Cook, Colin John

Childminder

Unique reference number (URN): 2752494 Registered with Ofsted: 13/02/2024 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, with communication and language being a key area of development. Children are becoming increasingly confident in expressing themselves, engaging in conversations, and joining in songs and stories. They are beginning to build vocabulary and listening skills.

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Achievement Expected standard

Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities, and those requiring additional support, make progress relative to their individual needs. Where additional funding and support are used, they have a positive impact on children's confidence and ability to communicate effectively with others.

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Achievement Expected standard

Children are developing the foundational skills they need. Older children are beginning to sustain attention for longer periods during group activities, such as stories and discussions, helping to build concentration and readiness for more structured learning. Across the setting, children demonstrate increasing independence, particularly in self-care routines, choosing their own activities and taking responsibility for tidying away resources.

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Achievement Expected standard

Regular outdoor play supports children's physical development and overall wellbeing. Children develop coordination, strength and confidence through activities such as climbing, balancing and scooting. Overall, children are well prepared for their next stage of learning and development.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard

The childminder creates a warm and caring environment where children understand clear and consistent expectations for behaviour. Well-established daily routines help children feel secure and confident as they move between activities, supporting them to settle quickly and engage in their learning. The childminder places emphasis on kindness and respect and regularly reminds children about sharing, taking turns and caring for one another. As a result, children generally behave appropriately and show positive attitudes towards both play and learning.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard

Positive, trusting relationships are a key strength of the setting. Children confidently approach the childminder for reassurance and comfort when needed and respond well to close, nurturing interactions. This demonstrates that they feel safe, secure and valued within the setting. The childminder knows the children well and uses this knowledge effectively to adapt his approach to meet individual needs, including those of children with additional needs and different stages of development.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard

Children are supported effectively to work together and build friendships. They take part in shared activities such as construction, imaginative play and group tasks, where they learn to share ideas, take turns and cooperate with others. These experiences help children to develop early social skills and positive attitudes towards working with their peers.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard

The childminder consistently promotes positive behaviour through calm reminders, modelling and encouragement. Children are typically supported to understand expectations and increasingly manage their own behaviour during play and routine activities.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

The childminder provides a curriculum that is flexible and child-centred, supporting children's learning across all areas of the early years foundation stage. He uses observations, discussions with parents and guidance from 'Development Matters' to identify what children know and can do and to plan for their next steps. Teaching is adapted appropriately to meet children's differing ages, stages of development and individual needs, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities and children requiring additional support.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Children benefit from an emphasis on communication and language development throughout the day. Stories, songs, role play and conversations are used regularly to encourage children to speak confidently and develop their vocabulary. The childminder has identified communication and language as a key area of focus and has accessed additional training to strengthen practice and support children's progress effectively.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

The curriculum places importance on children's physical, personal and social development. Children access outdoor play daily and enjoy opportunities to climb, balance, scoot and explore the environment. They are encouraged to develop independence through daily routines, such as preparing snacks, pouring drinks, tidying away resources and making choices in their play.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

The childminder encourages children to play collaboratively and develop positive relationships with one another. However, some transition times are not consistently organised well enough to maintain children's engagement. At these times, some children become restless or unsure of expectations, which occasionally leads to minor lapses in behaviour, disagreements and accidents.

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Inclusion Expected standard

The childminder creates an inclusive environment where he recognises and supports children's individual needs effectively. He identifies emerging concerns quickly and acts promptly to secure additional support when needed. For example, children with delays in communication and language receive focused one-to-one support alongside adapted teaching strategies that strengthen speaking and listening skills. The childminder implements advice from local speech and language teams effectively within daily routines, which supports children to make noticeable progress in confidence and communication.

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Inclusion Expected standard

The childminder tracks children's development carefully and uses ongoing assessment to inform planning and evaluate the impact of support in place. He adapts activities effectively so children of different ages and stages can participate meaningfully and successfully, helping them to feel included and supported in their learning.

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Inclusion Expected standard

The childminder builds strong partnerships with parents and external professionals, which contributes positively to outcomes for children and families. He communicates regularly with families, works closely with the local authority and seeks additional support when concerns arise. He signposts families to wider services when appropriate, including support through

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Needs attention

Team Around the Family. He also responds sensitively to children experiencing difficult circumstances, providing reassurance, emotional security and consistency of care.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

The childminder demonstrates an appropriate understanding of the strengths and areas for development within the provision and engages in regular reflection on daily practice. Through ongoing discussions and review of routines, activities and outcomes for children, he shows a willingness to consider feedback and make adjustments where needed to improve children's experiences. As a result, leadership and governance are maintained at an expected standard. The childminder shows commitment to improving the physical environment to better support children's safety, access and learning. Recent improvements include increasing the height of fencing to enhance privacy and security, introducing shade sails and gazebos to provide protection from direct sunlight, and installing decking to improve usability of the outdoor area due to previous issues with muddy, waterlogged ground.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

The childminder demonstrates ambition for all children and has a clear focus on helping them develop the skills needed for future learning and readiness for school. Children are encouraged to develop independence, make choices in their play and build their communication and social skills through everyday experiences and interactions.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

Positive relationships with parents are well established. The childminder communicates regularly with families about children's routines, progress and wellbeing, helping to ensure consistency of care between home and the setting. Where appropriate, families are supported to access additional services to meet children's needs. The childminder also supports change effectively, including children's moves between home, the setting and other early years or school settings. Information is shared appropriately with parents and professionals to support continuity and ensure children's needs are understood and met.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Needs attention

Some aspects of practice in relation to children's welfare and wellbeing do not consistently ensure children are safe and fully supported to thrive. Risk assessment and supervision during activities are not always robust enough. For example, during construction play with large wooden blocks, unstable structures repeatedly fell, resulting in blocks striking children. Although reassurance was provided, the activity continued despite the ongoing safety risk. In addition, during snack preparation, opportunities to promote independence were not always sufficiently balanced with safety. Whole fruit was provided for cutting without adequate stabilisation or adaptation, creating an avoidable risk when using cutting tools. Despite these concerns, children are generally settled and demonstrate secure attachments with the childminder. They show confidence in seeking reassurance when needed and respond positively to calm, supportive interactions, which helps to promote their emotional

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Needs attention

wellbeing and security. Children are supported to develop independence through daily routines, including tidying resources, preparing snack items and using simple tools. Regular outdoor play contributes to their physical development, coordination and confidence. Children are encouraged to make healthy choices and develop positive attitudes towards their wellbeing. The childminder promotes children's social development through modelling kindness, sharing and turn-taking within daily routines.

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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 enjoy attending this warm and welcoming setting where they are cared for in a nurturing, home-from-home environment. Positive relationships between the childminder and children help them feel safe, secure and valued. Children show confidence in seeking reassurance, comfort and affection from familiar adults, reflecting strong and secure attachments. The provision is highly child-focused, with children encouraged to make choices, follow their interests and take ownership of their play and environment. They independently select resources, support tidying routines and take pride in caring for their shared space.

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

Children benefit from daily opportunities for outdoor play and physical activity. They access a purpose-built clubhouse, use the trampoline, climb on soft-play equipment and explore local parks and outdoor spaces. Regular trips, including bus journeys and visits to parks with zip lines, extend children's experiences and support their understanding of the wider world. Children also build independence skills as they pour their own drinks, prepare fruit at snack time and help to set the table. Children regularly come together to share stories, sing nursery rhymes and engage in conversations throughout the day. Children with additional needs receive targeted support and make progress. Children play well together and show kindness towards one another. They collaborate during activities such as building train tracks and engage in imaginative role play. The childminder encourages sharing, turn-taking and awareness of similarities and differences, supporting positive attitudes towards diversity

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

Overall, children are happy and settled in the setting. However, systems for ensuring consistent safety and risk management are not always fully effective. Some activities and routines are not sufficiently risk assessed or adapted for children's ages and stages. Despite this, the childminder remains reflective and committed to improving practice and works closely with parents and external professionals to support children's needs and outcomes.

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Next steps

The provider is not meeting the requirements of the Early years foundation stage and Childcare Register and Ofsted intends to take enforcement action.

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Next steps

We will issue a Welfare Requirements Notice requiring the provider to have taken the following action by the assigned date:

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Action Completion Date

ensure that all activities are carefully planned and risk assessed so they are fully appropriate for the ages and stages of the children attending, with clear consideration given to safety to prevent avoidable risks during play and learning experiences 01/06/2026

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About this setting

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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About this inspection

The inspector spoke with the childminder and the 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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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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