Childminder

Childminder

Unique reference number (URN): 2777636 Registered with Ofsted: 07/03/2024 Registers: EYR

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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

Children's behaviour and attitudes are a significant strength of the setting. The childminder has clear rules and high expectations of behaviour that children fully understand. She has created a calm and nurturing environment where all children are actively engaged in learning. The childminder recognises the emotional security that routines bring, and children feel safe within the familiar daily activities and expectations of them. She builds trusting and positive relationships with the children, which means they turn to her when they are unsure.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard

Children explicitly learn how to manage their own feelings and develop appropriate language to do so. The childminder reads stories about emotions and talks about feeling sad, angry or happy. She supports children in understanding how to take turns by using timers and gentle guidance. As a result, children happily wait for their turn with a favoured resource. Children have extremely positive attitudes to learning because the childminder gives them lots of praise for their efforts. As a result, they develop resilience and persistence. Children play extremely well together and listen to each other's ideas.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard

The childminder recognises the importance of attendance to support children in becoming familiar with the daily routines and settling in well. She promotes this to parents and carers when children start.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard

Children's welfare and wellbeing are also a significant strength and are at the heart of the setting. The childminder is passionate and driven to promoting a healthy life and emotional stability. She has created a safe and welcoming space where all children's care needs are met to an extremely high standard. Children feel secure and happy and know that they are nurtured and cared for.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard

The childminder provides children with all meals and snacks, and these are extremely healthy. She ensures that they are cooked from scratch and that the produce is of high quality. Mealtimes are a thoughtful activity where children demonstrate independence in both setting up the table and feeding themselves competently from a young age. The childminder uses this opportunity to encourage good manners, and children freely say 'please' and 'thank you'. They chat about the ingredients at the table and learn words for the vegetables. The childminder is highly aware of allergies and ensures that all meals are appropriately prepared. She is aware of the possibilities of choking. The childminder has secure hygiene practices that older children are starting to practise independently, such as washing their hands before lunch without being asked. The childminder teaches children the importance of oral health.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard

Children understand the need for physical activities and enjoy daily dance sessions. They have daily access to the outdoors and opportunities to run and play in the fresh air. Children learn the importance of resting after meals. They are highly independent in their self-care and older children change into night clothes by themselves at nap times.

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Achievement Expected standard

Children make steady progress from their starting points. They feel safe and emotionally secure in the childminder's nurturing environment. As a result, they develop confidence to lead their own play and make their own choices. They enjoy sharing books with the childminder, and babies and young children learn how to turn pages and look at pictures with interest. Older children 'read' books to each other and act out the stories in an imaginative way. Children show high levels of focus and an ability to listen carefully to others. Children develop resilience and determination to succeed. For example, they use tools to separate wooden strawberries into 2.

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Achievement Expected standard

Children develop early skills that support their next stage of learning. They practise self-care through routines such as mealtimes and getting changed to sleep. They show high levels of independence. Progress is not yet strong because children are not as secure in using English as they are in other areas of learning.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

The childminder has a clear idea of what she wants children to achieve at her setting. She has a suitably broad curriculum that reflects children's interests. The curriculum supports all areas of learning, with a strong focus on personal, social and emotional development, communication and physical skills. The childminder closely monitors children's progress to ensure that they are making progress as expected. She ensures that all children have opportunities in areas of learning where they may face barriers to progress. For example, children regularly visit the local woodland to develop their large-muscle skills.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Activities are carefully planned to support children's learning and development. The childminder encourages a love of early reading by using popular stories that are frequently repeated. She bases activities on these as well as on the children's interests. For example, children enjoy sitting at the tea table with a toy tiger and pouring tea. She uses these opportunities to develop communication and language skills. However, the childminder does not always further develop English skills for children who speak English as an additional language. The childminder uses every opportunity to support children's mathematical knowledge and children count confidently. Older children teach younger children colours and shapes.

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Inclusion Expected standard

The childminder creates a welcoming and inclusive environment where children and families are valued. She identifies children's individual needs when they start at the setting through close observation and regular discussion with families. She gathers detailed information from parents and carers, including about home languages, routines and interests. This generally helps children settle securely and helps the childminder plan activities that support individual next steps in learning and development. She uses her own experience and professional documents to identify any gaps in their learning. The childminder adapts care to individual children sensitively and knows the children very well. She monitors children's progress through ongoing observation and assessment.

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Inclusion Expected standard

The childminder uses early years pupil premium funding to narrow gaps in children's learning. In collaboration with parents, this funding enables children to make progress towards their next steps in learning. For example, the childminder purchases materials to support emotional regulation. The childminder measures this support, which is highly impactful for the children.

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Inclusion Expected standard

The childminder understands the needs of children who speak English as an additional language and can support them in their own home language, which helps to develop their emotional security and reduce barriers to learning. She uses adult-led activities and stories to develop their understanding and use of English. Once children are settled and feel safe, she does not always use opportunities in child-led play or care routines to further develop their understanding and ability to use English. As a result, children who speak English as an additional language do not always make the rapid progress they are capable of in developing communication and language skills in English.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

The childminder recognises her own strengths. She knows that she builds extremely warm and positive relationships with the children she cares for and their families. Parents and carers speak very highly of the childminder and say that their children love coming to be with her and that she is patient and kind. The childminder is passionate about providing the best care for children and making them feel safe and secure. She is generally reflective but does not always recognise what can be improved. She did not realise that children could be better prepared for their next stage of education with increased exposure to English. The childminder is currently working on building up her knowledge of furthering children's learning and development through using the outdoor spaces available to her.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

The childminder ensures that she keeps up to date with regular and appropriate professional learning. For example, she has recently completed training on supporting children making the transition to school. She is eager to deepen her understanding around special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), and has training planned for this. The childminder takes care of her own wellbeing and considers her workload.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

The childminder fully engages with parents and partnerships are positive and supportive. She develops open communication with them through discussions and messages, supporting consistency between home and the setting. Where possible, she liaises with schools to ensure children make a smooth transition on to their next stage of learning. She would seek support from outside agencies for children with SEND or other barriers to learning.

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

Children are warmly welcomed into this caring, home-from-home environment. They build trusting and positive relationships with the childminder and each other. Children clearly feel safe and reassured as they reach out their arms for cuddles. Children develop confidence and independence because the childminder knows their interests well and plans activities around these.

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

Children enjoy their learning through play and hands-on experiences. They enjoy scooping and pouring sand into water and exploring sensory materials. Children have lots of opportunities to develop their hand muscles as they squeeze and shape play dough. They benefit from visits to local woodland and fields, where they immerse themselves in nature and have opportunities to run and climb. Children chatter happily to the childminder and each other as they play, developing their communication and language skills.

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

All children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities or other barriers to their learning or wellbeing, are extremely well supported to manage their feelings and behaviour, which is exemplary. They learn to share, take turns and play collaboratively with their friends. For example, children play an imaginary game based on a popular story. Children are kind to each other; they pass each other resources when playing and make each other cakes. Children are generally well prepared for their next stage of education as they are increasingly independent in their play and care routines. Children show persistence in their desire to achieve, and the childminder gives them lots of praise for both their efforts and their achievements. They make expected progress from their starting points because the childminder keeps careful track and sets suitable next steps.

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

Parents and carers are fully appreciative of the loving care their children receive and describe the childminder as patient, caring and dedicated. They feel welcomed and valued and find her support very beneficial. The childminder ensures that they are aware of the importance of regular attendance and punctuality to build the deep relationships and security that support learning.

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Next steps

The childminder should ensure that she uses more opportunities, such as child-led play and care routines, to develop children's skills in communication and language in English. The childminder should focus on developing her leadership skills to reflect on her practice more efficiently in order to understand which areas can be improved.

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About this setting

Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 07:30 - 17:30

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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 and read written 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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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

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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