Childminder

Childminder

Unique reference number (URN): 257232 Registered with Ofsted: 26/08/1998 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 Needs attention

Children do not achieve as well as possible because learning does not build closely enough on their individual stages of development. Children's next steps are identified accurately, but planned experiences do not reflect these. As a result, the learning of children, including those who face barriers to learning, is hindered.

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Achievement Needs attention

Children develop a love of stories and choose favourite books to share with the childminder. They build their communication and language through conversations, songs and everyday experiences. Children follow simple instructions as they help to prepare food. They become increasingly independent in their self-care skills. Children learn to care for animals and develop positive relationships with their friends. They begin to recognise and talk about their own feelings. Children develop confidence as they join in familiar routines and activities.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Needs attention

The childminder does not promote children's attendance consistently because she has not established staffing arrangements that enable children to attend as planned. She asks parents and carer to keep their children at home when she or any assistants she works with are absent. As a result, children do not consistently access the curriculum they are entitled to receive. This disrupts the continuity of their learning. It also reduces the consistency of the routines, relationships and expectations that support children's behaviour, attitudes and wellbeing, including for children who face barriers to their learning.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Needs attention

The childminder establishes warm and caring relationships with children. She supports children to understand daily routines and expectations as they move around the smallholding and access resources safely. Children learn how to interact safely with the farm animals, close gates behind them and follow simple safety rules during daily activities. The childminder encourages children to use positive manners during mealtimes and everyday interactions. Children develop positive relationships with one another. They willingly share resources, such as sitting together on the large swing, laughing and enjoying one another's company as they take turns. Older children recognise when quieter children need encouragement and gently invite them to join in their play.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Needs attention

The childminder has not reviewed some care arrangements sufficiently to ensure they consistently promote children's welfare and wellbeing. Although the childminder's care routines do not always promote children's welfare and wellbeing effectively, the weaknesses identified do not place children at significant risk of harm. She does not organise mealtime supervision or hygiene routines well enough to minimise risks to children, including ensuring she can remain alert to the risk of silent choking. The childminder has not considered how children can wash their hands hygienically after feeding the farm animals. She asks children to wash their hands one after another in the same bowl of water, rather than providing access to clean running water. This increases the risk of cross-contamination. The childminder knows children well and responds sensitively to their individual emotional needs. She helps children who find it difficult to manage or express their emotions. For

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Needs attention

instance, the childminder gives children the language to describe how they feel and encouraging them to recognise the feelings of others. She provides reassurance when children become upset. The childminder adapts her support for those who face barriers to their learning and wellbeing. Babies receive individual support during mealtimes. Children benefit from nutritious meals, drinks and regular opportunities to spend time outdoors.

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Curriculum and teaching Needs attention

The childminder's curriculum is not implemented consistently well. She uses the outdoor environment and a smallholding where children experience a wide range of opportunities that promote physical development, understanding of the world, creativity and independence. However, the childminder does not routinely identify the specific knowledge, skills and understanding that children of different ages and stages should gain from shared experiences, including those who face barriers to learning. For example, children take part in the daily routine of feeding and caring for the farm animals. While this provides valuable first-hand experiences, this learning is repeated each day. The childminder does not consider sufficiently how activities can progressively build on children's previous knowledge, deepen their understanding or meet their individual developmental needs.

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Curriculum and teaching Needs attention

The childminder identifies children's next steps, but does not use this information to plan purposeful teaching. Staffing pressures mean that on busy days, she becomes focused on supervising children and managing routines. As a result, children do not consistently benefit from teaching that builds on their individual stages of development. For example, while babies have opportunities to spend time on their tummies, there are no resources or planned enhancements to encourage exploration and learning. The childminder does not consistently interact with babies during these experiences to build on their individual development but watches them.

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Inclusion Needs attention

The childminder does not consistently provide an inclusive experience for all children. Weaknesses in staffing arrangements sometimes mean the childminder asks parents and carers to keep their children at home when staff are absent. This disrupts continuity in children's learning. It also reduces the impact of the support provided for children who face barriers to their learning and wellbeing, including those who receive additional funding.

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Inclusion Needs attention

The childminder knows children and their families well. She works closely with parents and other professionals to identify children's individual needs and reduce some barriers to learning and wellbeing. She identifies children's next steps accurately and puts appropriate support in place for children who face barriers to their learning. However, the childminder does not ensure these children benefit from the support she plans. Weaknesses in planning reduce the continuity of support children receive. This limits how effectively the childminder reduces barriers to children's learning. While the childminder identifies strategies to support children to regulate their emotions and their communication and language, planned experiences do not consistently reflect these identified needs. This reduces how effectively the childminder addresses barriers to children's learning. The childminder uses additional funding thoughtfully to purchase resources. This includes

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Inclusion Needs attention

providing a climbing frame and experiences in the local community that children might not otherwise access.

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Leadership and governance Needs attention

The childminder has not given sufficient consideration to how the provision is organised to meet children's needs. Although she works alongside her co-childminder to develop and make improvements to the setting, she has not ensured staffing arrangements and contingency plans are robust enough for this busy provision. Consequently, children do not always attend on their agreed days and practitioners become overstretched when staffing levels are reduced. This limits the quality of teaching, children's care and the effectiveness of daily routines. The childminder does not monitor these aspects of practice precisely enough to identify weaknesses, secure timely improvements or ensure workloads remain manageable.

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Leadership and governance Needs attention

The childminder values professional learning and uses it to reflect on aspects of her practice. She has introduced changes to the learning environment to improve children's access to resources and has adapted some experiences in response to children's interests. However, the childminder does not identify and pursue professional development precisely enough to strengthen all aspects of teaching, curriculum planning and children's care.

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Leadership and governance Needs attention

The childminder works closely with parents and carers. She values the information they share about their children. The childminder discusses children's care, learning and development regularly and keeps parents informed about their daily experiences. She works with parents to respond to children's changing dietary needs, manage food intolerances and agree appropriate care arrangements.

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Compulsory Childcare Register requirements

This setting has not 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 not 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 do not always experience the consistency they need to make the most of their time at this setting. Staffing arrangements mean that some children are sometimes unable to attend, including children who face barriers to their learning. During busy parts of the day, the childminder becomes focused on supervising routines rather than consistently extending children's learning. Although children take part in interesting daily experiences, these are not planned well enough to build progressively on what children already know and can do. Children's care is not always organised around their individual needs. On busy days, routines, such as handwashing, mealtimes and supporting the youngest children, are not consistently thought through well enough.

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

Children nevertheless enjoy attending, and they and their families receive a warm welcome from the childminder. They quickly settle into familiar routines and confidently explore the inviting outdoor environment. Children enjoy feeding pigs, goats, ducks and emus. They collect freshly laid eggs and help with simple jobs around the smallholding. Children develop confidence, independence and an understanding of caring for living things. Children also take part in everyday experiences, such as mashing bananas to make banana bread. They enjoy stirring ingredients and taking turns to contribute.

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

Children develop positive relationships with the childminder, any assistants who work with her and with one another. They eagerly play alongside friends, learn to take turns and enjoy sharing experiences together. Children become increasingly independent as they find their own wellington boots, help prepare for outdoor play and make choices about where they would like to play. Children are happy, settled and demonstrate that they feel safe. They gain a broad range of experiences that begin to prepare them for some of their next steps in learning. However, these opportunities are not consistently tailored closely enough to their individual stages of development.

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Next steps

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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Action Completion Date

review and improve staffing arrangements and contingency plans, so children can attend on their agreed days, meet children's care and learning needs and ensure workloads remain manageable 03/08/2026

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Action Completion Date

improve care routines and procedures so children's welfare and wellbeing are consistently promoted, particularly in relation to hygiene, mealtimes and supervision 03/08/2026

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Action Completion Date

improve the use of assessment information to plan learning experiences that reflect children's individual stages of development and reduce barriers to learning 03/08/2026

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Action Completion Date

develop monitoring and evaluation processes to identify weaknesses promptly and target professional development to strengthen teaching, curriculum implementation and children's care. 03/08/2026

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About this inspection

The inspector spoke with the childminder, her assistants, children and parents and carers 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. Unique reference number (URN): 257232

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About this inspection

Operating hours: Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 07:15 - 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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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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