Childminder

Childminder

Unique reference number (URN): 2809775 Registered with Ofsted: 06/12/2024 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

Behaviour is consistently positive throughout the day. Children understand what is expected of them and follow familiar routines without needing reminders. During group time, they sit and listen without prompting. Self-control is well embedded in how children manage their behaviour and emotions. For example, children ask to finish putting things away before moving on, showing they can regulate themselves.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard

Warm, trusting relationships with the childminder and her staff give children confidence to try new things and share ideas. Children consistently look out for one another. For example, children take turns and share without being prompted during mealtimes. They listen to one another, so when children ask for more food, others quickly help by passing it to them. Children with barriers to their learning or care are fully supported to meet the same expectations.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard

Children show respect for each other's need for privacy during personal care routines, moving away without being asked while another child's nappy is changed. Persevering with a task, even when tricky, is embedded in how children play. For example, dropped items are picked up and play continues, reinforced through praise and modelling. The childminder promotes attendance and punctuality, while remaining flexible to meet families' needs.

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Achievement Expected standard

Children are making progress from their starting points. Communication and language are an overall strength. Children typically speak confidently in full sentences. They typically give reasons for their thinking. They take part in longer conversations and talk about their experiences, such as a walk to school or a day out. Children who receive early years pupil premium funding are developing alongside their peers.

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Achievement Expected standard

Early number and reading skills are also developing. For example, children recognise their own name and talk about the days of the week. Children also show awareness of others, noticing when a friend needs support and offering help unasked. This helps prepare children, including those with barriers to learning, for their next stage.

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Achievement Expected standard

During group activities, the childminder gives children effective support, extending their language. However, she does not always give them enough opportunities to lead the conversation, so their thinking is not always challenged further.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard

The childminder keeps children safe on outings and in the setting. For example, she uses daily risk assessments and puts in place practical measures for hot weather, such as sun protection, hydration and shaded sleeping spaces. The childminder builds close, trusting relationships with children, helping them settle quickly and seek comfort when they need it. She places a high priority on emotional regulation. For example, she helps children recognise and manage their own feelings, supporting empathy towards peers and calm during changes to their routine.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard

The childminder supports children's health through calm, well-organised routines. Each child has their own bed and belongings for sleep, helping them settle with ease. She also helps children understand their own health and safety. For instance, she teaches them about handwashing, healthy food choices and road safety during outings.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard

The childminder liaises effectively with parents about children's care needs, recording accidents, care provided and medication given, which gives parents a clear record. She gathers detailed day-to-day information from parents to support children with barriers to their care and learning. However, she does not always work as effectively with other professionals who may be involved with children, such as those from health, to gather detailed information about children's individual needs. Consequently, this is not always detailed enough to feed into a formal, individual care plan.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

The childminder builds a curriculum around children's own interests and next steps. For example, she focuses first on the prime areas of learning, before building in the specific areas as children's foundations grow stronger. Children with barriers to their learning or care and those who receive extra funding benefit from this approach, with next steps matched closely to their own starting points. The childminder gives children time and space to solve problems on their own. For example, she uses effective questioning to extend their thinking and models language by talking with children often, helping build their vocabulary. She also uses everyday routines to build early skills. For example, children recognise names and talk about the days of the week, building early number and reading skills.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

However, the childminder does not always provide enough challenge to extend children's learning further in group activities. For example, during a group activity, children confidently talk about objects in a box they have already seen, but have fewer opportunities to share their own ideas about new objects they have not seen before. This means opportunities to develop children's own ideas and deepen their learning are sometimes missed.

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Inclusion Expected standard

The childminder is quick to identify children's needs. She uses assessments and observations. She works with families to identify needs early. She understands the assess, plan, do, review process. This helps her support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. It also helps her support children with other barriers to care or learning. For example, she gathers information each day from parents when they arrive. She might note a child has not slept well to help plan for their needs. No children are currently known or previously known to children's social care. The childminder knows when to seek advice and refer, if needed.

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Inclusion Expected standard

Some children receive early years pupil premium funding. Their next steps match their starting points. For example, children develop small-muscle skills through scooping and mixing. They learn to take turns with shared resources. The childminder uses this funding well to meet children's needs. She takes children on local outings. This builds their experience of the wider world. She also lengthens sessions or adds extra sessions where she can. As a result, gaps in children's development are closing. The childminder completes the progress check for children age 2, in partnership with parents. This helps identify and provide any extra support children need.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

The childminder reflects on her provision and acts to improve children's experiences. For example, she takes children on regular outings, including visits to explore nature and socialise locally, which extend their learning and help them build confidence in new environments. These outings also help her build links with the wider local community.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

The childminder keeps her knowledge and skills up to date. For example, she has attended training on oral health and on supporting children's attention and communication, and she puts these strategies into practice. She also belongs to a childminder group, which helps her stay updated and share ideas with others. The childminder makes decisions in children's best interests. For example, she gives close, daily support to children with specific health needs.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

The childminder shares work closely with her staff. For example, they take turns to take breaks while children are sleeping, and children remain supervised throughout. This helps support wellbeing and workload. The childminder builds trusting relationships with parents. For example, she shares children's next steps through electronic communication and offers ideas for learning at home. This creates a culture of open communication.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

The childminder maintains her own wellbeing through clear systems and routines. This allows her to remain consistent and available for children each day. However, the childminder does not always work effectively with other professionals involved in children's care. This means she sometimes misses opportunities to share information and may not always join up support well across everyone involved in children's care.

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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 enjoy a warm, home-from-home atmosphere, feeling safe, valued and settled. Throughout the day, they show curiosity and enthusiasm, engaging in activities that support their communication, physical and personal, social and emotional development. For example, children take part in pretend play, mixing and serving ice cream, testing how adding water changes its texture and choosing their own toppings, developing their imagination and fine motor skills. Children show growing independence throughout the day.

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Inspector:

Onam Kumar For instance, they dress themselves ready for sleep time and use cutlery and tongs to serve their own food at lunchtime.

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Inspector:

Children communicate with confidence, speaking in full sentences and talking about their experiences, such as going swimming or walking to school. They learn to keep themselves safe on walks and outings, for example, understanding what the green man and red man mean at a crossing.

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Inspector:

Children have a secure sense of belonging. They move confidently between activities and understand the routines of their day, giving them the confidence to try new things independently. Children with barriers to their learning or care and those who receive additional funding are included fully and learn alongside their peers. Families are welcomed and valued as partners, and children's attendance and punctuality are promoted, with flexibility offered where the setting can accommodate this.

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Inspector:

Children form warm, trusting relationships with the adults who care for them, seeking them out to share their news and ideas. They show consideration for one another, for example, offering to help each other and waiting patiently for their turn. Children are kept safe, with safeguarding and welfare procedures followed. They are learning to manage their own health, for example, washing their hands and understanding why healthy food matters. Children visit local parks and museums, building their confidence in new environments and curiosity about the world.

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Next steps

The childminder should provide more consistent challenge, particularly during group activities, to support children's achievement further. The childminder should explore ways of communicating more effectively with other professionals involved in children's care.

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About this inspection

The inspector spoke with the parents, children, the provider and her assistant 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 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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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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