Childminder in Barnsley

Inspection date

Previous inspection date 27/06/2014 03/07/2009

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early years provision

This inspection: 3 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 3 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 3

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This provision requires improvement

 The childminder understands her role in protecting children. She is clear about supervising children and effective risk assessments are carried out. As a result, children are kept safe from harm.  The childminder knows what children enjoy doing and she plans activities that interest them appropriately. This ensures that children are generally engaged in their learning.  Children enjoy their time in the setting and the childminder interacts well with them. She talks to them about how to do things and asks questions that support the development of their imagination.

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It is not yet good because

 Strategies to encourage parents to share information about children's development on entry, and to engage parents to share information and promote children's learning at home, are not always successful. As a result, partnership with parents is not as highly effective as it could be.  Partnerships with other providers require improvement to bring about a more shared approach to helping children make better progress.  The childminder's evaluation of the provision she provides is weak. As a result, it does not help her to fully identify any current weaknesses in practice.

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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 indoors.  The inspector carried out a joint observation with the childminder.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector spoke with the childminder at appropriate times throughout the inspection.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector checked evidence of the suitability and qualifications of the childminder.  The inspector took account of information provided by parents.  The inspector held discussions with children.

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Information about the setting

The childminder was registered in 1989 and is on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. She lives with her child aged 10 years in a house in Cudworth, near Barnsley. The whole of the ground floor and the rear garden is used for childminding. The family has fish as pets. The childminder attends a toddler group and activities at the local children's centre. She visits the shops and park on a regular basis and collects children from the local schools and pre-schools. There are currently four children on roll. Of these, two are in the early years age group and attend for a variety of sessions. The childminder operates all year round, from 7am to 6pm, Monday to Friday, except bank holidays and family holidays. The childminder has a qualification in childcare at level 3.

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must:

 improve partnership working and communication links with all the settings children attend, so that children fully benefit from a shared understanding and common approach to supporting their progress

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must:

 ensure parents are more highly involved in their children's learning by encouraging them to share their views about children's starting points on entry and helping them to guide children's ongoing learning and development at home.

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

 reflect on the quality of the provision in order to develop an accurate overview of the strengths and weaknesses to help drive improvement and promote consistently good outcomes for children.

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who attend

Children enjoy their time in the setting. They make their own choices in play and the childminder interacts well with them. The childminder uses her teaching skills generally well to engage and motivate children. For example, she encourages children to talk about what they are doing and extends their learning through the use of narrative and open- ended questions. As a result, they are generally occupied and approach their play with enthusiasm. The childminder observes children's achievements and makes assessments of their progress, but a lack of information about what children can do and achieve at home means that assessments are not always based on fully comprehensive information. As a result, activities are not always tailored accurately to children's next steps and they do not make consistently good progress in their learning.

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who attend

The childminder promotes children's interest in the written word through their interest in books. For example, she follows the words on the page with her finger as she reads to them out loud and encourages children to describe what they can see in the illustrations. Children enjoy reading together and take turns to answer questions. This helps to develop their confidence to speak out within a group. As a result, children's skills in communication and language, and their personal, social and emotional development, and literacy skills are generally developing appropriately. To some extent, this helps them prepare for their next stage in learning, such as the move on to school. Children select outfits and dress as pirates. The childminder encourages their imagination by asking them questions about what pirates do. Children talk about treasure and the childminder provides coins for them to hide. Children take turns to hide and seek the treasure. The childminder brings in

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who attend

counting by encouraging them to close their eyes and count up to 10. Children decide to play a popular board game. The childminder encourages them to explain to her how to play the game. They talk about the different sized snakes and moving counters up, down and sideways. Children count the spots on the dice before moving their counter along the board the appropriate number of spaces. This begins to promote children's early mathematical skills.

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who attend

The systems in place to support parents' involvement in children's learning are not sufficiently robust. There is a verbal exchange of information between the childminder and parents about children's general achievements. This helps parents to gain some understanding of what their children are learning. However, there are insufficient strategies to encourage parents to share information about children's development on entry. As a result, the childminder does not have a comprehensive picture of what children already know and can do, on which to base her assessments of children's starting points and plans for their future learning. This means that activities and experiences are not accurately tailored to individual children's needs from the outset. The childminder does not engage and support parents sufficiently, and as a consequence, they are not well placed to guide their child's learning at home. Partnerships with other settings are developing

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who attend

steadily. For example, appropriate information has been shared between settings to ensure children receive the emotional support they need during the move to their next learning environment. However, information about children's individual learning needs is not consistently shared. As a result, partnerships are not yet fully effective in bringing about a shared approach to helping children make better progress.

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

Children learn to be physically active as they are encouraged to join in games, such as skipping, skittles and football. They use large equipment in local parks and go on walks within the local community. The childminder provides healthy snacks and meals that take full account of children's individual dietary needs. Children are reminded to wash their hands after using the toilet and before eating. This generally promotes children's health and well-being as they learn to take some responsibility for keeping themselves healthy. The childminder provides an environment that offers a suitable range of resources and activities that promote children's independence and choice. As a result, children learn to become independent learners. Children learn how to stay safe through their daily routine and consistent boundaries. For example, the childminder explains to children the dangers of running indoors, how to stay safe near roads and reminds them to use the toy plastic

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

swords safely. The childminder has high expectations for good behaviour. She provides opportunities for children to socialise and develop friendships with other children outside her setting. As a result, children are well behaved and learn to work together.

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

The settling-in process provides opportunities for parents to share information about their child's individual care needs, such as their routines at home. Parents are encouraged to visit a couple of times before leaving their children. This helps children and parents to develop a relationship with the childminder. As a result, children settle quickly. There are generally suitable arrangements to prepare children for the move to other settings, such as nursery or school. This is because the childminder shares relevant information about care needs and routines with the new provider, so they are appropriately informed and able to meet children's care needs from the outset.

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provision

The childminder demonstrates a suitable understanding of child protection and regularly updates her safeguarding training. The helps the childminder remain confident in her ability to implement procedures effectively in order to protect children. All required documentation is in place and risk assessments clearly identify possible hazards and the action taken to reduce any risks to children. This helps to ensure children's safety and well-being.

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provision

Since her last inspection, the childminder has updated her qualifications in first aid and food hygiene. She has also attended training to further develop her understanding of the Early Years Foundation Stage and obtained information about parental responsibility. This demonstrates a positive attitude to continued improvement. The childminder's system for monitoring and evaluating her setting is not sufficiently effective in helping her to raise her standards of care and education. For example, the process has helped her to monitor the educational programmes and ensure that all seven areas of learning are covered. However, it has not helped her to identify weakness in partnerships with parents and other settings children attend. As a result, she is not fully aware of the priorities for improvement.

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provision

The childminder is aware of her responsibility to work closely with a wide range of professionals in order to support children and their families should they need it. She understands the need to complete a progress check for children between the ages of two and three years to ensure early intervention is made if necessary. Partnerships with parents and other professionals involved in children's care and learning are basically sound. The childminder provides parents with suitable information about the setting through the policies and procedures, and daily discussions. The childminder occasionally goes into other early years settings children attend to find out what children are working on so that she can include it in her planning. However, there is less emphasis on bringing about a more shared approach to helping children make better progress by encouraging the sharing of information about children's individual learning needs on a regular basis. As

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provision

a result, children do not make the very best progress they can.

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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. We re-inspect nurseries and pre-schools judged as requires improvement within 12 months of the date of 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

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Grade Judgement Description

is not meeting the safeguarding and welfare requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. It will be monitored and inspected again within six months of the date of this inspection. Met There were no children present at the time of the inspection. The inspection judgement is that the provider continues to meet the requirements for registration. Not met There were no children present at the time of the inspection. 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 302673 Local authority Barnsley Inspection number 876679 Type of provision Childminder Registration category Childminder Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 6 Number of children on roll 4

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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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