information and the premises.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector took account of the childminders self-evaluation and parents' written opinions provided for the inspection.

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Inspection activities

 Inspector sampled documentation, including policies and procedures, children's development records and planning.

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Information about the setting

The childminder registered in 2006. She lives with her husband and three children all of whom are over eight years old. They live in a four bedroom semi-detached house situated in the village of Martock in Somerset. Children mainly use the ground floor, including a dedicated playroom. There are toilet and sleep facilities on both floors. There is an enclosed garden at the rear of the house. The family had a dog. The childminder is registered on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. She is currently caring for six children in the early years age range. The childminder also cares for children before and after school. She walks to collect and drop-off children from the local school and pre-schools.

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

 increase children's understanding of the world further by supporting them in predicting, noticing the effect of the weather and learning about the characteristics of liquids and solids for example.

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who attend

The childminder enables children to make good progress in their key areas of development, which prepares them well for their next stage of learning and school. She provides an environment where they are active learners moving freely around the premises. Children confidently choose to listen to a favourite story about a bear on the CD player for example. They follow the story using a book and show they are listening to instructions by turning the page when they hear the signal. The childminder provides good support asking open-ended questions, such as 'what do you wear on your feet to go through mud?' and 'why are they having to be quiet?' This supports children's communication and language as well as their literacy development. Children recall the story and join in with familiar words. The childminder extends children's enthusiasm by linking it to their own experiences, such as remembering wearing their boots to go

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who attend

through mud at Ham Hill. The childminder encourages younger children to explore sounds. They say 'brum brum' and 'crash' when playing with cars for example. The childminder supports lots of discussion and conversations. She displays posters to prompt discussions and learning about planets, letters and numbers for example. The childminder provides a good role model so that children develop effective speaking and listening skills. Children use a good range of equipment to promote their physical skills. For example, young children push a doll's buggy and lift it up a step; they climb through tunnels and learn to squeeze the contents out of a bottle. The childminder provides a good balance of adult led and child initiated activities, based on children's interests. This motivates children to learn. For example, they are able to find some countries on a map of the world and recognise flags through their interest in

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who attend

football. Children take part according to their own abilities and the childminder challenges them to extend their learning. For example, during a cooking activity, older children count how many cake cases they need to fill the tray and young children use a spoon to stir the ingredients. As a result, older children confidently count up to 11 and state that they are one short. The childminder gives them one more cake case and asks how many they have in total. However, she misses some teaching opportunities to encourage older children to notice what happens when she heats chocolate or predict what will happen once they put it in the fridge. Outside, the tent and tunnel blow across the garden and the childminder does not encourage older children to discuss what caused that. The childminder provides effective support for children to learn through trial and error. For example, she supports young children in completing an inset puzzle by

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who attend

turning pieces around until they fit and older children in noticing numbers, colours, shapes and sounding letters to complete puzzles that are more complicated.

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who attend

The childminder seeks good information from parents on children's starting points. She plans activities around children's interests and involves older children in planning activities themselves. As a result, they enjoy their learning, want to take part and learn new skills. The childminder has a strong awareness of children's different learning styles and ensures all children have good opportunities to explore, make decisions and become independent learners. Parents state that the childminder understands their children's individual development requirements and their children are full of enthusiasm about the activities they do with her. Consequently, all children make good progress in their learning and development.

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

The childminder has effective settling in procedures and gains as much information as possible from parents to get to know children extremely well. Consequently, children are happy, settled and confident in the childminder's home. Children behave well, and build good relationships with each other and the childminder. The childminder supports them effectively in understanding about emotions and uses dolls with different expressions for children to explain how they feel. The childminder values children's backgrounds, so they feel proud of speaking more than one language for example. She promotes their self- esteem well by praising how clever they are at teaching her some words. The childminder provides a good, calm role model. She praises children for sharing and for good manners, so that they understand expectations and behave well. Parents' written comments are highly positive stating that they find the childminder completely trustworthy. They state

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

that she has great values regarding children's behaviour and respect for others. Children demonstrate that they feel emotionally secure, which supports them well in preparation for moving on to another provider or school. Children use a dedicated playroom, with resources labelled and easily accessible for them to make individual choices. In addition, the childminder has a photograph album of all of her resources so that children can choose from those that are not on display. She has a good range of equipment to meet the individual care needs of the children, such as travel cots, highchair and buggies.

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

Children develop a strong awareness of a safe and healthy lifestyle. They wash their hands before taking part in a cooking activity, using soap and separate towels to protect their health. Children make healthy choices for their snack, stating they would like breadsticks, banana and apple for example. They help themselves to their drink bottles to ensure they do not get thirsty. Children sit at child sized table and chairs together, so that snack is a social occasion. Children learn to assess risks and understand about safe practices, such as how to evacuate the premises safely and to hold a pan by the handle. Young children confidently use the steps to get to the back lawn; they turn around and go down backwards where there is not a rail to hold. The childminder follows children's routines and recognises their signs of being tired or hungry, providing appropriate support, to which children respond well. They go to her for cuddles and reassurance. The

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

childminder follows hygienic nappy changing procedures to protect children's health. She puts sunscreen and hats on children before they go outside, so that they learn good practices to protect themselves from the sun. The childminder organises many outings so that children benefit from real experiences and develop an awareness of the importance of exercise.

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provision

The childminder has a good understanding of her responsibilities in meeting the requirements of the Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage. She has attended child protection training and has good documentation for further guidance so that she knows what to do in the event of a concern. She carries out good risk assessments and ensures that she has appropriate equipment to keep children safe. For example, she regularly checks the contents of her first aid box and uses stair gates to prevent children accessing unsupervised areas. The childminder organises her documentation well to ensure she can protect and promote children's welfare. She has clear extensive written policies and procedures, which she shares with parents so that they know how she safeguards their children. The childminder now has in place a good system to monitor children's overall development and identify relevant next steps in their

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provision

learning. This includes the progress check for two-year-old children, providing parents with a summary of their child's development in their prime areas.

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provision

The childminder develops good partnerships with parents. She uses daily diaries to exchange good information with them, which enables them to support children's care and learning effectively. She displays good information on a notice board, so that parents can see she attends relevant training, has appropriate insurance and knows how to evacuate her premises in an emergency. She displays the Ofsted poster for parents and the most recent newsletter informing them of the activities, so that they can support learning at home. The childminder works well in partnership with other providers children attend to contribute to development records and have a consistent approach. She visits the local pre-school to share children's learning journals, discuss progression and identify children's next stages of learning. This includes working together in preparing children for their move to school.

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provision

The childminder demonstrates her commitment to ongoing improvement by attending regular training. This helps her to update her knowledge and implement new ideas to improve outcomes for children. For example, she has attended training in observing and planning, and as a result has revised her documentation to help her monitor children's progress more effectively. She seeks assistance from more experienced childminders and effectively evaluates her own practice to look for ways to improve. Since her last inspection, the childminder has strengthened her partnerships with parents and others providing care for children to ensure she meets children's care and learning needs fully. This was a recommendation and has a significant benefit to children. In addition, the childminder states that she has learnt to look at learning through a child's perspective by observing and following children's lead.

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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 EY339882 Local authority Somerset Inspection number 815223 Type of provision Childminder Registration category Childminder Age range of children 0 - 8 Total number of places 6 Number of children on roll 6

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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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