Childminder in Liverpool

Inspection date

Previous inspection date 30/06/2014 06/07/2009

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early years provision

This inspection: 3 Previous inspection: 2 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 3

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This provision requires improvement

 Children develop positive relationships with the childminder, which helps them to feel happy and secure in the setting.  The childminder safeguards children appropriately and successfully assesses and minimises risks to children in the home and on outings, so children are kept safe.  The childminder has sound knowledge of child protection procedures, she fully understands her responsibility to protect the welfare of the children in her care.

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It is not yet good because

 The childminder has poor knowledge and understanding of how children learn so does not always implement effective observations that form the basis of planning. Therefore, activities are not always fully matched to children's learning needs. As a result, children are not making good progress.  The childminder does not resource the outdoor area sufficiently in order to challenge and extend children's learning.  The childminder does not work in partnership with other providers where children attend more than one setting so a consistent approach to learning has not been established.  Self-evaluation is weak, so there is not an effective system of maintaining constant improvement.

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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 two rooms and outside learning environment.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at children's assessment records and the planning documentation.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector checked evidence of suitability and qualifications of the childminders and examined the self-evaluation form and improvement plan.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector took account of parents views through questionnaires provided by the childminder.

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Information about the setting

The childminder was registered in 2003 and is registered on the Early Years register and the compulsory and voluntary part of the Childcare register. She lives in Aigburth, Liverpool with her husband, who is a registered childminder and their three children, aged seven, 10 and 14 years. The whole of the ground floor of the property and an upstairs bathroom is used for childminding. There are currently 19 children on roll, of whom three are in the early years age range. The childminder provides care from 7.30am to 6.00pm, Monday to Friday, all year except for family holidays and bank holidays. She collects children from local schools and pre-schools. The childminder is a member of the Professional Association for Childcare and Early Years and local childminder network.

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must:

 improve knowledge of how children learn, to help children make good progress and gain the skills to effectively prepare them for their next stage in their learning

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must:

 establish links with other early years providers where children attend more than one setting, in order to improve children's experiences so that children benefit from a common approach to support their learning.

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

 make self-evaluation an integral part for driving improvements in the provision for children

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

 improve to provision of resources in the outdoor environment in order to provide a more varied learning environment for all children.

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who attend

The childminder ensures the environment is well resourced and accessible to the children who attend. Children are able to express their opinions and inform the childminder what activities they would like to engage with, for example, children's interest in water and swimming led to the provision of a paddling pool. Therefore, children's choices are supported as the childminder ensures children have access to activities they enjoy. This increases children's confidence and motivation to engage with learning as they think that their learning is a fun experience in which their interests are reflected. Child-led activities dominate the routines and the childminder supports children in their independent play, however at times the childminder does not sustain activities by offering support and introducing extra resources. Children show that they are ready to learn as they ask questions and investigate the environment; they look for bugs, dig in the vegetable patch

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who attend

and pick fresh peas for lunch. However, teaching requires improvement, as at times the childminder does not ask questions that can be answered in different ways so children are not consistently engaged and motivated. In addition, she does not use the sort of language that will inspire the children to think and answer questions. As a result, children do not make good progress towards the early learning goals.

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who attend

Children are supported by the childminder, who has some understanding of implementing the learning and development requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. Consequently, children are gaining some of the necessary skills to support their future learning. The childminder has appropriate skills in observation and keeps a record of children's experiences, however the observations are not consistently clear when identifying current development levels. The childminder lacks clear understanding of the next steps for children in their learning and development. This results in the childminder not planning activities and experiences that are of consistent challenge based on age and stage of development. Consequently, children's experiences are not always preparing them for the next stage in their learning. Children enjoy playing outside and develop some physical skills, such as running and climbing. However, there are too few outdoor

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who attend

resources which help the childminder to extend and challenge children's skills in other areas, such as making marks and roleplay.

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who attend

The childminder is not able to demonstrate how she identifies any gaps in children's learning and development. This results in children's development needs not always being supported. Nevertheless, children are making satisfactory progress in all areas of learning in readiness for school. The childminder provides regular updates for parents, for example informal discussions take place every day and the childminder completes a daily dairy for each child. So parents are kept informed about what their children are learning, as a result they can support children's learning at home and provide their input regarding children's experiences at home.

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

The childminder has built up strong relationships with the children in her care. She provides lots of affection and access to positive experiences that increase children's self- confidence. For example, on outings to museums and libraries the childminder encourages children to ask for information from staff in order to build up self-esteem. Children are confident and self-motivated because the childminder knows children and their families very well and has a deep respect for all families. As a result, children feel confident to explore the environment, make their choices known and they are developing independence in their self-care, for example, by using the bathroom independently. Children develop their social skills as they mix with older children who attend after school, attend play groups at a local children's centre and socialise with others as part of a childminder network. Children behave well; they listen to instructions, follow rules and act

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

appropriately at all times. This is due to the childminder's encouragement and praise.

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

The children are helped to develop an awareness of healthy eating as they have the opportunity to grow vegetables in the garden. Children pick peas and remove them from the pod in order to eat at lunchtime. The childminder talks to the children about what they are eating, she explains reasons for healthy choices. This results in children developing a good understanding of where food comes from and why healthy food choices are important to maintain good health. In addition, children's enjoyment of the outdoor area means they have plenty of opportunities to enjoy the fresh air. Children exercise by walking to the local park, where great enjoyment is gained from finding squirrels and playing on the obstacle course. Children have opportunities for many outings in which they are learning to safely manage risks in their play. For example, they learn about road safety, stranger danger and dog safety.

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provision

The childminder has an understanding of the learning and development requirements and does attempt to meet these through providing interesting activities. However, her assessments of children's development are not consistent and lack clear focus on the next steps for children. This means she does not plan activities that offer children suitable challenge to ensure that all children make the best possible progress in their learning. Due to a lack of knowledge of how children learn the childminder does not fully meet the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. The childminder has not attended any relevant training or attempted to improve her knowledge, this has resulted in the quality of teaching not always being good.

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provision

The childminder demonstrates a good knowledge of how to effectively safeguard children in her care and knows the procedures to follow if she has any concerns. The safeguarding and welfare requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage are well understood by the childminder. This is supported by a detailed range of written policies and procedures, which are successfully implemented on a daily basis. For example, appropriate documentation is in place to record children's accidents and incidents. Risk assessments are completed for the indoor and outdoor environment to minimise hazards and ensure children are safe and secure. All records are well organised and relevant parental permissions are in place to ensure children are well cared for by the childminder. The childminder has attended relevant training in safeguarding and first aid to ensure children's health and safety is well protected.

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provision

The childminder co-childminds with her husband though they have not established any way of identifying strengths and weaknesses in their practice. Self-evaluation is weak and does not identify areas for improvement. The childminder has not ensured improvements detailed in her last inspection report have been implemented. As a result, practice is not improving so experiences for children are not always high quality. The childminder has built up partnerships with parents and this is enhanced through daily communication in the form of a diary. Parents receive details on their children's experiences and they have the opportunity to comment on their child's experiences at home, interests and any areas they would like the childminder to focus on. This has established a formal two-way communication system that complements the verbal feedback given at the end of each day. Partnerships with other settings that children attend are not yet established so there

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provision

is no continuity in learning for the children.

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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 EY100453 Local authority Liverpool Inspection number 869569 Type of provision Childminder Registration category Childminder Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 6 Number of children on roll 19

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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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