Childminder in Warwickshire

Inspection date

Previous inspection date 10/11/2014 13/01/2010

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early years provision

This inspection: 1 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 1

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This provision is outstanding

 Teaching is outstanding because the childminder has an exceptional knowledge of each child's learning and development needs. She makes excellent use of accurate assessments of their progress to plan further activities that challenge children and incorporate their interests. This enables each child to make rapid progress in relation to their individual starting points and capabilities.  Children develop close relationships and thoroughly enjoy coming to this welcoming, friendly and stimulating home. The childminder plans exciting, structured activities, which are well focused on children's individual interests, and match their learning and emotional needs.  Children's safety is promoted as the childminder understands the importance of assessing and minimising risks and she has a secure understanding of her role and responsibility in safeguarding children. Consequently, the safeguarding and welfare

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This provision is outstanding

requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage are extremely well met.  The childminder has highly effective systems to monitor and evaluate the educational programmes and all aspects of children's welfare, to enable her to constantly evaluate her practice. As a result, learning outcomes for children are exceptionally positive.  Partnerships with parents are highly effective and significantly contribute to children's well-being at the setting. Communication is excellent and parents are highly involved in their child's welfare and learning, both at the setting and at home.

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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 the childminder's interactions with children and observed activities in the learning environment.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector held discussions with the childminder and spoke to children at appropriate times throughout the inspection.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at children's assessment records, planning documentation and a number of the childminder's policies and procedures.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector checked evidence of the suitability of the childmimder and other family members, and the childminder's self-evaluation and improvement plan.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector took account of the views of parents through viewing written questionnaires.

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Information about the setting

The childminder was registered in 2002 and is on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. She lives with her father, husband and three children, in the St Nicolas Park area of Nuneaton. The whole of the ground floor of the childminder's house and two first floor bedrooms are used for childminding and there is a garden available for outdoor play. The childminder attends various activity and toddler groups and visits the shops and park on a regular basis. The childminder collects children from the local schools and pre-schools. There are currently five children on roll; of whom, four are in the early years age group who 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. She is a 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:

 accelerate children's development and learning even more by maximising the use of the outdoor environment to fully support children's learning across the areas of learning.

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who attend

Children make outstanding progress as they thrive and thoroughly enjoy their time in this warm and inviting environment, where they receive exceptional support from the childminder. She has a very good knowledge of the learning and development requirements, and is skilled in teaching children to learn through play. The childminder is very enthusiastic with the children, and has excellent interaction with them, as she joins in their play. For example, when children are playing with dried pasta, the childminder introduces the mathematical concepts of 'big', 'small', 'full' and 'empty', which children repeat and imitate in their play, as they fill and empty different containers. In addition, the childminder provides calculators and weighing scales to extend their counting and problem-solving skills. Children develop strength in their hands and gain hand-to-eye coordination, from the wealth of activities to promote their early writing skills. For

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who attend

example, they pick up small items with tweezers and use thick pens to make marks on writing mats. The childminder regularly praises children for their efforts. This boosts the children's self-esteem and confidence.

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who attend

Young children show a very good awareness of themselves and others and take great delight and smile when they recognise children they know in photographs displayed on the door. Children have opportunities to explore, investigate and to develop their physical development through play. They regularly attend the local park, go on walks in the community and travel on the train to the Remembrance Day parade to wave the poppies they have designed. However, there is scope to further advance children's development and learning even more by maximising the use of the outdoor environment to fully support children's learning across the areas of learning. The childminder skilfully introduces new words to children's vocabulary and repeats words to aid children's language development, and she also uses signing. This supports young children to develop their language and communication skills by effectively engaging them during play.

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who attend

For example, the childminder responds to children's vocalisations, mirrors their movements and chats enthusiastically to them as they explore and play. She often repeats simple words, which means that young children hear new words regularly. For example, she joins in with their imaginative play, clearly names the small world animals that children show an interest in, and adds new words, so the young children learn how to pronounce them correctly.

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who attend

The childminder has highly effective systems in place to enable her to monitor all areas of learning. She continually observes the children, making numerous snapshot notes on what the children have done each day. The childminder collates these and adds them to children's comprehensive learning journal records, along with samples of their work and photographs of them at play for their individual memory books. A detailed summary of children's learning and development is completed and shared with parents electronically. This clearly identifies the stage of development each child has reached in the seven areas of learning, with detailed next steps to support continued learning. The childminder makes excellent use of guidance documents to track children's progress, and ensure they make excellent progress in all areas of learning. These formal assessments are consistently carried out for all children, in addition to the progress check for children between the ages

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who attend

of two and three years, which are all shared with parents regularly. The childminder has recently undertaken training on progress checks and displays information about it for parents. Parents actively contribute towards the childminder's planning, as they keep her informed of events in the child's life and about what they have enjoyed doing at the weekend, using the electronic system. The childminder uses this information to plan activities to link in with what is happening at home. The childminder helps prepare children exceptionally well for the next stage in their learning and their future move to school.

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

Children benefit from an excellent introduction to the childminder and her family. Children and parents are welcomed to her home and they spend time getting to know each other and sharing information about children's needs and interests. As a result of this highly successful planning, the transition from home or other setting is effortless and children settle well. Children form strong attachments with the childminder and she interacts extremely positively with them, which enhances their strong sense of security and belonging. Children are also fully supported through further transitions to pre-school and school as the childminder openly communicates with early years workers and teachers to continue and extend children's learning in her own setting. Children's personal, social and emotional development is significantly enhanced. This is achieved exceedingly well, because the childminder takes all opportunities to positively praise children, regardless of

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

how small their achievement may be. For example, when children help to tidy up and select the nursery rhyme card they want to sing, she tells them 'well done'.

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

Children's feeling of safety and security is consistently enhanced through the delightful relationships they form with the childminder. This has an exceptionally positive impact on their learning as they are supported and praised for their efforts. For example, the childminder supports a young child as he stands on his tip-toes and opens and closes the door, again and again. She reminds him to be careful not to trap his fingers. As a result, children become confident, competent learners and their self-esteem continually flourishes. Children's understanding of their own safety is thoroughly enhanced. They know that they must hold the pushchair when walking along the footpath and that they must not run across the road. Children regularly practise fire drills and a detailed plan of the emergency exit routes ensures parents and visitors are also aware of where to go in an emergency. Children's health is superbly promoted as stringent procedures are in place

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

to prevent the spread of infection. Children follow effective hygiene practices, as the childminder ensures they wash their hands appropriately throughout the day. They find their own flannels displayed alongside their photograph; this helps to reduce the risk of cross-infection. Children develop an excellent understanding of the importance of a healthy lifestyle as they enjoy a range of nutritious and healthy snacks and meals. They demonstrate that they have healthy appetites as they thoroughly enjoy eating healthy fruits for their snack. Children are supported from an early age to be independent. For example, they peel their own fruit and serve their own meals, deciding how much pasta or cheese they would like.

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

Children's safety is paramount, and comprehensive risk assessments identify potential hazards in the home and garden and when out, enabling the childminder to take effective steps to minimise them. The childminder designs emergency photograph cards, containing information about the children, herself and her own children which she takes on outings, in the event of something happening to her. Children benefit from having access to an extensive range of resources and equipment, which offer challenge and promote their learning. The stimulating toys are extremely well organised in storage containers labelled with written text and pictures. This supports children's independence and choice.

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provision

The childminder's knowledge and understanding of safeguarding and her practices to keep children safe are excellent. She keeps up to date with local child protection practices through attending training and she regularly reviews local information on the website and updates her policies and procedures accordingly. The childminder is confident to speak to parents regarding their children's welfare, and knows what to do if she is concerned about a child in her care. As a result, the children are well protected. The childminder's home is set up so that children are able to play independently while remaining safe. Everything children come into contact with is risk assessed regularly and action is taken when potential risks are identified. The childminder is proactive in her approach to enhancing the children's knowledge and skills around safety. All documentation to meet the welfare requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage is accurately maintained to meet

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provision

children's needs. The childminder has additional record keeping, so that she gathers detailed information from parents at the start, regarding their children's routines, to enable her to provide consistency of care.

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provision

The childminder demonstrates an excellent understanding of the learning and development requirements. Through her observations and reviews of each child's progress, it is clear that she is successful in planning appropriate activities that offer excellent, age-appropriate challenges for each child. She consistently monitors her activities and setting, and is eager to make small changes to her observational systems to include parents more in the process and she continues to find the best way to share information with them. This ensures parents are able to share events and activities children engage in at home. The excellent partnerships with parents ensure they are fully informed and involved in their child's learning. Their views, ideas and comments are actively sought verbally and through questionnaires and included in their child's learning folders and daily diaries. This enables both parents and the childminder to see the

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provision

progress made at home and at the setting. Parents speak highly of the childminder and highlight that they are extremely happy with the care their children receive. They comment how children have grown in confidence and developed their physical abilities well. They feel that the childminder, 'goes above and beyond her role to provide a loving community within her home giving each child a chance to grow and develop in a safe place'. Parents comment, 'I would not want my child going anywhere else'.

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provision

The childminder places a high priority on training, and on improving her knowledge, and she is extremely committed to professional development. The childminder regularly attends a local childminder group to share ideas for good practice. She makes regular use of ideas gleaned from these meetings, the internet and training to extend the educational activities she provides. As a consequence, children thrive from the wealth of stimulating activities she offers. The childminder has a very good understanding of the benefits of reflective practice. She regularly evaluates her practice, the activities she provides and the environment. As a result, the childminder makes significant ongoing improvements. The childminder has a clear action plan, which she uses to ensure that she stays focused on her drive to make continuous improvements. As a consequence, the childminder demonstrates a very strong capacity for maintaining high-quality provision. The

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provision

childminder seeks the views of parents and children through discussion and regular questionnaires, designed with visual prompts, such as smiling and sad faces. The childminder, through discussion and sharing planning documents and assessments, regularly shares information on activities parents can organise at home to further support their children's learning. The childminder regularly shares photographs of children as they engage in play with parents. Children take home resources to use at home, such as songs and activities related to the current theme on autumn. As a result, the childminder has highly effective working arrangements with parents. Children benefit greatly from the childminder's strong working arrangements, with other childminders and early years professionals, to build upon her already high-quality teaching and care. She has recently attended a number of courses in order to support children with special educational needs

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provision

and/or disabilities to ensure she is able to support their all-round development.

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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 EY104412 Local authority Warwickshire Inspection number 855682 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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