Childminder in Warrington

Inspection date

Previous inspection date 13/11/2014 10/05/2011

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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

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This provision is good

 The childminder has good knowledge of how children learn and develop. She has implemented effective systems for observation, planning and assessment to ensure children are making good progress.  The childminder develops good relationships with the children in her care. Children settle quickly into the setting as the childminder records a range of information from parents to ensure children's needs are met.  The childminder is fully committed to developing her practice. She regularly undertakes training courses and obtains the views of both parents and children to evaluate her setting and effectively identify areas for improvement.  Children are safe while attending the setting. The childminder has a high level of awareness of safeguarding and comprehensive policies are in place to protect children.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 The childminder sometimes provides a limited range of resources for focused craft activities. As a result, children have less opportunities to make independent choices and fully explore their own creative ideas.  On occasions younger children cannot select their chosen resources independently because some of these are not easily accessible.

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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 main playroom and outdoor area.

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Inspection activities

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

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Inspection activities

 The inspector undertook a joint observation with the childminder during the morning.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at children's assessment records and the planning documentation, and a selection of policies and children's records.  The inspector took account of the provider's self-evaluation and improvement plan.

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Inspection activities

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

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Information about the setting

The childminder was registered in 2000 and is on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. The childminder lives with her two adult children, in a house in Birchwood, Warrington. The whole of the ground floor is used for childminding. There is an enclosed garden for outdoor play. The childminder visits the local shops and toddler group on a regular basis. The provision operates Monday to Friday, from 8am until 6pm all year round, except bank holidays and family holidays. There are two child on roll in the early years age range. The childminder 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:

 provide even more resources for children during focused craft activities to enhance their independence and develop their own creative ideas further

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

 promote young children's independence even further by ensuring they can access all resources stored at their level to make their own selections.

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who attend

The childminder has a good understanding of how children learn and as a result the quality of teaching is good. Children are engaged and enthusiastic as the childminder plans interesting activities to support their next steps. For example, they go on outings to the local park, use computer programmes and access a wide range of resources in the indoor area. Children are keen to try and continue activities as the childminder uses different teaching strategies to maintain their interest. She asks questions in order to encourage children to think about what is happening, and allows them time to think and respond. This helps them to develop the skills that prepare them for their next steps in learning or a move to school.

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who attend

Children access the outdoor environment on a daily basis. Children have access to large apparatus including, a slide, a see-saw, wheeled toys, materials to make marks with and painting easels. They play with digging equipment, magnifying glasses, sand and water. The indoor environment provides equally good opportunities for children to learn and explore their interests. For example, small world, jigsaws, books and some mark making materials are available. However, craft resources are not readily available. This means that children have fewer opportunities to develop their own creative ideas and make independent choices. The childminder demonstrates high expectations for all children in her care and has good knowledge of how to access further support should she look after children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. The childminder gathers good quality information from parents about their children's preferences and capabilities. She uses this information

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who attend

to complete a baseline assessment, which allows her to effectively track children's progress during their time at her setting. The childminder regularly completes accurate observations of children and uses these to plan activities, which help to develop their existing skills and interests. She assesses children regularly and shares this information with parents to promote continuity in their next steps for learning. Children's progress is tracked so that interventions can be sought if necessary and the childminder has a good understanding of how to do this. Each day the childminder completes a daily diary for each child, which contains details of activities and interests for the day. Parents are encouraged to try activities at home to develop their children's learning further and they are provided with an information pack about how children learn. Consequently, children are making good progress in their learning. The childminder helps them to develop the

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who attend

attitudes and dispositions to prepare them for their next steps in learning or a move to school. She does this by providing experiences which excite them and motivate them to learn. The childminder understands the importance of free play and how children develop their interests. She intervenes with questions or other resources where necessary to provide children with good levels of challenge for their age and stage of development.

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

The childminder has developed close and caring relationships with the children in her care. As a result, children feel happy and confident attending the setting. She develops bonds with them quickly through her effective settling-in procedure. The childminder records relevant information from parents about children's preferences, routines and comforters. She offers a number of sessions to families prior to their start date so that both parents and children are able to build relationships with her and feel comfortable at the setting. The childminder has house rules which set the boundaries for children and remind them of her expectations. Younger children's behaviour is managed consistently and in an appropriate way for their age. She takes children to groups and on outings, as a result, children learn how to adapt their behaviour to different social situations. The childminder gives children lots of praise and encouragement, which builds their self-esteem and

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

confidence, and prepares them emotionally for the eventual move to nursery and school. Children have an increasing understanding of how to keep themselves safe due to the childminder's consistent guidance. For example, they learn about road safety and how to assess and manage risks when on outings.

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

Children's emotional well-being is clearly supported by the routines of the day. The childminder is attuned to their individual needs and meets these well. She ensures that children are well nourished with healthy options and that they have plenty of fresh air, exercise and rest to promote a healthy lifestyle. As care routines are undertaken the childminder reinforces the importance of good hygiene practice by encouraging children to 'wash the germs away' before eating a meal or after going to the toilet. She also role models this for children to further enhance the importance of cleanliness and how this protects their physical health. The childminder has comprehensive risk assessments in place, which are reviewed regularly. Accident, existing injury and administration of medicine records are well maintained to further promote children's health and safety.

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

Children's developing independence is well supported as they are offered a choice of healthy snacks and drinks, as well as a choice of activities. The setting is well resourced and most resources are accessible at children's level to further promote independent choices. The childminder has provided both labels and pictures of resources that are stored in boxes to help children make choices and also support their awareness of letters and numbers. However, there are fewer opportunities to develop younger children's independence as they have to move certain resources to access others. In spite of this, children are confident and have a strong sense of belonging. They are supported well when it is time for them to move on to new settings. The childminder has developed relationships with the local nursery as well as with other providers where children attend multiple settings. She has effective arrangements in place to support the moves between

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

settings and shares information where relevant. As a result, children's emotional well- being is fostered effectively.

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provision

The childminder has a good understanding of her responsibilities in meeting the learning and development requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. She reflects on her own practice to ensure the educational programmes cover all seven areas of learning and can be adapted to each child's age and stage of development. She effectively monitors children's progress using a tracking sheet and assesses them on a regular basis. The childminder completes an initial assessment, progress assessments and also the progress check between the ages two and three years, where relevant. She has arrangements in place to share information with other professionals as appropriate. As a result, she is able to identify areas where children's development is more or less than expected and secure interventions where necessary. This means that children are well-prepared for the next steps in their learning. Equally, the childminder has a high level of awareness of the

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provision

safeguarding and welfare requirements. She has implemented robust policies to protect children from harm. The childminder's knowledge of safeguarding is very good and her policy includes the use of mobile phones or cameras, and the procedure to follow if an allegation is made against her. She is extremely mindful of children's safety and ensures risk assessments are completed to identify hazards and that these are updated regularly to ensure that safety measures continue to effectively minimise these. The childminder has had appropriate suitability checks completed for all adults living in the setting and checks the identity of visitors coming into the setting.

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provision

The childminder has positive relationships with parents and engages in daily conversations with them about their children's well-being and progress. In addition, she completes a daily diary for each child to provide information about care routines as well as learning activities. The childminder also provides parents information about child development and healthy eating, when necessary. She provides parents with good opportunities to offer written feedback about her service. Parents praise her for the service she offers and comment they are very happy with the information provided and the amount of progress their children are making.

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provision

The childminder understands the importance of self-evaluation and updates a development plan on a regular basis. This identifies her priorities to develop her setting further and how she intends to do this. It is evident that the childminder is fully committed to improving her practice. She attends training to enhance her professional development and completes wider reading in order to provide better quality experiences for children and further her knowledge and understanding. Since her last inspection, the childminder has successfully addressed all previous recommendations. She has all the necessary written policies in place, including a complaints log and has a robust system for observing and tracking children's progress. She is motivated and driven to improve in order to provide the best possible care for all children. The childminder has devised systems to take into account the views of parents and children using questionnaires. Consequently,

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provision

she is continually seeking to improve, and demonstrates capacity to sustain improvement.

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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 315063 Local authority Warrington Inspection number 876961 Type of provision Childminder Registration category Childminder Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 6 Number of children on roll 2

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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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