Childminder in Hampshire

Inspection date

Previous inspection date 12/12/2014 26/05/2009

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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

 Partnerships with parents and other professionals are exceptionally strong and very effectively support children to progress.  Assessments of children's learning and development are precise. As a result, the childminder accurately identifies children's starting points and plans skilfully to support their individual learning and development.  The environment is highly stimulating, creating exciting learning opportunities for children.  The childminder is dedicated to undertaking training to improve outcomes for children, for example she has complete a course in sign language.

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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 considered the childminders self-evaluation form.  The inspector spoke to parents and read parent testimonials.  The inspector sampled policies, procedures and other documentation.  The inspector observed the childminder working with children.  The inspector carried out discussions with the childminder about her practice.

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Information about the setting

The childminder registered in 2008. She lives with her husband and their two children in a residential area of Petersfield, Hampshire. The property is within close proximity to schools, shops and parks. Children have access to all areas of the home, with toilet facilities on the first floor. There is a fully enclosed garden available for outdoor play. The family have a dog and guinea pigs as pets. The childminder is registered on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. There are currently seven children under eight years on roll, of whom two are in the early years age group. The childminder also cares for one child over eight years.

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

 enhance further the support for younger children to develop their early reading skills.

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who attend

The quality of educational programmes is exceptionally high and, as a result, children are making great progress. The childminder plans activities for children based on their individual needs and interests. For example, she plans outdoor activities for children who have an interest in throwing, and creates games that focus on communication for those who needs additional support with language.

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who attend

The childminder models language very effectively, repeating children's interactions to support clear speech, and reinforce and extend vocabulary. She plays interesting games with children to capture their interest. For example, she encourages them to pull laminated pictures out of a tin of dried rice and name the animal or object. The children enjoy this game and play happily alongside each other, calling out the names and repeating words with support. Children are comfortable and relaxed. They settle easily on arrival and engage in play and learning straight away. The childminder is in tune with the children's needs and can identify immediately if they are getting tired or need comforting. The childminder regularly attends toddler groups and therefore children have great opportunities to socialise with others. Overall, the childminder promotes children's literacy extremely well. She has a particularly effective arrangement for older children to identify

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who attend

their own written names as part of a self-registration process. She does not currently support younger children to recognise their names by involving them in this activity.

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who attend

The childminder has a fantastic range of resources that support children's physical skills. Children enjoy playing with a train track, turning and manipulating pieces of track to connect them together. This helps them to use their small muscles with increasing control. There are excellent opportunities for outdoor play in the garden and on outings. Children thoroughly enjoy running, climbing, throwing and kicking, and develop their strength and coordination.

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who attend

The childminder is highly competent in planning activities that support children's learning and development and has a superb system for assessing their individual progress. She makes accurate, precise records to map their achievements. This enables her to identify areas where children may need additional support and, where appropriate to seek expert assistance. This means that she is highly effective in narrowing gaps in development. The childminder goes to exceptional lengths to support all children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities. As well as supporting parents to seek additional help for children, she also updates her knowledge and skills to help children to the best of her abilities. For example, she has completed a sign language course specifically to reflect children's needs.

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who attend

Parents all speak extremely favourably of the childminder and the service she provides. They say their children all enjoy spending time with her and that they could not recommend her highly enough. Parents all know what progress their children are making and feel very involved in their learning. Parents praise the dedication the childminder has towards children's learning, including helping them to obtain additional support. Parents value the childminder's genuine commitment to their children. For example, they explain that she goes to the school to watch sports day if parents are unable to attend. She takes pictures for parents so they do not miss their children's achievements.

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

The childminder makes wonderfully strong attachments with the children in her care. She is friendly and reassuring, and offers them comfort in an appropriate manner to meet their needs. The childminder role models good behaviour and praises children when they remember to use good manners. Unwanted behaviour, such as climbing on furniture, is managed consistently. The childminder makes sure she explains the reasons why they should not climb, strengthening children's growing understanding of consequences. The childminder provides excellent opportunities for children to develop independence. For example, she encourages them extremely well to learn how to feed themselves.

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

When walking children home from school the childminder makes sure that they hold hands crossing roads. She reinforces their awareness of the potential dangers of roads through discussions. The childminder uses the designated crossing points when crossing the road, setting children great examples of how to keep themselves safe. The childminder is vigilant when taking children outside. She provides very good opportunities for them to experience activities they enjoy while beginning to learn to assess any risks. For example, she plans adventurous activities, such as taking children to float boats in a stream, wearing their boots, while keeping them safe by supervising them constantly. The childminder makes sure the environment she works in is safe for children. She uses precautions such as stair gates and safety straps on highchairs. She also locks doors and hangs keys out of children's reach, helping her to keep them safe and secure.

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

The childminder prepares healthy snacks, such as grapes, oranges and bananas, and offers children water to drink. She teaches children about good hygiene by washing their hands before and after they eat. She also provides them with individual flannels for face washing. Parents send in children's main meals and the childminder encourages them to ensure these are nutritious. She is flexible and, if the children do not eat what they have been sent with, she will make them a sandwich to make sure they are eating well. The childminder is aware of the children's physical development and their emotional well- being. She supports both of these very effectively, keeping children safe and well and liaising with parents if she has any concerns.

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

Children are receiving excellent support to cope with changes in their routines. The childminder offers very carefully planned settling-in periods. She welcomes parents to stay and play to help settle their children in gently. She is sensitive to the needs of the children and to those of families. Parents say that the childminder spends a lot of time really getting to know children individually, learning about their routines, their likes and dislikes. This enables her to understand the best way to make them feel at ease and therefore children settle quickly. Children's enthusiasm for learning, as well as the confidence they develop, prepares them well for their future learning, including their move to school.

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provision

The childminder is very conscious of her responsibilities with regards to the learning and development requirements. She is qualified in childcare at level 3 and monitors educational programmes for children meticulously. The childminder tracks their achievements and uses these to plan activities that build on their growing skills. As a result, children make fantastic progress. The childminder successfully updates her own knowledge and skills by attending training to allow her to offer the best possible experiences and benefits to children.

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provision

The childminder is very knowledgeable about the potential indicators that a may raise concerns about any child's welfare. She also knows how to report her concerns to make sure children are safeguarded from harm. The childminder discusses existing injuries with parents and maintains a record. She ensures that anyone living in the house over 16 years of age are subject to suitability checks. Visitors to the premises sign into a visitors log and children are never left unsupervised.

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provision

The childminder is very competent at evaluating her own practice and in doing so identifies areas she would like to improve to benefit children. She also considers feedback from parents, children and other agencies, such as childminder mentors and local early years advisory teams. The childminder carries out questionnaires for parents and older children and, as a result, has bought new equipment following children's interests. The childminder has outstanding involvement with speech and language therapists. She takes children to appointments within their daily routines when parents are unable to do so. She passes information from these sessions making sure that parents and carers have instructions they need to provide consistent care. The childminder also has extremely good links with the local schools and passes and receives information effectively.

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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 EY366442 Local authority Hampshire Inspection number 828996 Type of provision Childminder Registration category Childminder Age range of children 0 - 8 Total number of places 6 Number of children on roll 7

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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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