Childminder

Childminder

Unique reference number (URN): 2752924 Registered with Ofsted: 24/10/2023 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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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard

The childminder and any assistants she works with create a positive, supportive environment where children feel secure and understand what is expected of them. Children generally behave well. The childminder uses gentle, proactive strategies to guide their behaviour when children have difficulty sharing with their peers. For example, she asks children to find a certain favourite book on the bookshelf. Children respond well to the childminder's calm approach and demonstrate appropriate listening and understanding.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard

The childminder plays games with children, such as board games to support their collaboration with others. She models turn-taking, cooperation and positive social interaction, using clear language such as, 'Is it your turn?' and 'Is it my turn?' to keep children focused and engaged. The childminder reinforces the idea that 'sharing is caring' during activities. For instance, she encourages children to share resources with one another. The childminder consistently gives children praise to reinforce good choices to support their emotional development.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard

Children participate enthusiastically in circle time, which forms part of their daily routine. For instance, they join in with a 'Hello' song and learn how to be welcoming and friendly towards others. The childminder introduces Makaton signs to all children to support their communication and understanding. Children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, confidently use familiar signs such as 'thank you' to help maintain expectations.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard

The childminder monitors children's attendance. She shares her attendance policy with parents to promote the importance of routines and positive habits for children's learning and future success.

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Achievement Needs attention

Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities do not have the support from external agencies. They do not benefit from any additional guidance available to help them reach their full potential.

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Achievement Needs attention

Younger children do not always gain the maximum benefit from planned activities. For example, they are not always encouraged to participate fully in story sessions, which reduces opportunities to strengthen their language skills. Younger children do not always experience the same ambition for their learning as older children do. Older children experience more opportunities to thrive in their learning, such as answering questions related to a story. They develop their communication and language skills.

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Achievement Needs attention

Children choose to take short breaks during structured activities, such as by moving to the numbers, alphabet and shapes carpet. They listen carefully to the childminder's instructions to jump on specific numbers, letters and shapes appropriate for their ability. Children show high levels of engagement and independence and respond with enthusiasm.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Needs attention

Inconsistencies in practice reflect negatively on the younger children attending. The childminder generally recognises that some children may require additional support to manage their emotional wellbeing effectively, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities. For instance, children respond positively to a visual timetable she has created to help them follow the daily routines and understand what will happen next. This helps them develop a secure sense of emotional wellbeing.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Needs attention

The childminder supports children to develop a secure understanding about their personal safety. For example, during stories, when a well-known book character meets other characters walking through the wood, she discusses with children about not talking to strangers. The childminder promotes healthy lifestyles. For example, she provides healthy, nutritious home-cooked breakfasts and meals. Children enjoy regular exercise in a nearby field. This supports children's health and wellbeing.

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Curriculum and teaching Needs attention

The childminder plans a range of structured activities, delivered one after another, with little time for children to explore their own ideas and interests. Younger children lose concentration when various activities run on, without enough time for free play.

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Curriculum and teaching Needs attention

The childminder does not always swiftly recognise what younger children already know and can do. For example, younger children show they are ready to use scissors and demonstrate growing confidence, even when using blunt safety scissors. This limits their potential to build on their emerging physical skills and creativity.

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Curriculum and teaching Needs attention

Older children successfully develop their English comprehension skills. For example, they listen attentively and recall the endings of familiar sentences the childminder leaves for them to complete, such as 'His eyes are...?', with the reply 'orange'. Older children are motivated, engaged and show an eagerness to participate. The childminder introduces new vocabulary, such as 'Gruffalo crumble'. She reinforces learning by planning an investigative activity to help children explore how flour and water combine to make dough or crumble. This provides a meaningful context to practise new words. However, the childminder does not always use her assessments of younger children accurately enough to adapt her questioning and encourage them to take an active part in story time to develop their language skills. The curriculum and teaching approach occasionally lack ambition for younger children.

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Curriculum and teaching Needs attention

The childminder supports children's social skills when taking part in a board game. For example, they learn to take turns spinning an arrow and move their counters along the board, beginning to recognise numbers. Children enjoy matching and sorting picture tiles on their cards to develop their mathematical skills further.

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Inclusion Needs attention

The childminder does not have suitable arrangements in place to support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). She does not quickly identify through her assessments of children's development that targeted intervention is required from external agencies to shape the support and experiences for children. The childminder has attended SEND training, which has helped her understand the benefits of using a range of communication methods to support all children. For example, she uses visual timetables, Makaton signs and flash cards to aid their communication and understanding. This supports children's wellbeing and learning.

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Inclusion Needs attention

The childminder and any assistants she works with warmly welcome families of all cultures, religions and backgrounds into the childminder's home. She is bilingual and speaks to children in both Hindi and English. Children learn to appreciate and respect the diverse heritages of others. For instance, they confidently sing songs from different countries. The childminder consistently monitors and reviews the support for children who speak various languages. For example, she collects useful key words from parents in their home language to help break down any barriers to their learning. As a result, children develop their language skills effectively.

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Inclusion Needs attention

The childminder understands that additional funding is available for disadvantaged children. She would actively secure this for eligible children and use it to purchase resources that help close any gaps in their learning.

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Leadership and governance Needs attention

Arrangements for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities are developing but are not yet effective enough. The childminder does not seek timely assessments or external professional support, which delays children receiving the help they are entitled to.

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Leadership and governance Needs attention

The childminder and any assistants she works with work closely together as a consistent team to provide children with a secure base of care, affection and predictable routines.

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Leadership and governance Needs attention

The childminder carries out regular supervision with any assistants she works with, who report they feel well supported. She engages in a wide range of training to develop her practice and demonstrates a positive attitude towards improvement. Parents speak highly of the service provided and value the positive impact the childminder has on their children's overall development.

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Leadership and governance Needs attention

The childminder reflects on some of the setting's strengths and future goals. She plans to promote multilingualism, attend forest school training and develop a physical and sensory area for babies in order to improve her provision and better engage with prospective parents.

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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 with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) do not benefit from the timely involvement of specialist advice from external agencies. This means their learning and development is not sufficiently supported. The childminder's curriculum and teaching focuses mainly on adult-led activities and does not always plan in periods of free play to take account of children's interests and younger children's levels of concentration. Furthermore, she does not have the same high expectations for younger children as she does older children. Younger children do not achieve as well in their physical and language skills.

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

Children develop positive relationships with the childminder and any assistants she works with. They attend regularly, settle quickly and demonstrate positive attitudes to learning. For example, children independently sing familiar nursery rhymes when engaged in activities sitting alongside the childminder. This shows that they are happy, feel safe and belong.

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

The childminder plans a wide range of stimulating, topic-based activities that support the curriculum's learning intentions. Older children flourish and confidently recall and retell familiar stories. They use soft toys, such as positioning a mouse and a fox facing one another to act out a dialogue. They are articulate and highly motivated and sustain good levels of attention. Children successfully make connections across their learning and thrive. For example, they use a visual matching game to pair book characters with their homes, such as a snake with a log pile. This supports children's early mathematical skills. Children eagerly join in craft activities and practise their physical skills. For instance, they use scissors to cut up strips of paper to make a snake paper chain and paint a fox's face on a paper plate. Children develop their hand control and coordination, including those children with SEND, who make suitable progress from their starting points. They grow in

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

Children develop positive relationships with their friends and enjoy group rhyme sessions with them. They benefit from the childminder adapting familiar songs to introduce language linked to emotions, such as, 'If you are angry and you know it, stamp your feet.' This supports children to recognise and express their feelings, which helps them to safely regulate their emotions.

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Next steps

To meet the requirements of the Early years foundation stage and Childcare Register the provider must take the following actions by the assigned date:

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Action Completion Date

ensure there are effective arrangements in place to support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities 04/05/2026

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Action Completion Date

ensure the approaches to teaching and learning are ambitious for the youngest children 04/05/2026

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Action Completion Date

ensure that curriculum planning and teaching consistently include a well-balanced range of adult-led and child-initiated approaches to recognise the attention spans of younger children 04/05/2026

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About this setting

Operating hours: Monday,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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About this inspection

The inspector spoke with the childminder and children during the inspection and spoke to a parent and read parents' written reviews of the service provided.

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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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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

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk .

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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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