Hitch, Maxine

Inspection date

Previous inspection date 2 February 2015 4 March 2010

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This inspection: Good 2

Previous inspection: Good 2 How well the early years provision meets the needs of the range of children who attend Good 2

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This inspection: Good 2

The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children Good 2

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This inspection: Good 2

The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision Good 2

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This inspection: Good 2

The setting meets legal requirements for early years settings

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This provision is good

 Children are motivated to learn and progress, because the childminder is supportive of their effort and praises their achievements. As a result, children make good progress in their learning.  Children are settled and display a strong sense of belonging. They form close attachments with the childminder as a result of her warm, caring approach and effective settling-in sessions.  The childminder pays good attention to safeguarding children. She has a good knowledge of her role and responsibility in this area. This means she can respond promptly to any concerns and keep children safe.  Children develop secure attachments with the childminder. She is caring and considerate about their individual needs. As a result, children settle quickly, are well behaved and feel safe in the setting.  Partnerships with parents are promoted well. The childminder works hard to establish good relationships with parents so that information about the children is constantly

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This provision is good

shared. This promotes children's emotional well-being.

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It is not yet outstanding because:

 The presentation of some of the resources in the playroom does not always offer children opportunities to be independent in their play.  Children are not always given sufficient time to respond to questions. This results in an occasional missed opportunity for children to develop their thinking skills and language.

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What the setting needs to do to improve further

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

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What the setting needs to do to improve further

 increase children's independence and self-choice for play, for example, by reviewing how some of the resources in the home are presented to ensure they are more accessible to children  strengthen questioning skills by ensuring that children are always given enough time to think and respond with their answers, before offering a solution.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector carried out a tour of the areas of the home used for childminding.  The inspector observed children while they were engaged in activities in the living room.  The inspector looked at a range of records including learning information, written policies, risk assessments, qualifications and a selection of other documents.  The inspector spoke to the childminder and children at appropriate times during the inspection.

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who attend. This is good

Children are making good progress in their learning and development. This is preparing them for their next stage in learning. On occasions, access to some of the resources in the playroom does not enable children to make their own choices in their play. The childminder completes observations and regular assessments of children's achievements. The activities provided are exciting and challenging and the children enjoy taking part. However, the children are not always given sufficient time to respond to questions. This results in missed opportunities for children to develop their thinking skills and further develop their language. The children learn to count with the childminder. For example, they count the cups as they stack them on top of each other, before knocking them down. The children enjoy books and have favourites which they like to read with the childminder. The childminder engages in daily discussion with parents about their children's

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who attend. This is good

development. She shares the children's learning journals with them on a regular basis and they add comments.

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good

The childminder has settling-in visits which help children get to know her and their new surroundings. She uses this time to collate valuable information from parents about their children, which enables her to follow home routines. As a result, children are happy, settled and secure. The move between home and the childminder's home is smooth. Children are encouraged to develop healthy lifestyles and their physical development is promoted well. They go for walks in the local area, play at the park and visit a soft-play centre. This means they get plenty of fresh air and exercise, and build on their social skills. This helps to promote their health and well-being. The childminder works closely with parents to ensure children are provided with healthy options in their lunch boxes and for snack. The children go shopping with the childminder to help purchase fruit for their snacks. The childminder promotes road safety when out, so even the youngest children

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good

know they have to look and listen for cars.

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provision is good

The childminder places a high priority on keeping children safe. She is vigilant in her supervision of children and conducts risk assessments to help her identify potential hazards. They include, her home, outings and recently she has added one covering extreme weather conditions. The childminder evaluates her provision in order to maintain and improve her already good practice. She regularly attends training to build on her knowledge and skills. The childminder values the views and feedback from parents and children. She embraces suggestions for development from them. The parents speak very highly of her, they say, 'We feel lucky that our child is with her'. The childminder understands the importance of sharing information with other providers to promote continuity of care and learning. In support of this she has built up good relationships with the local nursery and school that children attend.

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Setting details

Unique reference number 313670 Local authority Durham Inspection number 868154 Type of provision Childminder Registration category Childminder Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 6 Number of children on roll 12

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Name of provider

Date of previous inspection 4 March 2010

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Telephone number

The childminder registered in 1992. She lives on the outskirts of Durham. She operates all year round, from 7.15am to 5pm, Monday to Friday, except for bank holidays and family holidays.

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Telephone number

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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Telephone number

procedures set out in the guidance ‘Complaints procedure: raising concerns and making complaints about Ofsted’, which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted. If you would like Ofsted to send you a copy of the guidance, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk. 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, safeguarding and child protection.

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Telephone number

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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Telephone number

T: 0300 123 4234 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted

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