Childminder in Wigan

Inspection date

Previous inspection date 09/10/2014 19/01/2011

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early years provision

This inspection: 2 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 1 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 2

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This provision is good

 The quality of teaching is good. The childminder gives high priority to children's early language skills and works well in partnership with parents. As a result, children make very good progress from their starting points.  The childminder provides exceptional support to build positive mutual relationships with children. Consequently, children are highly responsive, extremely well behaved and have excellent opportunities to learn how to keep themselves safe.  The childminder provides varied opportunities and consistent encouragement for children to develop their independence from an early age. Children therefore demonstrate high self-esteem and confidence when managing tasks by themselves.  Children are very well safeguarded. This is because the childminder has robust procedures and safety practices routinely in place.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 A small number of displays are positioned at adult height. This means that children cannot access all of these inspiring resources independently during their play, to stimulate their communication and thinking further.  There is room to further enhance opportunities for children to engage in early writing, so that children frequently practise handling writing tools to make marks.

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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 children's learning indoors and outdoors.  The inspector held discussions with the childminder.  The inspector looked at children's progress files, observations and assessments.  The inspector looked at a selection of policies and procedures.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector checked evidence of the suitability and qualifications of the childminder.

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Information about the setting

The childminder has been registered since 1997. She is registered on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. She lives in a residential area of Wigan, close to the town centre, with her three sons and two pet cats. Children have access to the ground floor and there is an enclosed garden for outside play. There are currently four children on roll, all of whom are in the early years age group and attend for a variety of sessions. The childminder operates all year round, from 8am to 5.30pm, Monday to Thursday, except bank holidays and family holidays. The childminder holds an appropriate level 3 qualification.

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

 enhance the impact of the displays of children's work and experiences, by arranging all of them at an appropriate height for children to access independently, to stimulate their thinking and inspire talk during their own play

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

 extend opportunities for children to practise their early writing skills, by making writing tools more readily available throughout the learning environment.

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who attend

The childminder has a very good knowledge of child development and fully understands how children learn. Consequently, children develop positive attitudes to their learning because the childminder provides a varied and broad curriculum, indoors and outdoors. This means that children are highly engaged and keen to learn. The childminder extends children's learning experiences through providing regular trips out to places of interest, including a farm, parks and to see the barges on the canal. The childminder interacts with children very well and, as a result, she has a positive impact on their communication and language development. The childminder actively seeks opportunities to communicate with children during activities and routine times. She motivates children to want to talk by prompting them to remember past experiences. For example, during a painting activity, children are reminded about finding spider webs in plant pots in their garden explorations

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who attend

The quality of teaching is good and this supports children well in preparing for their next stage in learning. The childminder is skilled at listening to children's speech and helping them to improve how they speak. For example, she repeats phrases that children say, articulating the words correctly for the children to hear. This gives them confidence to speak, as they know she understands them, as well as providing a good model to help them to improve. This means that children make good progress from their starting points in their communication and language. The childminder introduces new vocabulary and teaches children to say the letter sounds in their names. A wide variety of good quality resources are available and appropriate for all ages. However, there are opportunities to further improve upon the quality of the learning environment, by providing more writing resources for children to practise their early writing skills. Displays of children's work and

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who attend

their visits to places of interest excite children and motivate them to talk. However, a small number of displays are at adult height, preventing children from accessing them independently. This means that opportunities to stimulate children's thinking and communication during their play are not maximised.

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who attend

The childminder writes detailed observations of children's learning and supports these records with photographic evidence. These contribute to children's individual files, which the childminder uses to support the tracking of children's progress. The childminder utilises ongoing assessment to quickly identify and close any emerging gaps in children's learning. As a result, children's learning and development needs are met by the childminder. The childminder supports parents in continuing children's development at home, for example, the childminder offers advice regarding toilet training. This means that children quickly become independent in toileting because routines introduced with the childminder are reinforced at home.

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

The childminder is exceptionally skilled in providing an environment that actively contributes to children's development of secure emotional attachments. She is consistently nurturing, calm and sensitive to children's needs. As a result, children are very relaxed and show a strong sense of warmth towards her. The childminder organises settling-in sessions and parents discuss children's needs and complete detailed forms, so the childminder gains a rigorous understanding of children's individual development. The childminder places utmost importance on creating a welcoming environment that supports children to feel a sense of security and belonging. Consequently, children's confidence grows rapidly and children feel safe to explore and develop independence, which the childminder is passionate about. She provides a wealth of opportunities for children to make choices and practice their own skills. For example, the children display high levels of

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

motivation to plan what to put in the outdoor area and help to set up the equipment. They are skilfully guided to think critically about their decisions, such as where to put the bikes on a rainy day and reasons why. Children's learning during routine times is significantly enhanced by the high quality discussions that the childminder instigates with children. For example, the childminder actively teaches children how to wash their hands, discussing why it is important to have individual hand towels for hygiene. During routine times, high expectations, tailored support and precise challenge significantly contributes to children becoming independent in self-care. As a result, children are highly independent for their ages.

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

The childminder has comprehensive arrangements in place to help to promote children's excellent understanding of good health. Children bring their own snacks and meals and the childminder works well with parents to ensure meals are healthy and balanced. Children develop an excellent understanding of what is good to eat and the importance of a healthy diet, as they help to grow fruit and herbs in the garden. Children are reminded to keep hydrated throughout the day and to take their water bottles with them for outdoor play. The childminder plans daily outdoor play, so that children get plenty of fresh air and exercise. Children practice their physical skills and coordination on bikes, in the sand and on stepping stones. In addition, the childminder often takes the children to engage in physical play at the play centre and park.

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

The childminder has established exceedingly positive relationships with the children that focus on mutual respect. Therefore, children are very responsive to her reminders and prompts. She is an excellent role model and frequently uses praise to reinforce achievements and good behaviour. Consequently, children have high levels of self-esteem. She teaches children to take turns and actively promotes good manners, which are practiced throughout the day. This means that children show impressive self-control for their ages. The childminder has first class procedures for teaching children how to keep themselves safe. Her approach teaches children not to fear exploration, but learn to recognise risk and manage it. The childminder talks to the children about consequences, so that they learn to understand why rules are in place. For example, she methodically explains to the children that if they sit on the side of the slide, they are likely to fall off

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

and hurt themselves. As a result, children learn to think about the effect their actions might have and how to manage risk for themselves. The childminder also teaches children about road safety during their outings and children can accurately recall the rules of the road during discussions, displaying high levels of understanding about safe practices.

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provision

The childminder has a good understanding of the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage, including her role in ensuring the safeguarding and welfare requirements are met. She has completed relevant child protection training and is familiar with what to do if she has concerns. Appropriate Disclosure and Barring Service checks have been undertaken on residents of the home. The childminder has thorough, clear procedures for children's safety and welfare and effective contingency plans are in place, for example, for an emergency childminder. Thorough preventative measures have been taken to promote safety. The childminder conducts daily checks on the environment to ensure that hazards are promptly identified and effectively minimised, to enable children to learn and play safely.

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provision

The childminder has a strong drive to provide a high quality service. She is very reflective and can identify her own strengths and areas for improvement. For example, she has improved information sharing with other settings children attend, to complement their learning and support their move to a new setting. Her capacity to improve is very good and she makes changes as a result of her own evaluation of her practice. For example, she has developed the outdoor area to incorporate opportunities for children to experience gardening, which means that children can now engage in more natural exploratory play. The childminder regularly meets with other childcare professionals to share ideas and good practice. She understands how to work with external agencies to support children's development if needed.

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provision

The childminder values effective partnerships with parents. For example, she gathers information from parents about what children know and can do, to support her observations of children's starting points in learning. The childminder encourages daily exchanges of information with parents, so that she can accurately meet children's changing individual needs. She also meets with parents to discuss each child's learning, to inform her written progress check completed for children aged between two and three years. Children's future learning is supported, as the childminder shares information with schools when children prepare to move on.

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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 322669 Local authority Wigan Inspection number 868798 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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