O'Loughlin, Samantha

Childminder

Unique reference number (URN): 144483 Registered with Ofsted: 30/07/1993 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 Expected standard

Children make steady progress from their starting points across the areas of learning. Generally, children develop early communication skills as they take part in conversations, songs and story experiences. They begin to use simple phrases to express their needs and interests. Children show enjoyment in learning and sustain engagement in activities that reflect their interests, such as puzzles, books and creative play.

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Achievement Expected standard

Children build early mathematical understanding through everyday experiences. For example, they count objects during activities and use language linked to number, size and quantity while completing puzzles and participating in daily routines. These experiences help children develop confidence in recognising numbers and making simple comparisons.

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Achievement Expected standard

Children develop independence through familiar routines, such as washing hands, choosing snacks and helping prepare simple foods. These opportunities help children build confidence and practical skills. Over time, these experiences help children develop the knowledge and confidence needed for their next stage of learning, including their eventual move to nursery.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard

The childminder establishes a calm and predictable environment where expectations for behaviour are clearly understood. Daily routines help children feel secure and settled. This helps their consistent attendance. Children confidently follow familiar routines, such as washing their hands before meals, brushing their teeth after eating and helping to tidy away resources when they have finished playing.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard

Relationships between the childminder and children are warm and respectful. The childminder provides gentle guidance and clear explanations to help children understand expectations. For example, she reminds children to walk carefully on the stairs and explains why this helps keep them safe. Children respond positively to this guidance and show trust in the childminder.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard

All children demonstrate positive attitudes to learning. They show curiosity and willingly engage in activities such as exploring books, completing puzzles and taking part in cooking experiences. They concentrate on tasks and show pride in their achievements.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard

Children benefit from opportunities to play outdoors and develop confidence in physical play. They enjoy activities such as kicking balls, popping bubbles and exploring how objects move. However, the outdoor experiences currently provide fewer opportunities for children to practise a wider range of physical challenges. As a result children do not strengthen their resilience, confidence and independence well enough during active play.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard

The childminder promotes children's welfare and wellbeing through attentive care and consistent daily routines. She understands children's individual needs and ensures that care practices, such as sleeping and eating, support their comfort, safety and emotional security. Children appear happy and settled in the setting and confidently approach the childminder for reassurance and support during activities and routines.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard

Secure and responsive relationships support children's emotional wellbeing. The childminder speaks calmly to children, praises their efforts and helps them understand expectations. For example, she reminds children to take small bites of food and explains why this helps keep them safe while eating. Children respond positively to this guidance and show increasing confidence in following everyday expectations.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard

Children are supported to develop healthy habits and understand how to care for themselves. They wash their hands before meals and brush their teeth after eating. This helps them develop awareness of personal hygiene and healthy routines. Children also enjoy being active outdoors and they develop coordination through physical play. These experiences support children's developing independence and wellbeing.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

The childminder has designed a curriculum that reflects children's interests, stages of development and everyday experiences. She uses her knowledge of children's development and observations to plan activities that build knowledge and skills.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

The childminder prioritises children's personal, social and emotional development, communication and language, and physical development. Children take part in a range of activities that reflect their interests, such as exploring books, completing puzzles and participating in simple cooking experiences. For example, children help to prepare a pitta bread pizza. The childminder introduces vocabulary linked to the activity, such as 'cheese,' 'squish' and 'sprinkle,' while explaining simple safety messages when using kitchen equipment. These experiences help children participate in meaningful activities and develop confidence.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

The childminder supports early mathematical understanding through everyday interactions. For instance, she encourages children to count objects and uses language related to size and number during puzzles and daily routines.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Children benefit from a well-resourced indoor environment where resources are accessible and support sustained engagement. During interactions, the childminder introduces new vocabulary and asks questions. However, opportunities for children to think, respond and extend their spoken language are not always consistently maximised across activities and routines. Strengthening this aspect of teaching will help children practise new vocabulary and develop confidence in expressing their ideas further.

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Inclusion Expected standard

The childminder creates an inclusive environment where children's individual needs and circumstances are well understood. She gathers detailed information from parents when children start attending, including information about routines, interests and developmental starting points. She uses this information, alongside ongoing observations and assessment, to understand what children know and can do and to shape learning experiences that support their development.

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Inclusion Expected standard

The childminder monitors children's progress and regularly discusses children's development with parents. Through these conversations she shares what children are learning and suggests ways families can support learning at home. This helps ensure continuity between the setting and home.

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Inclusion Expected standard

Although there are currently no children on roll with special educational needs and/or disabilities, no children receiving early years pupil premium funding and no children known to children's social care, the childminder demonstrates a clear understanding of how she would identify and respond to potential barriers to learning. She explains that she would use observation and assessment to identify concerns early and work closely with parents and the local authority early years coordinator to access appropriate support.

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Inclusion Expected standard

The childminder helps children develop early awareness of different cultures and celebrations through activities and experiences explored at playgroups and within the setting. This helps children begin to develop respect and understanding of others.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

The childminder provides reflective leadership and manages the day-to-day running of the setting effectively. She understands the strengths of her provision and regularly reviews practice to ensure children receive safe and meaningful learning experiences. This ongoing reflection helps her identify areas where the provision can continue to develop. For example, she has organised resources in clearly labelled containers so that children can access them independently. Children confidently select resources and share their interests, which supports engagement in learning and exploration.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

The childminder keeps her knowledge up to date through professional development and engagement with early years support networks. She regularly seeks guidance and discusses practice with early years professionals and other childminders during local stay- and-play sessions. These opportunities help her reflect on children's progress and consider how the learning environment and experiences offered can continue to develop.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

The childminder works in partnership with parents and maintains open communication about children's experiences and development. As she continues to refine teaching interactions and develop the outdoor learning environment, children will benefit from greater opportunities to extend their communication skills and build confidence through active play.

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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 attending this small, home-based setting experience a warm and welcoming environment where they feel safe, valued and confident to explore. The childminder builds positive relationships with children and prepares them well for their day. For example, she explains when visitors will be coming to the setting, which helps children feel reassured and comfortable in new situations. As a result, children settle quickly and show confidence in their surroundings. Children enjoy a range of experiences that support their curiosity and engagement in learning. They confidently select books and resources from the accessible learning environment and share these with the childminder. Children show enthusiasm when looking at familiar stories and enjoy hearing the childminder name animals and objects in the pictures. Overall, these shared experiences support children's early communication skills and help them develop an interest in books and language.

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

Children actively take part in everyday routines that help them build independence and confidence. They wash their hands before meals, help prepare simple foods and take part in daily care routines. For example, children help to prepare lunch by spreading toppings on pitta bread and carefully carrying items to the kitchen. These experiences help children learn about healthy food choices and develop practical skills while feeling proud of their achievements.

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

Generally, children benefit from regular opportunities to be active and explore outdoors. They enjoy activities such as kicking balls, popping bubbles and experimenting with objects that move in different ways. These experiences support children's developing coordination and enjoyment of physical play.

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

Children also benefit from outings to local playgroups and community spaces, where they interact with other children and develop early social skills such as sharing and taking turns. Through these experiences, children build confidence and develop the knowledge and skills needed for their next stage of learning.

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Next steps

The childminder should give children consistent opportunities to think, respond and extend their spoken language during conversations and activities. The childminder should strengthen the outdoor provision to support children to practise and develop a wider range of physical skills, including balancing, climbing and navigating appropriate physical challenges.

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About this inspection

The inspector spoke with the childminder and children, and considered written feedback from parents/carers 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: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 08:00 - 06:00

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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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