Childminder

Childminder

Unique reference number (URN): 2790839 Registered with Ofsted: 07/06/2024 Registers: EYR, CCR

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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 generally make steady progress from their starting points and develop the knowledge and skills needed for future learning. Older children communicate confidently, engage in conversations and join enthusiastically in songs, stories and imaginative play. Children's communication and language development is generally supported well through regular storytelling, singing and meaningful interactions.

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Achievement Expected standard

Children who face barriers to learning, including those with emerging additional needs, make positive progress because the childminder adapts experiences to meet their individual needs. Children develop confidence, independence and positive relationships within the inclusive environment.

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Achievement Expected standard

Overall, children are prepared well for their next stage of learning, including school. They generally demonstrate positive attitudes towards learning and develop important skills, such as independence, communication, self-care and the ability to follow most routines and engage with others.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard

The childminder creates a positive and nurturing environment where children feel safe, secure and valued. Children develop warm and trusting relationships with her and confidently seek reassurance, support and conversation throughout the day. Children are generally calm, settled and engaged in their play and learning. The childminder supports children appropriately to learn how to collaborate and get along with others. She helps children resolve minor conflicts calmly through clear explanations about sharing, turn-taking and respecting one another's feelings. As a result, children develop confidence and, generally, positive attitudes towards learning and social interaction.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard

The childminder considers children's ages, stages of development and individual needs when maintaining expectations within the setting. She adapts her approach appropriately, particularly for younger children and those who may need additional support, helping them feel included and successful within routines and activities.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard

The childminder promotes the importance of regular attendance and monitors registers appropriately. She remains aware of attendance patterns and would act on any concerns regarding prolonged or unexplained absences. Children benefit from her positive role modelling and a caring atmosphere. The childminder does not consistently reinforce her expectations for good manners and polite language during routines, such as snack times. This means that children are not always encouraged to use respectful interactions and learn kindness towards others.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard

The childminder creates a warm and nurturing environment where children feel safe, secure and valued. She responds sensitively to children's individual needs and develops strong attachments with them. As a result, children are settled, confident and emotionally secure.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard

The childminder supports children's understanding of healthy lifestyles and personal care routines well. She provides healthy snacks and works positively with parents to encourage healthy choices regarding meals and drinks. Children develop good hygiene practices and independently wash their hands before meals. The childminder explains why handwashing is important, helping children understand how to keep themselves healthy. Daily routines support children's growing independence effectively. Children confidently pour their own drinks, take turns preparing snack items and manage age-appropriate self-care tasks. The childminder supports children to recognise and manage their emotions through her calm and responsive approach, helping children feel secure and supported.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard

Children benefit from opportunities for physical play and problem-solving outdoors. However, occasionally, risk management during some activities is inconsistent. For example, the organisation of play using ramps and planks does not minimise potential hazards effectively to children, as planks are not always placed in a stable position.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

The childminder provides a child-centred curriculum rooted in children's interests, with a strong focus on outdoor learning, exploration and communication. She reflects on her practice and adapts experiences to support children's engagement and development. Children benefit from a broad range of activities that support all areas of learning and development.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

The childminder supports older children's language and communication skills well through songs, stories, conversations and meaningful experiences. She links activities purposefully to help children build on prior learning. For example, children recall and sequence how to care for sunflower seeds after listening to stories about growth and planting. Children develop early mathematical understanding as they count during nursery rhymes and use mathematical language while exploring ramps and movement outdoors.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

The childminder prioritises children's physical, personal, social and emotional development effectively. Children benefit from regular opportunities for physical play, problem-solving and cooperative experiences outdoors. They independently access resources and confidently choose activities that interest them. During 'tidy-up time', the childminder attempts to give children real responsibilities and involve them in practical tasks. However, children are not always fully engaged in the routine, and there are periods where tidying is not completed promptly or consistently by all children.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

The childminder knows children well and adapts teaching appropriately to support differing stages of development and emerging needs. She uses observation and ongoing assessment effectively to tailor experiences to children's next steps. However, opportunities to extend younger children's vocabulary and communication during daily routines, such as snack times, are not always fully maximised.

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Inclusion Expected standard

The childminder creates an inclusive environment where children's individual needs are identified and supported well. She typically adapts activities thoughtfully to ensure that all children can participate successfully and feel included. For example, she adapts activities by offering alternative ways for children to engage, enabling them to experience success alongside their peers. The childminder reduces barriers to learning through carefully considered adaptations and targeted support. She generally supports children with emerging speech and language needs effectively by tailoring resources and experiences to children's interests and stages of development. Regular storytelling, personalised resources and frequent opportunities for conversation help children make progress in their communication and language development.

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Inclusion Expected standard

The childminder monitors children's progress closely and reviews strategies regularly to assess their impact. She works closely with parents and other settings to ensure consistency in children's care and learning and seeks advice from professionals where appropriate to help shape support for children. The childminder uses any additional funding thoughtfully to provide resources and experiences that support children's communication, confidence and overall wellbeing.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

Overall, the childminder demonstrates a commitment to providing high-quality education and care and has an appropriate understanding of the setting's strengths and areas for development. She regularly reflects on practice and makes changes to improve outcomes for children. For example, activities such as sunflower planting have been adapted to ensure that all children, including younger children and those with additional needs, can participate fully and successfully.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

The childminder actively seeks the views of parents and values ongoing feedback through discussions and questionnaires. This information is used to shape and improve provision, supporting positive partnerships with families. Parents are kept well informed about their children's experiences and progress, contributing to a shared approach to children's learning and development.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

The childminder takes appropriate decisions in the best interests of children, including those who may face barriers to learning and wellbeing. The setting is inclusive, and children's individual needs are considered carefully.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

The childminder demonstrates an interest in child development and uses this knowledge to inform her practice and support children's emotional wellbeing and safety. She has also undertaken professional development, including training on environmental print, which has supported her understanding of early literacy development.

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

Children enjoy a warm, nurturing and stimulating environment where they are encouraged to explore, investigate and follow their own interests. They confidently access a range of natural resources to create see-saws and ramps, developing their creativity, problem-solving skills and understanding of how things work. As they experiment, children use mathematical language such as 'higher', 'lower', 'faster' and 'slower' to describe what they notice. Children develop an appreciation of the natural world through meaningful experiences, such as planting sunflowers and helping to care for the pet rabbits that roam around the setting. These opportunities help children learn about responsibility, kindness and living things.

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

Children feel valued and proud of their families and experiences. They happily draw pictures of their families and eagerly share them with others. Children confidently chat about recent holidays, special events and upcoming birthdays, helping to build their communication skills and sense of belonging. Younger children benefit from positive modelling by the childminder. For example, the childminder demonstrates how to feed a toy dinosaur, and younger children quickly copy the action, showing their growing imaginative play skills and ability to learn from others. Children engage enthusiastically in imaginative and cooperative play. They use cones to create road environments, talking about traffic and vehicles as they play. Children enjoy rolling cars down ramps and testing how fast they travel, helping to develop their understanding of movement, cause and effect, and early scientific concepts.

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

Older children are supported well to develop the skills they need for future learning, including practising their pencil grip and early writing skills through enjoyable activities.

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About this setting

Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 08:00 - 16:00

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Next steps

The childminder should improve the quality of interactions to strengthen younger children's communication and language development and understanding of social manners within everyday routines, such as snack times. The childminder should improve the planning, risk assessment and monitoring of physical play to ensure that resources and activities are appropriate for children's age and stage of development. The childminder should reinforce good manners throughout the day to help all children develop, and consistently use, respectful and courteous behaviour in everyday interactions. The childminder should support children to understand her expectations and follow simple instructions so that tidying up becomes a shared and purposeful part of the daily routine.

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About this inspection

The inspector spoke with the childminder and children and reviewed feedback from parents 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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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. 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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