Childminder

Childminder

Unique reference number (URN): 112737 Registered with Ofsted: 25/11/1992 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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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard

The childminder has created a respectful culture where behavioural expectations are clear and consistently understood by children and their families. She works proactively with families to promote regular attendance and punctuality and shares information when needed. The childminder models kindness and empathy and supports children as they begin to recognise and respond to the feelings of others. As a result, children increasingly manage their emotions, check on their friends and resolve minor conflicts independently.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard

The childminder has established warm, trusting and secure relationships with the children, which means they can express concerns confidently and feel safe to take age-appropriate risks in their learning. She supports children to develop their self-regulation skills. This support is adapted for different ages and stages through co-regulation, such as a warm hug or guidance about what they can do, before gradually moving towards self-regulation. This level of support ensures children can focus and adapt their thinking. For example, when children feel frustrated, the childminder talks through their feelings and helps them use strategies to manage them. Children understand the childminder's expectations and increasingly regulate their own behaviour, demonstrating kindness, cooperation and respect towards others.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard

Children play collaboratively together, engaging in shared play, problem-solving and imaginative activities. They write letters to each other, seek out peers to share their excitement, take turns and support their peers. This positive behaviour is consistently reinforced through purposeful praise, contributing to the harmonious environment the childminder has created.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard

The childminder ensures that policies, routines and care practices are rigorously reviewed and consistently implemented, placing children's welfare and wellbeing at the centre of her curriculum. The childminder knows each child extremely well and responds swiftly to their individual needs, adapting her practice based on the most appropriate approach for each individual child.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard

Children are happy and have formed secure, nurturing attachments with the childminder. They explore their surroundings while regularly checking in with her, seeking comfort when needed. Care routines, such as feeding, sleeping and weaning, are sensitively adapted to each child's stage of development, promoting security and predictability. The childminder skilfully supports children to make thoughtful choices about food, rest and exercise. The childminder incorporates a variety of experiences to promote children's physical development, such as visiting local parks, National Trust sites and play gyms. Children are encouraged, based on their age and stage, to run, jump and splash in puddles or climb the play equipment. The childminder supports children to develop both large and small motor skills during everyday routines and activities.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard

The childminder prioritises emotional wellbeing, teaching children to recognise, express and manage their feelings through calm, consistent modelling and language. Children learn to

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Expected standard

self-regulate, show empathy and develop resilience. Well-structured routines and high- quality interactions are securely embedded to create long-lasting healthy habits, enabling children to take increasing responsibility for their own care and wellbeing. As a result, children thrive in a safe and responsive environment.

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Achievement Expected standard

Children make steady progress from their starting points and develop age- and stage- appropriate skills across all 7 areas of learning. Children have developed secure communication and language skills, which means that they build relationships to work collaboratively together. They encourage one another and take pride in shared achievements, such as making cups of tea during pretend play. Children continue to increase their vocabulary and confidently build on what they already know. For example, once they can securely recognise the primary colours, they move on to colour mixing and identifying new colours like pink and purple.

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Achievement Expected standard

Children express themselves with growing confidence and independence. They enjoy taking responsibility for small tasks, such as chopping their own fruit at snack time using a child- safe knife. All children make steady progress from their starting points. Children, including those with barriers to learning or wellbeing, progress through the curriculum, understanding boundaries and routines, which helps support them to understand what is happening now and what will happen next. As a result, all children experience smooth transitions and feel safe, secure and ready to learn.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

The reflective childminder has a secure understanding of the quality of her curriculum and teaching. Teaching is adapted effectively for children who may face barriers to learning or wellbeing. This means all children can access the curriculum successfully. The childminder uses assessment to understand what children know and can do, beginning with 'All About Me' forms and continuing through observations and progress checks.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

The curriculum is thoughtfully designed across all areas of learning, focusing on communication and language. The childminder skilfully builds children's vocabulary and supports confident communication throughout daily routines and play. Mathematics is woven meaningfully into everyday experiences, such as counting together, identifying colours and shapes, and exploring concepts like 'full' and 'empty' during sand play.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Children's physical, personal, social and emotional development is also a key focus. The childminder places significant importance on independence and ensuring children feel safe, secure and ready to learn. Children enjoy developing different skills, such as using scissors, and are motivated and engaged in their learning. The childminder typically models to children how to use scissors safely during these activities but does not consistently support children to apply this knowledge to other concepts, such as when they use plastic scissors to cut play dough. Although the curriculum is ambitious for all children, the childminder does not yet use every interaction as an opportunity to further develop children's learning.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

The childminder prioritises preparing children for their next stage of learning, helping them develop the confidence, independence and foundational knowledge they need. As a result, children are well prepared for future learning.

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Inclusion Expected standard

The childminder identifies children's individual needs quickly and accurately, using her observations and close relationships with families to support this process. She signposts parents to helpful information or external partners, such as health visitors, when additional support may be beneficial. She makes thoughtful adaptations, like using a visual rainbow timer, to help children understand routines and expectations. The childminder reflects regularly on what is working well and what could be improved, plans next steps, puts them into practice, and reviews the impact. She can identify appropriate uses of any additional funding to support children to reduce barriers to their learning or wellbeing.

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Inclusion Expected standard

The childminder maintains high expectations for all children and supports them to achieve their next steps. She works closely with families and external partners to help children overcome any barriers to learning or wellbeing. As a result, assessment and planning are collaborative. When specialist advice is needed, she seeks it out and implements it effectively, using this guidance to shape children's experiences and respond to emerging needs. Her experience, knowledge and local partnerships have a positive impact on reducing barriers to learning and wellbeing. This reflective and responsive approach contributes meaningfully to improved outcomes for all children, ensuring they feel supported, understood and able to thrive.

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Inclusion Expected standard

The childminder is beginning to help children recognise features of their home life. However, children are not yet consistently supported to understand what makes them unique. As a result, children are not always supported to fully appreciate their individuality and the differences between themselves and others.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

The childminder has a clear and confident understanding of her setting's context, strengths and priorities for development. She is highly reflective, drawing on her past experiences to inform her practice and seeking advice or training whenever she identifies gaps in her knowledge. This reflective approach ensures that improvements are purposeful and rooted in children's emerging needs. While she continually strives for excellence, the childminder is beginning to balance her workload more effectively, recognising that the very high expectations she sets for herself remain manageable. She engages regularly in professional development, using up-to-date guidance and training to refine and strengthen the quality of her practice.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

The childminder has built positive relationships with parents and external professionals, including local schools. These partnerships support smooth transitions and help children settle quickly and confidently. The childminder maintains open, honest communication with families, addressing concerns promptly and ensuring parents feel informed and involved in their child's experiences. Through this collaborative and reflective approach, she has created a stable, supportive and child-centred environment in which children's needs remain at the heart of her decision-making.

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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 settle quickly as they arrive at the childminder's home, greeted by familiar routines that support them to feel safe, welcomed and ready for the day. They move confidently

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Inspector:

Beth Wilson through each part of the morning, eagerly anticipating what comes next. The childminder has built trusting relationships with children, helping them to feel valued and develop a sense of belonging, which ensures they settle with ease.

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Inspector:

Throughout the day, children show curiosity and enthusiasm as they explore the environment. They maintain age- and stage-appropriate levels of concentration and enjoy their learning. The childminder's child-led approach ensures children learn across all 7 areas of the curriculum, building on what they already know. Their independence grows as they chop their own fruit, dress themselves with sequenced levels of support, and choose resources that interest them. Children are proud of their achievements and show strong collaborative skills, writing letters to each other, seeking each other out to share experiences or reading stories together.

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Inspector:

The childminder has developed a curriculum that supports children to make secure progress from their starting points. Thoughtful adaptations and close partnership with families and professionals ensure that all children access learning successfully and make appropriate progress. Children learn how to make healthy choices, identify emotions and develop positive attitudes to learning.

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Inspector:

The childminder places children's welfare, wellbeing and individual needs at the centre of her practice. As a result, children thrive, leaving the setting confident, capable and well prepared for their next stage of learning.

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Next steps

The childminder should strengthen her practice to use every interaction with children as an opportunity to further their learning. The childminder should consistently support children to further develop their understanding and knowledge of their similarities and what makes them unique.

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About this inspection

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

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About this inspection

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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About this setting

Operating hours: Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 08:00 - 18:00

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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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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.

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Urgent improvement

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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