Childminder

Childminder

Unique reference number (URN): 2743899 Registered with Ofsted: 07/09/2023 Registers: EYR, CCR, VCR

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Safeguarding standards met

The safeguarding standards are met. This means that leaders and/or those responsible for governance and oversight fulfil their specific responsibilities and have established an open culture in which safeguarding is everyone's responsibility and concerns are actively identified, acted upon and managed. As a result, children are made safer and feel safe.

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How we evaluate safeguarding

When we inspect settings for safeguarding, they can have the following outcomes:

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How we evaluate safeguarding

Met: The setting has an open and positive culture of safeguarding. Not met: The setting has not created an open and positive culture of safeguarding. Not all legal requirements are met.

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Achievement Strong standard

Children demonstrate an extensive range of knowledge and skills. They are thoroughly prepared for each stage of development, including transitions to school. Young children share and take turns independently, involve each other in play, use tweezers skilfully and peel and slice their fruit without support. Older children demonstrate highly developed concentration skills. They listen intently to stories and show a love for books. They name favourite books and compare books by the same author.

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Achievement Strong standard

Children are confident communicators. They consistently hold conversations with each other and the childminder about a range of subjects. They ask questions, share ideas and make predictions.

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Achievement Strong standard

Children make swift progress when barriers to learning are identified. The childminder's effective adaptations mean children who find expressing their emotions challenging learn how to name and manage their emotions when they become frustrated. They say 'I need space' when they become overwhelmed.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard

The childminder provides a safe, positive and nurturing environment. She is thoroughly responsive to children's learning and care. Children show affection towards the childminder and ask for help when they face minor challenges. Young children say, 'Can you help me do this puzzle please?' They share toys and take turns well. They pass the plate of fruit to each other at snack time without prompting from the childminder.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard

Children understand what is expected of them and follow all requests and instructions. They keenly tidy up. They use the 'Tidy Champions' board to choose an activity for when they have finished tidying. The childminder respects children's choices and thanks them for helping.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard

Children with barriers to learning are supported well to manage emotions in ways appropriate to their stage of development. The childminder uses a 'magic mat' to help children express how they feel when they want to play on their own. Children understand this strategy and place their toys on it to express that they need time and space to regulate.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard

Positive partnerships with parents help the childminder respond to each child's individual needs. Parents say they feel comfortable to talk to the childminder about changes in family circumstances. They appreciate the childminder's flexibility and say she always accommodates their children's needs. This helps to ensure children attend regularly.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard

The childminder builds strong attachments with children. Her nurturing and responsive style helps children feel safe in her care. She knows the children she cares for extremely well and understands and celebrates their uniqueness. Care practices are adapted to ensure the right levels of support and independence. She works closely with parents when children have medical or dietary requirements.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard

Children are learning how to manage their own safety and welfare. The childminder sensitively talks to children about privacy. She knocks on the bathroom door and explains that children need to wait to wash hands if one of their friends is already using the bathroom.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard

The childminder regularly engages children in conversations about how everyone might be feeling when particular events occur. She acknowledges and validates children's feelings and helps them understand how their behaviour may impact on others. The childminder refers to 'body scans' and encourages children to 'listen to their body'. This helps children express how they feel physically. Children show they feel comfortable, telling the childminder when they feel hungry or tired or need the bathroom.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard

The childminder involves children in making nutritious and balanced food for their lunch. Parents say their children talk about how much they enjoy the childminder's 'golden soup'. They use the childminder's recipe to make it at home. Regular communication with parents enables the childminder to meet children's changing needs with their sleeping, eating, dietary and medical needs.

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Curriculum and teaching Strong standard

The childminder successfully implements a broad and enriching curriculum. She is skilled at developing children's thinking and problem-solving skills. When children ask, 'Why does the tower keep collapsing?' the childminder encourages them to think about building on flat and stable surfaces. She gives children examples of when this has worked before.

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Curriculum and teaching Strong standard

The childminder takes every opportunity to extend children's knowledge and skills through her positive interactions. She continually uses a range of mathematical vocabulary and refers to 'numbers being in order' when older children try to explain patterns they find when counting. She has robust assessment procedures in place to identify any gaps in children's learning. She has a secure understanding of how to adapt her teaching and when to seek additional advice for children who have special educational needs and/or disabilities.

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Curriculum and teaching Strong standard

Support for children's personal, social and emotional development is embedded within the childminder's curriculum. She consistently acknowledges how children feel, hugs and comforts them, and gives children ways to manage their emotions when they become frustrated or overwhelmed.

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Curriculum and teaching Strong standard

Children are immersed in a language-rich environment. The childminder expertly extends children's vocabulary and sentences, encourages conversations and gives clear explanations to help children understand new vocabulary.

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Curriculum and teaching Strong standard

Children's physical development is carefully considered. Children use different utensils to chop fruit according to their stage of development. Children who need more practice to develop their coordination and balance copy the childminder as she hops during a dance session. Children learn about and celebrate diversity through regular visits to the shops. They build relationships with local shopkeepers, who teach them words in a range of languages.

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Inclusion Strong standard

Assessment processes are regular and accurate. These help give the childminder a secure understanding of each child's starting points and progress. She uses this alongside her robust knowledge of child development to swiftly identify any gaps in children's learning.

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Inclusion Strong standard

Her flexible approach, regular research and training, and her inclusive attitude enable her to adapt her teaching when children experience barriers to their learning. For example, she gives additional settling time when children find it difficult to separate from their parents. She communicates with other providers to ensure she supports transitions and consistency of care and learning for children who attend more than one setting. The childminder understands how to seek additional funding and how to use this to remove any barriers to children's learning.

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Inclusion Strong standard

The childminder has a firm understanding of different strategies to use and processes to follow for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. She understands her responsibilities and responds in a timely manner to ensure children receive support and advice from other professionals when needed. Her clear focus on children's emotional wellbeing helps children who find regulating and managing their emotions difficult begin to recognise and name how they feel.

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Inclusion Strong standard

Parents comment on feeling involved in supporting and understanding their children's specific needs when delays or barriers are identified. They comment on the individual strategies the childminder puts in place and how these help children's learning and development at home. Parents talk about their children being safe and well cared for when medical or health needs are identified.

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Leadership and governance Strong standard

The childminder has a firm understanding of the children who attend. This enables her to deliver an inspiring curriculum that supports all children to thrive. She prioritises and targets her professional development and training well to have a significant impact on children. For instance, recent training around mathematics has helped her implement a range of successful strategies to extend children's enjoyment, interest, knowledge and skills in this area of learning.

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Leadership and governance Strong standard

The childminder manages her wellbeing and workload effectively and is a positive role model for children. Her passion for removing barriers for children and the inclusive environment she provides help all children achieve.

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Leadership and governance Strong standard

The childminder builds strong relationships with other childminders and providers to ensure consistency of care and learning for children who attend more than one setting. She is proactive in seeking professional advice when children and/or parents need additional support. This includes signposting parents to their health visitor when they have any worries or concerns about their children's development. The childminder is highly perceptive and knows her own strengths. She is ambitious for herself and children. The childminder continually reads, undertakes her own research and knows when to use additional funding to enhance opportunities for children who may be disadvantaged or have special educational needs and/or disabilities.

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Compulsory Childcare Register requirements

This setting has met the requirements of the compulsory part of the Childcare Register.

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Register

When we check if settings meet the Compulsory Childcare Register requirements, they can have the following outcomes:

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Voluntary Childcare Register requirements

This setting has met the requirements of the voluntary part of Childcare Register.

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Register

When we check if settings meet the Voluntary Childcare Register requirements, they can have the following outcomes:

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What it's like to be a child at this setting

Children flourish from the childminder's ambitious and skilfully delivered curriculum. They show high levels of concentration and focus as they explore the wide range of motivating and meaningful learning experiences. Children enjoy the creative opportunities and encouragement the childminder provides for imaginative play. They use a wide range of medical vocabulary as they pretend to be doctors. They confidently use tweezers to pick up small pom-poms and pretend they are sweets. They say, 'The yellow ones are lemons, they are sour.' This purposeful play gives children the broad range of skills and knowledge they need to be ready for school.

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What it's like to be a child at this setting

The childminder prioritises children's personal, social and emotional development. This focus, alongside her responsive and nurturing approach, helps children form strong attachments with her. Children show they feel safe and secure as they continually and confidently express themselves, share stories about their home lives and ask for help when they need it. The childminder always responds with positivity and values each child's thoughts and ideas. They play extremely cooperatively with each other and behave exceptionally well. Young children say, 'Please can I join in?' and 'Sorry, I gave you the wrong piece' as they build puzzles together.

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What it's like to be a child at this setting

Induction and settling processes are robust to help children settle very quickly. The childminder uses information from parents effectively to tailor her support for children who have barriers to their learning. Children progress from their starting points and develop their independence skills from the start. Parent partnerships are prioritised and the childminder works closely and flexibly with parents to promote regular attendance.

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What it's like to be a child at this setting

Children benefit from the many enriching experiences the childminder offers. She regularly takes children for walks in the local area to buy food they need for their snacks. They stop and chat to the local shopkeepers, who often share greetings with the children in a variety of different languages. These opportunities broaden children's understanding of the world and help them feel part of their local community.

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Next steps

The childminder should sustain her work to ensure continued improvement and high standards. She should focus on creating a transformational impact on the outcomes and experiences of disadvantaged children, those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, those who are known (or previously known) to children's social care, and those who may face other barriers to their learning and/or wellbeing.

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About this inspection

The inspector spoke with the childminder, children and parents during the inspection.

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About this setting

Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday : 08:00 - 17:00

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Facts and figures used on inspection

This data was available to the inspector at the time of the inspection.

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3

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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Exceptional

Practice is exceptional: of the highest standard nationally. Other settings can learn from it.

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Strong standard

The setting reaches a strong standard. Leaders are working above the standard expected of them.

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Expected standard

The setting is fulfilling the expected standard of education and/or care. This means they are following the standard set out in statutory and non ‑ statutory legislation and the professional standards expected of them.

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Needs attention

The expected standards are not met but leaders are likely able to make the necessary improvements.

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Urgent improvement

The setting needs to make urgent improvements to provide the expected standard of education and/or care. services providing education and skills for children and learners of all ages, and inspects and regulates services that care for children and young people.

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Urgent improvement

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Urgent improvement

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Urgent improvement

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Urgent improvement

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

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