Childminder in Hertfordshire

Inspection date

Previous inspection date 1 April 2015 1 June 2009

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

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The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision Requires improvement The setting does not meet legal requirements for early years settings

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This provision requires improvement. It is not yet good because:

 Self-evaluation is not sufficiently robust to ensure all safeguarding and welfare requirements are met. As a result, the childminder has not ensured vetting procedures for household members aged 16 or over have been completed in a timely manner.  The childminder does not evaluate the impact of the practice of the assistant who occasionally provides cover during her absence. As a result, opportunities are missed to enhance the assistant's knowledge and understanding.  The childminder has not yet fully implemented methods to evaluate how she can develop her practice to bring about improvements to her service and outcomes for children.

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It has the following strengths

 The childminder is well qualified, after recently completing training at degree level. Her teaching is a strong feature of this setting. As a result, all children make good progress in their learning and development.  The childminder has good relationships with the children and close bonds are evident. Children happily chat and share the occasional joke with her as they play.  Children benefit from good hygiene routines and a range of healthy meals and snacks. The childminder ensures children get plenty of physical exercise in the fresh air, including football with the family dogs. This promotes their general well-being and supports them to develop healthy lifestyles.  The childminder is a good role model for the children. They are aware of the high expectations in the setting and respond positively by behaving very well.  Strong partnerships exist between the childminder, parents and other professionals.

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It has the following strengths

This results in continuity and effective joint working to promote children's welfare and learning.

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What the setting needs to do to improve further

To meet the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage the provider must:

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What the setting needs to do to improve further

 provide Ofsted with the necessary information to enable suitability checks to be carried out on household members aged 16 or over living on the premises.

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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

 embed the system for monitoring practice in the setting, for example, by carrying out observations, identifying strengths and areas for improvement and sharing good practice  continue to develop self-evaluation to identify improvements that can be made and consider how these can benefit children's care and learning.

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What the setting needs to do to improve further

To meet the requirements of the Childcare Register the provider must:

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What the setting needs to do to improve further

 ensure Ofsted are informed of the date of birth of any person aged 16 or over working or living on the premises to enable them to carry out suitability checks (compulsory part of the Childcare register)  ensure Ofsted are informed of the date of birth, of any person aged 16 or over working or living on the premises to enable them to carry out suitability checks (voluntary part of the Childcare register).

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Inspection activities

 The inspector viewed all areas used by children.  The inspector observed the childminder playing and interacting with the children.  The inspector spoke to the childminder and children throughout the inspection as appropriate.  The inspector looked at planning documentation and children's assessment records.  The inspector looked at a sample of records and policies relating to children's welfare, health and safety. She also checked evidence of the suitability of the childminder and other adults living at the premises.  The inspector took account of the written views of parents and carers included in the childminder's documentation.

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who attend. This is good

The childminder is knowledgeable and knows how to promote children's learning and development. Her teaching is consistently good. She interacts with children as they play, extending their language and creative ideas. The childminder supports children's early number and mathematical thinking skills particularly well. For example, she asks them if a ball of dough is bigger when it is in a ball or rolled out flat. She introduces good mathematical language and challenges the children to count, find 'more' or 'less', and perform simple calculations. The childminder provides a range of tools for the children to develop their coordination. They competently manipulate cutters and knives and are thrilled when wiggly 'hair' is produced as they squeeze dough through a press. As a result, children make good progress in their learning and are well prepared with the skills they require for school.

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good

The childminder gives the children plenty of praise and encouragement and they respond positively, which promotes their self-confidence and self-esteem. Under the childminder's gentle guidance, children learn to show kindness and have consideration and respect for each other, the shared toys and for the childminder's home. The children learn how to keep themselves safe. For example, they practise how to leave the building in an emergency and consider the ingredients in the play dough that make it inedible. Children's independence skills are fostered well. They actively seek their own resources and get themselves ready for outdoor play. In addition, they manage their personal needs, such as blowing their noses and washing their hands. Children are self-motivated to achieve. They show real resilience, for example, when a tower, which they hope will reach the ceiling, collapses and they eagerly start building it again.

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provision requires improvement

The childminder has started to evaluate her practice and shows a suitable understanding of the strengths of her setting. She is less focused, however, on what can be improved. She takes the views of parents and children into account when evaluating her provision. However, self-evaluation is not yet fully established and is not robust enough to ensure all safeguarding and welfare requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage are met. She has not ensured that Ofsted is made aware when a member of her household reaches 16 years of age, so that required suitability checks can be completed. As the childminder has a detailed knowledge of the person concerned, there is minimal impact on children's safety and well-being. The childminder also does not yet consider how changes to her setting will benefit the children's care and learning. She occasionally has an assistant working for her, but does not regularly observe the assistant's practice. This means she cannot ensure that

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provision requires improvement

it is in line with her own standards or that it is promoting children's learning and development appropriately and consistently.

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Setting details

Unique reference number 953309 Local authority Hertfordshire Inspection number 855638 Type of provision Childminder Registration category Childminder Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 6 Number of children on roll 8

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Telephone number

The childminder was registered in 1999 and lives in Abbots Langley. She operates all year round from 8am to 6pm, Monday to Friday, except for bank holidays and family holidays. She occasionally works with an assistant.

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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

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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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