Childminder in Lancashire

Inspection date

Previous inspection date 17 June 2015 18 May 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

 The childminder knows the children and their families well, and creates a welcoming home in which children feel emotionally secure.  Children enjoy meals that are healthy, balanced and nutritious as they are well planned to specifically meet children's dietary needs.  The childminder works closely with her co-childminder to check the home is suitable and safe for children. They work closely to monitor children to keep them safe.  Strong partnerships with agencies and other settings that children attend ensure each child's unique needs are effectively met. The childminder works closely with professionals, such as speech and language therapists, and takes children to some of their appointments.  Children are emotionally well prepared and equipped with self-help skills, to ease their moves on to nursery and school.  Children's early reading and writing skills are developing well. Children regularly choose

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This provision is good

books from the library to share with their parents. They enjoy drawing on large sheets of paper and make marks on paper attached to readily available clipboards.

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It is not yet outstanding because:

 The childminder gathers some useful information about what children know and can do at home, although this is not consistently used to assess children's progress in all areas.  There are occasions when children are asked questions and are not given sufficient time to think about what they want to say and put their thoughts into words.  The childminder's plans for improvement are not always based on sharp evaluations of the whole practice.

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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

 strengthen opportunities for parents to contribute more information about what their children do at home, and use this shared knowledge to plan together, in order to move children even further forward in their learning  give children thinking time when asking questions, and wait for them to think about what they want to say and put their thoughts into words  make greater use of the evaluations of practice to identify priorities for improvement, in order to raise the quality of practice to an even higher level.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector observed activities in the playroom, living room, kitchen and sun lounge.  The inspector spoke to the childminder, co-childminder and children at appropriate times during the inspection.  The inspector carried out a joint observation with the childminder.  The inspector took account of the views of parents, which were provided in writing.  The inspector looked at a range of documents, including proof of some qualifications, evidence of the suitability of household members, policies, procedures and children's records.

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who attend. This is good

The childminder plans activities around themes, of which some are linked to calendar events. This enables children to explore a range of cultures. For example, children make cards for Saint Patrick's Day and enjoy hearing stories about Diwali. Information about children's learning at home is not consistently gathered from parents, meaning it cannot be effectively used when assessing and planning children's progress. However, parents are kept well informed of their child's progress. The quality of teaching and learning is good. The childminder uses children's interests and home experiences to extend their learning as they play. For example, she supports them to make a dough model of a dinosaur and talk about a film they saw with their family. Children learn new words, such as fossil. The childminder introduces mathematical language, such as longer and bigger as they roll play dough. Children operate a digital camera to take photographs of their work, such as

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who attend. This is good

towers they have built. This raises their awareness of technology and enables them to take pride in their success.

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good

The childminder gathers and makes good use of information from parents to meet each child's dietary needs and care routines. She thoughtfully adapted an advent calendar by replacing the chocolates with dairy-free ones for a child with an allergy. She builds up children's confidence to do things for themselves. She also supports children to socialise and communicate with other children at toddler groups. This prepares children well for school. Children demonstrate that they feel safe and secure as they move confidently around the home. They talk about different emotions, for example, feeling scared when watching a dinosaur film at home. Children develop good physical skills, such as finger dexterity, as they manipulate, roll and cut dough. They exercise vigorously as they run on playing fields and use the slide, swings and balancing beam at the park.

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provision is good

The childminder understands and meets the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. She works closely with her co-childminder to follow suitable policies and procedures. She ensures all records, including accident, attendance and medication administration records are consistently kept. The childminder searches the internet for craft ideas and meets with other childminders to build on and share the skills and knowledge gained from her childcare qualification. She attends training where it is available and uses what she learns to benefit her practice. For example, she uses her improved knowledge of how to communicate with children in different ways, to more effectively improve each child's speech and language development. However, she does not always give children time to think through what they want to say before answering questions for them. The childminder seeks the views of children and parents, and

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provision is good

evaluates her practice. However, she does not consistently prioritise areas for future improvement, in order to raise the quality of her practice even higher.

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Setting details

Unique reference number 308309 Local authority Lancashire Inspection number 871845 Type of provision Childminder Registration category Childminder Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 6 Number of children on roll 10

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Telephone number

The childminder was registered in 1995 and lives in Fulwood. She operates all year round from 7am to 6pm, Monday to Friday, except bank holidays and family holidays. The childminder works with her husband, who is her co-childminder. The childminder holds an appropriate early years qualification at level 3.

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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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