Childminder

Childminder

Unique reference number (URN): EY539690 Registered with Ofsted: 23/12/2016 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 Needs attention

During activities, children are rushed or are asked to finish before they are ready to do so, which does not encourage a positive attitude to learning or for them to develop their attention skills. The childminder does not always provide meaningful interaction with children. This not only impacts on their learning and development, it also hinders their personal and social development. Activities are not always adapted, when children show signs of disinterest. For example, during an activity for matching, the younger children became disinterested as they could not understand what they were being asked to carry out. The childminder steps in when children start to snatch, trying to teach them about sharing and being kind.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Needs attention

At times, the childminder shows an understanding of some children's emotional needs. She works with the parents to provide comfort objects to help these children regulate their own emotions. However, when the childminder asks children to tidy away before they are ready, some children struggle to regulate their own emotions. The childminder does not help to support this as she dismisses them and continues to tidy away.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Needs attention

The childminder has developed positive bonds with children that build on their self-esteem and confidence. Older children are building confidence to voice where they wish to play and their likes and dislikes. The childminder offers cuddles of reassurance for children, helping them to feel secure. This helps to support children and especially those with special educational needs and/or disabilities. Attendance is positive and children enjoy their time with the childminder.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Needs attention

Some safe food practices are not implemented well enough to prevent the risk of cross infection. For example, children are fully aware of the importance of handwashing before meals and after visiting the bathroom. However, tables are not cleaned prior to children having snack time, with food being placed directly on tables that have been used for other activities. Children also pick out snacks from the plate, try it and place it back for others to choose. This puts children at risk of cross contamination. Children have free access to their bottles of water and are actively encouraged by the childminder to have drinks through the day. This helps to them to understand about their own hydration needs. The childminder has appropriate understanding of sleep practices.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Needs attention

Parents provide their own bedding, which helps the children to settle for much needed rest as they have familiar comfort items to snuggle into. The childminder ensures sleeping children are monitored. The childminder works with parents to provide meals that meet children's individual needs. She is fully aware of children's likes and dislikes and plans menus to support this. She is aware of the additional requirements for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and adapts meals to support this. This helps children to feel valued and to be able to have much needed food to aid their development. These nurturing adaptations help children feel cared for in the setting, supporting their emotional wellbeing.

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Achievement Urgent improvement

Children are not given enough support and guidance to progress with their learning and development. During creative activities, children are not provided with any meaningful activities to support their learning. Activities lack stimulation for children and some do not show sustained interest. They listen to posed questions about insects they are colouring in, but are not given time to respond to build on their communication and language skills successfully. This does not support children to develop their critical thinking skills. It is not clear the progress children are making. Children of all ages are not able to access focus activities that meet their individual stage of development. The lack of quality activities to support children's learning and development have been prior concerns. This hinders children in making the progress they are more than capable of making.

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Achievement Urgent improvement

Children develop their independence skills as they gather their own shoes to put on before they go outside to the garden. They take pride in feeding themselves and receive praise for colouring in, helping to build their self-esteem and confidence. Children are listened to and reassured when they become scared of the insects, helping to support their language to speak out. However, children are not able to build on their interests as they are not provided with opportunities to explore these.

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Curriculum and teaching Urgent improvement

The childminder does not demonstrate a secure understanding of how to sequence a curriculum based on children's stage of development. She does not use her assessments of children's learning effectively to inform her planning. The childminder focuses too heavily on adult-led activities without the knowledge of what she wants children to learn, such as learning about insects, when children do not have the vocabulary to understand. In addition, the childminder does not effectively assess and monitor the quality of activities carried out by others to further support children's learning and development.

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Curriculum and teaching Urgent improvement

During focus activities, children are expected to carry out activities they are not ready for. Younger toddlers are expected to sort items into colour coordinated boxes without the knowledge and vocabulary to do this. Older children are asked to use tweezers, which some are not developmentally ready to use. Activities are not adapted to support children's learning, when it is identified they are not able to carry out the tasks. During some activities, resources are not effectively placed to allow all children to have access to them, which limits their engagement. This leads to children squabbling as they cannot reach to place their items in a pot. This further hinders children's learning, especially in their personal, social and emotional development.

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Curriculum and teaching Urgent improvement

The childminder does not always prioritise her teaching to support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. Although the childminder is aware of their targets, the quality of teaching available to them is not effective in closing any gaps in their learning and development.

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Inclusion Urgent improvement

The childminder does identify when children require extra help and support. She works with parents and/or carers to gather information regarding children's individual needs and targets that have been set by other agencies. The childminder is aware of what she is required to do to meet children's needs. However, during group activities, there is limited interaction with children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Children, at times, are restricted from moving around and told to stay at the activities. This does not fully support targets set by other agencies to support children. The childminder does not provide professional support and guidance to ensure children's choices during circle time are understood and that they receive positive interactions to help them engage in learning. This greatly hinders children's communication development.

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Inclusion Urgent improvement

Although at times the childminder follows children's leads, as per the targets that have been set, the quality of interactions are not at all effective in supporting children's individual needs. In addition, the childminder does not ensure that her assistants understand and follow the same targets that have been set to progress learning. The childminder discusses getting out additional resources to support children's interests, but gets distracted and fails to do so, which leaves children without resources to play with. As a result, some children do not receive the help they need to access learning or make appropriate progress. This means any gaps in children's learning and development do not close rapidly.

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Leadership and governance Urgent improvement

The childminder does not maintain accurate daily registers to inform parents of who is working with the children and who is carrying out school runs. This has been a breach of welfare requirement twice before. This demonstrates the childminder does not have the capacity to be able to maintain any improvement with her practice and meeting the welfare requirements.

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Leadership and governance Urgent improvement

The childminder also does not ensure an effective system is in place to monitor and assess the quality of her assistants. The childminder is not aware of the practice that occurs when she is in a separate room carrying out focus activities. This has also been a breach of requirement twice before. Assistants depend on the childminder for information, such as the activities to carry out and why, meaning any gaps in the childminder's own knowledge are passed directly on to them. This greatly impacts the quality of teaching and the curriculum that is provided for the children.

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Leadership and governance Urgent improvement

These breaches raise concerns about how well the childminder manages essential information and demonstrates weaknesses in her practice. The childminder is unable to maintain quality of practice without support and guidance. Although the childminder attends training, this does not make any positive impact on the quality of curriculum she provides. The childminder does not have the children's best interests at the forefront of all that she does.

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Leadership and governance Urgent improvement

The childminder supports parents with practical support, such as during potty training and settling in. The childminder does share progress checks with parents and they are able to share with other agencies to gain extra support for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. The childminder makes sure that workloads are spread between her and her assistants and that they receive regular breaks to ensure a positive work balance.

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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's daily experiences are affected by the weaknesses with the curriculum and breaches of the welfare requirements. The childminder does not ensure registers reflect who is working in the home and who is carrying out school runs, which impacts children's safety and wellbeing in an emergency. She also does not ensure the quality of activities meet the individual needs of the children. Children do not have enough time to finish their chosen activities and, despite their protests, the childminder rushes them to finish to join a story. Activities do not match the learning stage of children, which hinders any progress they may be able to make. Children are not given enough time to think and respond to questions they are asked. This does not allow children to have time to support critical thinking. Children's creativity is not nurtured, the childminder does not support their learning and natural curiosity as they play, as the resources used are not supportive.

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

Inclusion is not effective. Children's individual needs and targets are known to the childminder, however, activities and support children receive to work towards these are not as effective as they can be to help and nurture children's learning and development. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are left to wander with limited activities to carry out, when other children are being supported by the childminder. In addition, when others come and join activities, such as playing with cars, children with SEND quickly lose interest and walk off, as they are not able to share resources yet and they do not have access to more cars. This hinders their learning.

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

Despite these weaknesses, the children have developed a bond with the childminder and her assistants. They have built trusting relationships with them, helping to nurture their self- esteem. Children enjoy exploring the role-play areas and 'cooking' meals for each other. The childminder joins in and talks to them about what they are cooking. These positive interactions help children to feel welcomed and valued.

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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 actions by the assigned date:

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Action Completion Date

ensure that a daily record of children's attendance is maintained, and that the name of each child's key person is recorded accurately 03/07/2026

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Action Completion Date

ensure that robust training and supervision arrangements are in place for all assistants, enabling the delivery of high-quality care and learning experiences for children 03/07/2026

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Action Completion Date

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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About this setting

Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 08:00 - 19:00

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Action Completion Date

plan and implement an ambitious curriculum for all children which builds on what they know and can do 03/07/2026

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Action Completion Date

allow children more time to answer questions and to enable them to finish their learning at activities before tidying away 03/07/2026

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Action Completion Date

ensure effective hygiene arrangements at all mealtimes to enable children's understanding of how to keep themselves healthy 03/07/2026

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About this inspection

The inspector spoke with the childminder and assistants 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 inspection

We carried out this inspection as a result of a risk assessment, following information we received about the provider. The provider will be able to give parents further information about this.

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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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