Childminder in Cambridgeshire

Inspection date

Previous inspection date 31/07/2014 26/02/2014

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early years provision

This inspection: 2 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 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 a stimulating environment with a wide range of activities and resources to interest children of all ages. As a result, children make good progress towards the early learning goals.  The childminder encourages older children to show good consideration for those younger than themselves. As a result, children are happy, settled and play well together in the childminder's care.  Children's independence and self-care skills are promoted well because the childminder encourages children to do things for themselves.  Good partnerships with parents effectively support children's care and learning needs in a coordinated manner.  The childminder and her assistant have a good understanding of their responsibilities to keep children safe. As a result, children are able to play and learn in a home that is as safe as possible.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 There are occasions when the childminder misses the opportunity to extend children's mathematical understanding when they are occupied in their self-chosen activities.

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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 and in the garden.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector spoke with children, the childminder and her assistant at appropriate times throughout the inspection.  The inspector and childminder took part in a joint observation.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at children's achievement records, planning documentation, the self-evaluation form and a range of other documentation.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector checked evidence of suitability and qualifications of adults working with children.

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Information about the setting

The childminder was registered in 2004 and is on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. She lives with her husband and three children in Chatteris, Cambridgeshire. The ground floor of the childminder's house and an outdoor playroom are used for childminding and there is an enclosed garden for outside play. The childminder has several pets in the home, including four dogs, six cats, tropical fish and four rabbits. The childminder works with an assistant. There are currently six children on roll; four are within the early years age group and attend for a variety of sessions. She supports children who speak English as an additional language. The childminder takes and collects children from local schools and pre-schools and attends activities and toddler groups. The childminder offers her childminding service from 6am until 6pm, each weekday, all year round, except family and bank holidays. She is a

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Information about the setting

member of the Professional Association for Childcare and Early Years.

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

 enhance all opportunities to extend children's mathematical understanding especially during self-chosen activities, for example, by talking about things being heavy, light, empty, full, big, or small in relevant contexts.

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who attend

The childminder provides a warm and homely environment that is welcoming to children of all ages. She has a good understanding of how children learn through play and ensures that she provides a wide range of activities to capture children's interests. As a result, children are keen to revisit favourite pastimes or to explore new experiences that have been planned. For example, young children concentrate and become engrossed in painting activities. They are generally happy to use their hands to make marks and proudly show the different coloured paint on their fingers. These playful activities help young children to learn how to concentrate, which is a key skill needed for their next stage in learning. It also promotes the good hand-eye coordination needed for children to learn how to make marks and eventually write. The childminder's assistant enhances children's development by asking them to identify different colours and gives plenty of praise as they name

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who attend

'yellow', 'blue', and 'green'. Communication development is fostered well during these times and the childminder names different resources provided to enhance children's paintings. Young children repeat the words modelled and in this way they begin to learn new vocabulary to help them progress to becoming confident talkers.

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who attend

Children particularly benefit from the stimulating environment that the childminder provides. They freely access the garden where in all weathers, they can continue to explore and investigate activities that interest them. A particular favourite is the water tray. Here children join their friends and enjoy having fun as they play and learn together. The childminder enhances their experiences by adding bubble mixture to the tray. However, at times she misses the opportunity to promote children's mathematical understanding even further. For example, by talking about the size of the bubbles that children create and using mathematical language such as 'bigger than' and 'smaller than.' Children's literacy development is enhanced because the childminder provides plenty of examples of the written word in colourful displays and murals in her playroom. She also has a wide range of books to suit children of all ages including some in children's different

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who attend

home languages. These together with examples of Polish words available demonstrate the way in which the childminder celebrates each children's individual background. As a result, children make good progress in their learning.

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who attend

The childminder has made improvements to the way in which she captures children's interests, strengths and support needs. Parents contribute to these initial starting points and in this way the childminder is able to plan ways in which she will enhance children's development. She observes children as they play and records her findings in children's individual learning files. Her assessments are generally accurate and consequently any gaps in children's achievements are quickly identified.

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

The childminder builds strong partnerships with parents and also ensures her assistant is fully informed of children's care needs. Children feel secure in her home and confidently find their own playthings. Younger children enjoy the company of older children during holiday periods and this helps their confidence as they become familiar with a wider group of friends. Children generally behave well and quickly learn to play cooperatively with each other. This is because the childminder and her assistant have consistent strategies in place to support children where necessary. Children's physical development is promoted well during visits to the local area and during outside play in the garden. For those just learning to pedal cars and steer successfully, there is plenty of room to practise their newly found skills. During these times children also learn to take small risks and consider their own and their friends safety as they try very hard not to bump into anyone.

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

The childminder has a high regard for the safety of her home and the cleanliness of the environment. This is particularly pertinent in relation to her pets and the strict hygiene procedures she employs to ensure everything is clean and suitable. Toys and resources are plentiful and of good quality. Children of all ages are able to freely access activities that interest them and promote development across all seven areas of learning. Children's good health is supported by the provision of nutritious meals and snacks. Children benefit from mealtimes as they all sit at the table together and take part in conversations as they eat. Children are encouraged to be as independent as possible according to their stages of development. They generally are able to cope with their own self-care needs and know when to ask for help. The childminder uses opportunities to introduce children to new environments when she makes visits to the local area and when collecting children from

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

school or pre-school. As a consequence, children are well supported as they make changes in their lives and this lessens the anxiety for children who are moving to new settings.

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provision

The childminder has made good progress since her last inspection when she received a number of actions to improve and a subsequent monitoring visit. She has embraced the help and advice given by the local authority and made appropriate changes to her procedures, organisation and knowledge. She has collaborated with childminding colleagues to gain a greater knowledge of the legal requirements and her responsibilities for children in her care. As a consequence, the childminder has met all of the actions and demonstrates a good understanding of the safeguarding and welfare, and learning and development requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. She has ensured that Ofsted know the details of assistants working with her and she understands the circumstances when they can be left alone with children. With the help of the local authority adviser she has made significant improvements to the way information about

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provision

children's welfare and learning is recorded. This means that there is a better understanding of each child's preferences and needs. The childminder has also implemented a detailed register, which is meticulously completed on a daily basis. This complements her improved knowledge of the number of children she is able to care for at any one time.

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provision

The childminder has a good understanding of local safeguarding procedures and is confident to identify and report concerns she may have about children in her care. A good range of policies support her work and these are updated and shared with parents frequently. After her last inspection the childminder has reviewed the way in which she reflects on her own practice. She has sort and considered the opinions of her assistant, parents and childminding colleagues to a greater degree. This has helped her to further identify her strengths and areas of her practice that require development. She has also revisited the quality audit document she uses and this has supported the recent developments and helped her to identify new targets. Currently this is centred on making further improvements to the garden area. The childminder also monitors children's progress and the educational programmes she provides. This means she is able to quickly

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provision

identify areas where children need further help in order that they continue to make good progress.

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provision

The childminder supervises her assistant closely and helps her to improve her knowledge and skills. They both attend training when possible and this enables the childminder to improve her environment and support for children in her care. Partnerships with parents are good. Parents share their positive feedback in letters provided for the purposes of the inspection and are pleased with the care and support of the childminder. Partnerships with other providers of the Early Years Foundation Stage are established and this means that children's care and learning is coordinated well.

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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 EY285290 Local authority Cambridgeshire Inspection number 965576 Type of provision Childminder Registration category Childminder Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 12 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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