Sophia Sheldrick

Sophia Sheldrick

Unique reference number (URN): 2751060 Address: Flat 32 Russell Court, Valley Road, London, SW16 2AD Type: Childminder Registered with Ofsted: 19/09/2023 Registers: EYR, CCR, VCR Registered person: Sheldrick, Sophia Loraine

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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 sets consistently high expectations for children's behaviour and creates a calm, nurturing and purposeful environment where positive interactions are embedded in daily routines. Children respond very well to this approach. Even the youngest demonstrate age-appropriate social skills, confidently using polite language such as 'please' and 'thank you' without adult reminders. This reflects the strong foundations the childminder has established around respect and consideration for others.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard

The childminder demonstrates warmth, patience and fairness. She supports children to understand behavioural expectations through clear explanations, gentle guidance and consistent routines. Children learn to take turns, share resources and negotiate with their peers, which helps them develop secure friendships and a strong sense of belonging. These positive relationships contribute to a harmonious, safe environment where children feel confident to explore, express themselves and engage in learning.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard

The childminder closely works in partnership with parents, maintaining open communication. Additional funding is used effectively to remove barriers to learning. She actively promotes children's regular attendance, making additional sessions available. She recognises the impact this has on children's progress and wellbeing.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard

The childminder establishes clear, consistent routines that strongly promote children's welfare and overall wellbeing. These routines help children feel secure, understand expectations and develop positive habits that support their health. Children build healthy attitudes towards food and physical health. The childminder works closely with parents when children experience difficulties around eating. Through daily routines, modelling and meaningful conversations, she encourages children to try new foods, explore different textures and tastes and make healthy choices with confidence. Children thoroughly enjoy daily fresh air and exercise when they play in the garden or go on walks.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard

The childminder places strong importance on ensuring that children feel safe, secure and emotionally settled. She works closely with parents to understand and follow children's individual care routines, which helps create continuity between home and the setting. As a result, children quickly develop warm, trusting attachments with the childminder. These secure relationships give children the confidence to explore, engage in learning and seek comfort or reassurance when they need it.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard

The childminder places a strong emphasis on children's oral health, recognising its importance in children's long-term wellbeing. Parents and children are actively involved in routines that promote good dental hygiene. The childminder uses practical activities, age- appropriate books and regular discussions about brushing teeth. She shares information with parents about local dentists so that children have routines in place from early on. This

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Expected standard

consistent approach ensures oral health becomes a natural part of children's everyday learning.

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Inclusion Strong standard

The childminder places a strong emphasis on creating a highly inclusive environment where children feel secure, valued and ready to learn. She works closely with parents from the outset, using effective strategies to form and build trusting relationships and to gather detailed information about each child's needs, routines and learning styles. This enables her to identify children's individual needs early and tailor her support precisely.

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Inclusion Strong standard

The childminder has secure knowledge and extensive experience in supporting children with special educational needs and/or disabilities, even though no children currently on roll require this support. She can quickly recognise when a child may benefit from additional help. She is highly responsive to children's needs, and her strong understanding of child development allows her to identify early indicators of developmental delays.

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Inclusion Strong standard

The childminder adapts routines, activities and the learning environment to ensure that every child can participate fully and make progress. Her inclusive approach extends to supporting families. She signposts parents to relevant professionals, services and community initiatives where they can access guidance and support that will benefit their child and wider family. This proactive, knowledgeable approach ensures that children and families receive timely, well-coordinated support.

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Achievement Expected standard

Children are well prepared for the next stage of their learning. They make steady and meaningful progress from their starting points across all areas of development. They show curiosity and interest in exploring and learning new skills. Children have lots of encouragement to develop their physical skills. They show confidence with using tweezers as they confidently sort toys according to their colour.

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Achievement Expected standard

Children become confident communicators according to their ages and stages of development. They join in with stories and songs and show this confidence as they explore their community, talking openly about what they see and experience. These real-life opportunities strengthen their understanding of the world and deepen their communication skills, helping them develop curiosity, independence and readiness for future learning. However, there are occasions when the childminder does not consistently model the correct vocabulary, which means children may not always hear the most accurate language as they learn new words.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

The childminder delivers an ambitious and well-structured curriculum that supports children's progress across all areas of learning. She places particular focus on ensuring that all children, including those who may face barriers to their learning, feel safe, secure and ready to engage. Using the information she gathers through ongoing assessment, the childminder plans and sequences learning effectively so that children can build on what they already know. For example, after listening to a favourite story, she encourages children to recall key events and act them out in their play. This helps children think about the structure of the story and promotes their ability to remember and retell what happened. The childminder weaves mathematical learning into daily routines and play. Children show confidence as they join in with number songs and enthusiastically count the steps they walk down in the park.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

The childminder places an emphasis on developing children into confident communicators. Through modelling language and creating purposeful opportunities for children to express themselves, she generally supports their communication skills effectively. However, at times when she models language, she does not ensure that the words are pronounced correctly, so children do not consistently hear the correct words.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

The childminder has high expectations for the quality of care and education she provides. She is reflective in her practice and recognises the importance of continually developing her skills and knowledge. She engages in regular training and works closely with other professionals to understand the needs of families within her community. For example, she has recently focused on promoting good physical and oral health after identifying a decline in these areas locally. Children learn to brush their teeth after lunch and understand that this is an important part of their daily routine.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

The childminder has a strong understanding of how to support children and families who may face barriers to learning. She works closely with parents to ensure that any additional funding is used effectively and targeted precisely to meet each child's individual needs. She works well in partnership with other professionals and parents to access any support children may need. For instance, she has previously been involved in accessing specialist provision for children who face barriers to their learning. Parents speak positively about the care and experiences their children receive. They say they value the supportive and nurturing environment the childminder provides.

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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 form strong, trusting relationships with the childminder and each other. They are happy, confident and settled in her care, and show a clear sense of belonging. Children know the routines well and follow them with growing independence. For instance, they learn to prepare themselves to go outside and confidently find their pegs and put their belongings away.

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

The childminder delivers a curriculum that is focused on helping children to become secure, confident and interested to learn. Through her interactions, she provides purposeful play

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About this setting

Unique reference number (URN): 2751060 opportunities for children to enhance and extend their learning. Children listen attentively during stories and eagerly join in with familiar lines, using actions and expressions to take part. Their behaviour is consistently positive. They are kind, respectful and considerate of others. They play alongside their peers calmly and learn to respect one another's space and boundaries. Through conversations and activities, the childminder helps children learn about diversity, introducing them to different cultures and celebrations.

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About this setting

Children benefit from regular fresh air, exercise and opportunities to develop independence. The childminder supports younger children to build their stamina and physical skills through daily walks and exploring of the local environment. They enjoy visiting the park and nature reserve, where they blow bubbles, look for different-coloured flowers and search for frogs in the ponds. Children show high levels of concentration during activities, such as using tweezers to pick up small objects or exploring different textures during sensory play. These experiences help strengthen the muscles and coordination they will need for early writing skills. Children are encouraged to do things for themselves, such as putting on their coats, tidying away toys and choosing resources, which helps them develop confidence, resilience and a growing sense of independence. All children, including those who may face barriers to

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About this setting

their learning, have individual support for their care and learning needs.

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Next steps

The childminder should ensure that she helps children to learn the correct words for things as she helps to extend their vocabulary.

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About this inspection

The inspector spoke with the childminder and children during the inspection. She looked at parents' written comments provided for the purpose of 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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Address:

Flat 32 Russell Court Valley Road London SW16 2AD

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Address:

Registered person: Sheldrick, Sophia Loraine

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Address:

Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 07:00 - 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

You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

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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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