Early years · Early years inspection (CIF)
Lyons, Joanne
Summary
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- Inspection datesingle source
6 Nov 2014
- Inspectors verified
Jacqueline Mason
- Overall effectiveness verified
Good
- URN verified
EY426563
Deep dive
What this report says
In plain English
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Grade profile
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- OverallGood
Tone of the report
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Reads more critically than most reports of this type graded Good.
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How the report reads, start to finish
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Strengths
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Concerns
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No strong criticism found.
Next steps
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- The childminder gathers useful information when children first attend the childminding setting, to establish their likes, dislikes and interests. p.3
- This, along with written information from parents, helps the childminder to establish where children are in their learning and enables her to quickly plan and provide activities that they enjoy and offer challenge. p.3
- The childminder continues to observe children as they play and evaluates these effectively, to identify what she needs to do next to support their learning. p.3
- As a result, children make good progress in their learning and development and acquire the necessary skills to be ready for school. p.3
- Discussion with the childminder and the inspection of written records, demonstrate that children are working comfortably at the expected development stage for their age. p.3
- The childminder is aware of the importance of carrying out the progress check for children between the age of two and three years. p.3
- This ensures that any concerns can be identified and managed. p.3
- The childminder actively encourages parents to remain involved in their children's learning in the setting and at home. p.3
What the report dwells on
Topics by how often they come up, coloured by how they are described. Open one for an example.
Teaching & assessment5
“The quality of teaching is effective, to support children's continuing progress.” p.1
Anatomy of the report
How the report is built, against others of the same type and grade.
- Pages
- 10
- Words of findings
- 1,822
- longer than usual (typical 703)
- Reading level
- Hard
- Flesch 50, typical 50
- Average sentence
- 17 words
- Next steps
- 8
- typical 2
- Hedged sentences
- 0%
- “some”, “not always”, “most”…
Where the words go
Full report text
Inspection date
Previous inspection date 06/11/2014 18/11/2011
p.1
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
p.1
This provision is good
The childminder has a good awareness of safeguarding issues. Children feel safe, are happy and settled in this friendly and welcoming childminding environment. They develop close emotional attachments to the childminder and confidently go to her for a hug and reassurance. Young children develop a good sense of belonging because the childminder talks to parents to find out about individual routines for sleeping and feeding and follows these to promote continuity of care. Children make good progress in their learning and development because the childminder delivers an interesting and challenging range of activities that promote their interests. The quality of teaching is effective, to support children's continuing progress. The childminder is committed to her own professional development. She completes relevant training courses and workshops, to develop her own childcare skills and knowledge, in order to improve the quality and care for all children.
p.1
It is not yet outstanding because
The childminder is less focussed on supporting children's developing awareness of good hygiene routines and ensuring that sleep-mats are covered, to reduce the risks of cross-infection.
p.1
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
p.2
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.
p.2
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.
p.2
Inspection activities
The inspector observed activities in the lounge and kitchen.
p.2
Inspection activities
The inspector spoke with the childminder at appropriate times throughout the inspection.
p.2
Inspection activities
The inspector checked evidence of suitability of adults working with children and household members.
p.2
Inspection activities
The inspector looked at records of children's learning and a selection of policies and records.
p.2
Inspection activities
The inspector did not see any parents during this inspection but took account of a text message from a parent and written parental questionnaires.
p.2
Information about the setting
The childminder was registered in 2011 on the Early Years Register and both the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. She lives with her husband and two children in a house in Mildenhall, Suffolk. The whole of the ground floor and the rear garden are used for childminding. The family has a dog and two guinea pigs as pets. The childminder attends a toddler group and visits the shops and park on a regular basis. The childminder takes children to and collects children from local schools and pre-schools. There are currently nine children on roll, four of whom are in the early years age range and attend for a variety of sessions. The childminder operates all year round, from 7am to 7pm, from Monday to Friday, except for family holidays. Weekend and bank holiday childcare is available on request. The childminder is a member of the Professional Association for Childcare and Early Years.
p.3
To further improve the quality of the early years provision the provider should:
focus more sharply on supporting children's developing awareness of good hygiene routines and ensure that sleep-mats are covered, to reduce the risks of cross- infection.
p.3
who attend
The childminder gathers useful information when children first attend the childminding setting, to establish their likes, dislikes and interests. This, along with written information from parents, helps the childminder to establish where children are in their learning and enables her to quickly plan and provide activities that they enjoy and offer challenge. The childminder continues to observe children as they play and evaluates these effectively, to identify what she needs to do next to support their learning. As a result, children make good progress in their learning and development and acquire the necessary skills to be ready for school. Discussion with the childminder and the inspection of written records, demonstrate that children are working comfortably at the expected development stage for their age. The childminder is aware of the importance of carrying out the progress check for children between the age of two and three years. When children become due for the
p.3
who attend
check to be carried out, it is completed with parents and a copy of the findings given to them. This ensures that any concerns can be identified and managed. The childminder actively encourages parents to remain involved in their children's learning in the setting and at home. She shares information with them through written records and verbal discussion. Parents are encouraged to continue to contribute what they know about their child and this information is used when planning for children's learning. The quality of teaching is good. The childminder is actively engaged in the children's play and she provides a secure presence for babies, who stay close to her. Babies play contentedly with a treasure basket of natural materials and other interesting textures, such as plastic bottles filled with colourful pompoms and coloured water with sequins, before seeking out the childminder to share their play and learning experiences. She
p.3
who attend
responds very well to the babbles and gestures of babies, mimicking taking turns in conversation and introducing new vocabulary. Children's communication skills are further developed through the use of music and songs. They enjoy the compact disc of rhymes and move their whole body to the sound. The childminder supports children's drive to stand and walk. She organises her furniture to enable children to cruise and provides push-along toys to support their mobility. Babies are also supported well to explore toys with buttons and flaps. The childminder laughs along with them as they make the programmable toy come to life. Children quickly learn what they need to do, in order to create sounds.
p.4
The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children
The childminder provides a warm, welcoming and friendly environment. She supports children and families well, to settle into her setting through inviting them to visit together before childminding arrangements begin. Parents are welcome to 'stay and play' for as long as they want before progressing onto short visits where children are left in the childminder's care. The number of visits varies from family to family, dependent on their individual needs. During the visits, the childminder builds relationships with parents and gets to know their child. She finds out about established routines for sleeping and feeding and follows these to promote continuity of care. As a result, children are happy and settled. Their emotional well-being is supported effectively and they build close bonds with the childminder, confidently going to her for a hug and reassurance. The childminder ensures children can use their comfort objects from home and provides a secure presence
p.4
The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children
for them when they are unsure, such as when authorised visitors are present. Babies demonstrate that they feel safe in the childminder's care, readily snuggling into her lap to fall asleep.
p.4
The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children
The childminder provides a safe and stimulating learning environment. Children benefit from a varied range of age-appropriate toys and resources, to support their learning and development. Toys are stored well, to enable them to select what they want to play with. As a result, children feel secure and develop the necessary skills, which helps them to embrace new experiences with confidence, such as moving onto nursery or school. The childminder is a good role model and treats children with respect and positive regard. She tunes in sensitively to babies and provides warm, loving and consistent care. The childminder demonstrates a good understanding of how to manage unwanted behaviour. She manages challenging behaviour sensitively, taking into account children's age and level of understanding. The childminder places meaningful praise on good behaviour and individual efforts. This supports children's developing understanding of right and wrong
p.4
The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children
Children's dietary needs are mostly met by parents because they provide packed lunches for them. Lunches are stored in the fridge until needed. The childminder provides snacks of fresh fruit on request and individual drinks are kept available at all times, helping children to stay hydrated. She supports children's independence as they move towards attempting to feed themselves, offering babies a spoon to hold themselves as she feeds them and encouraging them to hold finger foods. The childminder washes the hands of babies before and after meals, but does not wash their hands after she has changed their nappy, so that they get used to the routine of hand washing after toileting. Children are provided with a fold-away sleep mat where they can sleep. However, the childminder does not put a bottom sheet onto it, to reduce the risks of cross-infection. Children sleep directly on the mat. Other routines, to reduce the risks of cross-infection are good. For
p.4
The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children
example, children have individual hand towels that are on separate pegs, labelled with their name and photograph. The childminder promotes an active lifestyle, encouraging children to play in the garden where she provides a range of activities to promote all areas of learning. She also takes children on outings into the local community, where they explore the natural world and develop their physical skills at the local playground. She reminds children about safe practices, such as looking and listening for traffic before crossing the road.
p.5
provision
Children's well-being is effectively safeguarded because the childminder has a good awareness of the signs and symptoms of abuse, to help her recognise when a child may be at risk. She has completed necessary training in child protection, to ensure that she knows how to report concerns, with regard to Local Safeguarding Children Board guidelines. This ensures that the correct processes are followed to protect children. They are never left unsupervised and household members have completed suitability checks. Children play safely because the childminder carries out risk assessments to identify hazards and she takes necessary steps to limit risks. Risk assessments are also carried out for outings, to ensure that children are kept safe when using community facilities. The childminding premises are clean and tidy. The childminder has guinea pigs and a dog as pets. The dog has its own area of the garden that is fenced. This ensures that children are
p.5
provision
protected from infections that may be caused from animal waste. Children have supervised access to the animals and are taught to wash their hands after handling them.
p.5
provision
The childminder is committed to continuous improvement. She completes relevant training courses and workshops, to develop her own childcare skills and knowledge, in order to improve the quality and care for all children. The childminder has addressed the actions and recommendations set at the last inspection to a good standard. For example, she has reviewed and revised how she uses her observations and assessments of children's learning. This ensures that she is able to identify the next steps in learning for individual children and plan for their continuing progress. The childminder evaluates her day to reflect on what has gone well and what has not and seeks the views of parents through regular discussion and written questionnaires.
p.5
provision
The childminder demonstrates a strong commitment to working in partnership with parents, to ensure continuity of care and learning for children. She shares her policies and procedures with parents, enabling them to make informed choices about their children's care. A written 'satisfaction survey' issued to parents, shows that they are pleased with the standard of care provided. Written comments from parents include, 'I know you are a number one care provider'. The childminder has established strong links with others, who provide care and learning for children. She has strong partnerships with the local pre- school, ensuring that any concerns about a child's well-being, learning or development can be quickly identified and managed.
p.5
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
p.6
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
p.7
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.
p.7
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.
p.8
Setting details
Unique reference number EY426563 Local authority Suffolk Inspection number 875844 Type of provision Childminder Registration category Childminder Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 6 Number of children on roll 9
p.8
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.
p.8
Type of provision
For the purposes of this inspection the following definitions apply:
p.8
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.
p.8
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.
p.8
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.
p.9
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,
p.9
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’.
p.10
Type of provision
T: 0300 123 4234 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.ofsted.gov.uk
p.10
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