Bilson, Francesca

Childminder

Unique reference number (URN): 2787388 Registered with Ofsted: 15/05/2024 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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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard

The childminder creates a nurturing and consistent environment where established routines help children feel secure and confident. Children understand daily expectations and move through the day with increasing independence. As a result, they demonstrate positive attitudes towards learning and readily share their ideas, experiences and achievements with others.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard

The childminder builds secure attachments with children, enabling them to feel safe, valued and emotionally supported. Her calm and responsive manner helps children manage their feelings and behaviour effectively. She uses praise purposefully and employs a range of strategies, including high-quality interactions, to sustain engagement and support self- regulation. Children respond positively to her guidance and remain focused during activities.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard

The childminder knows each child well and tailors her support to meet individual needs. She helps children access routines, activities and learning opportunities successfully. Through sensitive guidance, she encourages children to take turns, share resources and cooperate with their peers. By playing alongside the children, she models respectful behaviour, kindness and appropriate social skills, helping them develop positive relationships.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard

The childminder promotes regular attendance through clear procedures that she shares with parents. This collaborative approach supports continuity of care and helps children benefit fully from the learning opportunities available.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard

The childminder places children's wellbeing and welfare at the centre of daily practice. Clear care routines provide consistency and help children feel secure and confident throughout the day. The childminder works closely with families to maintain continuity between home and the setting, particularly in relation to toileting, eating and sleeping arrangements. This collaborative approach supports children's individual needs and promotes a sense of belonging.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard

The environment is organised to enable children to manage their personal care independently. Resources, furniture, toilets and sinks are adapted and positioned appropriately so that children can access them safely and with increasing confidence. The childminder knows each child well and responds sensitively to their individual needs, fostering secure attachments through warm, nurturing interactions.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard

Children learn to recognise and manage their emotions through daily conversations, stories and carefully planned strategies that develop their understanding of their emotions. The childminder promotes independence during snack and mealtimes by encouraging children to pour drinks, prepare fruit and make choices. Children confidently explain safe ways to cut different fruits, demonstrating their growing skills.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard

The childminder provides nutritious, home-cooked meals each day and uses mealtimes to encourage social interaction and discussions about healthy lifestyles. Safe sleeping

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Expected standard

procedures are consistently followed to support children's health, safety and overall welfare.

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Achievement Expected standard

Children demonstrate positive attitudes towards learning and approach new experiences with curiosity and enthusiasm. They eagerly explore the environment, investigate resources and share their ideas during play. Generally, children engage purposefully in activities and enjoy playing alongside the childminder, who supports and extends their learning through meaningful interactions.

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Achievement Expected standard

Children make progress in their communication and language development. They increasingly use words, sounds, gestures and facial expressions to communicate their needs, preferences and ideas. Through regular interaction, stories, songs and play experiences, children develop their vocabulary, listening skills and understanding. They participate enthusiastically in familiar stories and rhymes, anticipating key words and phrases and showing growing confidence in expressing themselves.

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Achievement Expected standard

Typically, children make clear progress from their individual starting points across areas of learning. They acquire the knowledge, skills and confidence needed to move successfully to the next stage of their learning journey.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

The childminder delivers a curriculum that encompasses all areas of learning while responding to the age and stage of the children attending. She places particular emphasis on communication and language, physical development, and personal, social and emotional development. Through ongoing assessment, she identifies children's next steps and plans experiences that support progress across the curriculum.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

The childminder creates a purposeful environment filled with engaging resources and carefully planned activities that reflect children's interests and developmental needs. Generally, she uses interactions effectively to extend learning, playing alongside children as she models language, introduces new vocabulary, comments on their actions, and encourages further exploration through thoughtful suggestions and additional resources.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Stories and songs form an integral part of the daily routine and support children's communication, literacy and emotional development. The childminder incorporates mathematical concepts throughout the day, encouraging children to count, recognise colours, sort objects and identify patterns during play.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Children benefit from visits within the local community, including trips to the park and library. These experiences enhance their understanding of the world and provide opportunities for physical activity. Creative experiences, such as painting on cling film and other surfaces, encourage children to experiment, explore colour and express their ideas with enthusiasm and curiosity.

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Inclusion Expected standard

The childminder recognises the importance of inclusion and works to ensure that every child can access, participate in, and enjoy all aspects of the provision. She has experience of supporting children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) and demonstrates a clear commitment to meeting individual needs. She works closely with parents and other professionals to gain a thorough understanding of each child's strengths, interests and areas where additional support may be beneficial.

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Inclusion Expected standard

The childminder uses ongoing assessment effectively to monitor children's progress and identify any emerging needs. She uses this information to implement targeted strategies to meet individual needs and support progress. She reviews the impact of these interventions, adapting her approach where necessary to ensure support remains effective and responsive.

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Inclusion Expected standard

Children benefit from activities and experiences that the childminder tailors to their individual stages of development, learning styles and interests. She adapts resources, routines and teaching approaches to remove barriers to participation and enable all children to engage successfully.

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Inclusion Expected standard

When additional support is required, the childminder works in partnership with families and seeks guidance from relevant professionals, making referrals when appropriate.

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Inclusion Expected standard

The childminder has not yet accessed specialist training to develop her knowledge and understanding of SEND to confidently identify and implement highly targeted strategies for children with emerging or more complex additional needs. Although the childminder recognises the need to strengthen her practice in this area and is seeking professional development opportunities, further training is required to enhance her expertise and ensure the best possible outcomes for all children.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

The childminder demonstrates passion and commitment in providing high-quality care and education for all children. She has a clear understanding of the children in her care, their families and the local community, which helps her create an inclusive and responsive environment. From the outset, she uses assessment effectively to identify children's needs and adapts the environment, support and activities accordingly.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

The childminder implements clear policies and procedures that guide daily practice and maintain high standards of care, safety and learning. These consistent routines and expectations help children feel secure, confident and ready to engage in activities and learning opportunities.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

Partnerships with parents are positive and collaborative. The childminder shares information regularly and works closely with families to ensure children's needs are met. Parents speak positively about the care, support and communication they receive. The childminder understands many of the strengths of her provision and demonstrates a positive attitude towards ongoing improvement. She accesses mandatory training and has begun to pursue additional professional development opportunities. This ongoing learning supports her in developing her knowledge and confidence, particularly when working with older children, where she has less experience. However, self-evaluation processes are not yet sufficiently detailed or rigorous to identify areas for development with precision and fully inform improvement planning. Strengthening these processes would enable the childminder to more effectively evaluate the impact of her practice and drive continuous improvements in

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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

Being a child at this childminding setting is a happy, exciting and secure experience. From the moment children arrive, they are welcomed into a familiar and nurturing environment where they feel safe, valued and ready to explore. Many children have attended since they were babies, allowing them to develop secure attachments with the childminder, helping them to feel safe, confident and emotionally supported.

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

Children enjoy having access to a dedicated playroom that is carefully organised with a wide range of stimulating resources and activities. They are encouraged to make their own choices and independently select toys and experiences that interest them. This freedom allows children to follow their interests, develop their confidence and become active learners. The childminder joins in with their play, sharing their excitement and supporting their learning through positive interactions and encouragement.

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

The environment is designed entirely with children in mind, making excellent use of both indoor and outdoor spaces. Children are surrounded by engaging resources that inspire curiosity, creativity and exploration. As a result, they are highly motivated and eager to participate in a variety of learning opportunities.

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

Children particularly enjoy regular singing and story sessions. They enthusiastically join in with familiar rhymes and songs, copying actions and developing their language skills. Favourite songs such as 'Old MacDonald Had a Farm' encourage children to name animals and make animal sounds, creating a fun and interactive learning experience.

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

Outdoor play provides further opportunities for discovery and cooperation. Children delight in exploring water play activities, sharing resources, taking turns, and working together with their friends. These experiences help to develop social skills and positive relationships.

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

The enjoyment children experience is reflected in the positive feedback received from parents, who consistently speak highly of the quality of care provided and share how excited their children are to attend each day. The childminder maintains effective communication with parents, promoting regular attendance, sharing information about children's development, and supporting home learning. Parents value this partnership and report that their children are making good progress and are prepared for the next stage of their learning journey.

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Next steps

The childminder should further develop self-evaluation processes to identify strengths and areas for development more precisely and use this information to drive continuous improvement in the quality of the provision. The childminder should build on existing professional development by accessing further training to deepen understanding of special educational needs and increase confidence and knowledge when supporting older children.

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About this setting

Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 07:30 - 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

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

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