Childminder in Kent

Overall effectiveness Good

The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Good Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Not applicable

p.1

The provision is good

Children are very settled and confident in the childminder's care. They confidently explore their familiar play environment, deciding where to play and what to play with. They develop close relationships with the childminder, her family and their peers.

p.2

The provision is good

Children show a great deal of care towards others, sharing and working together to succeed in their tasks. They learn to negotiate and cooperate in their play and daily tasks. For example, older children act as positive role models during construction activities, showing their younger friends how to join pieces together. They carefully support them by holding the pieces while younger children learn to use the tools to fix and build their designs.

p.2

The provision is good

Children develop good manipulative skills using small muscle groups. They learn to use tools safely for cutting fruits at snack time and use tools, such as screwdrivers and spanners in construction. They learn to do up zips, poppers and buttons on their clothes, as well as in activities.

p.2

The provision is good

Children benefit from visiting local facilities. This helps to support their exploration skills and encourages further experiences within all areas of learning. The childminder plans these experiences with children's individual learning and development in mind. For example, children explore beaches, comparing the shells that they find.

p.2

need to do better?

n The childminder successfully helps children to learn about keeping themselves safe. Children confidently learn to carry and cut with knives, selecting them for themselves to prepare their snack. For example, children cut up apples, learning to use a sawing action, carefully placing their fingers in a safe area to prevent accidents. n The childminder promotes children's understanding of healthy eating effectively. Children remember to wash their hands before snack time. They select their own snacks from their own fridge, wash the fruit and cut it themselves. They decide how much of the food they want to eat. The childminder sensitively supports their understanding of portions, talking to them about how big a piece of cheese is suitable for their appetite. They all eat together, enjoying the social experience of preparing their own snacks and eating as a group. They work as a team to clear up afterwards, learning to wash their plates, knives and chopping

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need to do better?

boards. n The childminder provides a good balance of adult-led and child-initiated play. However, the childminder makes decisions for children during some adult-led

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need to do better?

24 August 2021 experiences. She takes the lead and, sometimes, answers for children. The childminder has a clear knowledge of how each child prefers to learns and provides planned activities to support their next stages of learning. However, some adult-led activities do not always promote the areas for individual children's development, such as making choices for themselves and creative imaginations. n The childminder provides good support for children's speech and language skills. The childminder emphasizes sounds, particularly for children who find some sounds difficult to produce. She works closely with parents and other professionals to close the gap in children's language development. She increases children's vocabulary throughout the day, through play and general conversation. Children show their increased confidence at using these new words. For example, children explore sounds and words when describing

p.2

need to do better?

dinosaurs when completing a dinosaur puzzle. n Children show expressive imaginations, using dinosaurs to act out their play together, making sounds and noises of what they think dinosaurs sound like. They explore the natural world, looking at bugs, collecting eggs from the chickens and using natural materials, such as food, sand and water for play. n The childminder provides children with a clean and safe environment for their play. They confidently explore and extend their learning, making choices from a large range of suitable resources. n Parents make positive comments about the care their children receive from the childminder. They appreciate the ongoing care and attention to detail, especially throughout the difficult times of the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic. They comment about the extreme care towards children's hygiene and good health. They know children benefit from the additional experiences they receive from

p.3

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

p.3

Safeguarding

The childminder has a clear knowledge of up-to-date procedures to keep children safe. She understands her responsibility to recognise any concerns about children in her care. The childminder attends regular training and researches any new regulations regarding the safety and welfare of children. She uses her previous professional experiences to transfer safeguarding skills successfully to her childminding service. Children play in a safe and secure environment, where changes are made to promote independent play. The childminder plans outings carefully, risk assessing any hazards that she identifies. She is aware of children's physical limitations and challenges, setting boundaries to promote their safety.

p.3

should:

24 August 2021 n use adult-led activities more effectively to help further support individual children's learning.

p.3

Setting details

Unique reference number EY557454 Local authority Kent Inspection number 10175174 Type of provision Childminder

p.5

Registers

Early Years Register, Compulsory Childcare Register, Voluntary Childcare Register Day care type Childminder

p.5

inspection

Total number of places 6 Number of children on roll 5 Date of previous inspection Not applicable

p.5

Information about this early years setting

The childminder registered in 2018. She lives in Iwade, Sittingbourne, Kent. The childminder provides care Monday to Friday all day and for most of the year, with the exception of bank holidays and planned family holidays. The childminder provides funded places for two-, three- and four-year-olds.

p.5

Inspection activities

n This was the first routine inspection the setting received since the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic began. The inspector discussed the impact of the pandemic with the setting and has taken that into account in the evaluation of the setting. n The inspector carried out a joint observation with the childminder and discussed the findings. n Children spoke to the inspector about their play and their interests. n The childminder and the inspector carried out a learning walk to discuss the curriculum offered. n The inspector took into account the views of parents during the inspection. n The inspector sampled the childminder's documentation, including the suitability checks for herself and members of her household.

p.5

Inspection activities

24 August 2021 We carried out this inspection 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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Inspection activities

24 August 2021 regulates and inspects to 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 and Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, further education and skills, 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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Inspection activities

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Inspection activities

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Inspection activities

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Inspection activities

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