Brown, Nicole

Childminder

Unique reference number (URN): EY559201 Registered with Ofsted: 23/10/2018 Registers: EYR, CCR, VCR

p.1

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.

p.1

How we evaluate safeguarding

When we inspect settings for safeguarding, they can have the following outcomes:

p.1

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.

p.1

Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard

Children experience a positive and welcoming environment, where clear routines help them feel secure and ready to participate in activities. The childminder models calm and respectful behaviour, supporting children to manage minor disagreements sensitively. As a result, children learn to share, take turns and cooperate, demonstrating the early social skills expected for their stage of development. Effective routines give children a clear sense of belonging and structure, enabling them to understand what happens next and take an active role in daily transitions. This promotes independence and teaches children responsibility as they help with tasks and engage confidently in familiar routines.

p.2

Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard

Children form warm and trusting relationships with the childminder. She offers, comfort, praise and encouragement, helping children feel confident to explore and participate in learning opportunities. Children engage enthusiastically in messy play, magnetic shape building and problem-solving skills. The childminder uses verbal reminders, modelling and problem-solving prompts to support cooperation and purposeful play.

p.2

Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard

Attendance is managed effectively. The childminder maintains daily attendance records, communicates promptly with families and responds quickly to changes. This supports children to attend consistently, arrive punctually and be ready to join learning each day.

p.2

Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard

Children benefit from a warm, welcoming and inclusive environment, where they feel safe, valued and eager to take part. The childminder's secure knowledge of all children ensures that support is precisely targeted. As a result, children who face barriers to learning or have special educational needs and/or disabilities participate fully in the setting and make meaningful progress in their learning and wellbeing. The childminder maintains purposeful communication with parents through daily discussions, shared routines and personalised strategies. This enables parents to remain actively involved in promoting their children's health and wellbeing. For example, toilet training is tailored to each child's needs through close collaboration with families, ensuring consistency and reducing anxiety for children.

p.2

Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard

Children experience a well-organised routine that promotes independence, choice and healthy habits. They confidently serve themselves lunch using appropriate utensils, demonstrating secure self-help skills and growing physical control. Hygiene routines are embedded and understood by children. They wash their hands before meals and at other points in the day, showing clear awareness that this helps remove germs. Access to drinking water and nutritious meals and snacks reflects the childminder's commitment to healthy routines and supports children's developing awareness of oral health and wellbeing.

p.2

Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard

Daily outdoor play strengthens children's physical development. The childminder teaches sun safety effectively, children learn why protection matters and practise safe habits. For example, they apply sun cream before playing outside, wear sun hats and use shaded areas outside.

p.2

Inclusion Expected standard

The childminder consistently monitors and assesses development, demonstrating a secure understanding of each child's needs. She identifies emerging delay promptly and responds with well-structured, graduated support that enables children to make progress. She works closely with external professionals and implements their guidance effectively. This ensures that children with special educational needs and/or disabilities receive appropriate adaptions that meet their individual needs.

p.3

Inclusion Expected standard

Improvements in how the childminder supports children's emotional development mean that children receive timely interventions and targeted support. For example, the childminder also provides large items and heavy objects, where children are able to try to move and push them in order to help them regulate their emotions.

p.3

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 provides a range of climbing equipment for children to access. As a result, children are developing their confidence and large motor skills.

p.3

Achievement Needs attention

Children make some progress, but overall achievement remains inconsistent because the curriculum and teaching are not yet embedded securely. Older children extend their mathematical understanding through addition and comparison activities, showing that they can add numbers together when supported. Younger children demonstrate emerging reasoning skills, such as colour matching and describing textures, indicating early cognitive development. However, these examples of progress are not consistently built upon across the wider curriculum.

p.3

Achievement Needs attention

Children show secure understanding of life cycles, correctly identifying that butterflies begin as caterpillars. They also name birds, such as peacocks and parrots, and sustain curiosity through questions about habitats, bird features and creatures who live in mud. These interests provide secure foundations for deepening knowledge. However, opportunities to extend learning are not always maximised.

p.3

Curriculum and teaching Needs attention

The curriculum is not implemented consistently enough to secure expected learning. Although the childminder is clear about what she wants children to learn, delivery of the curriculum lacks sufficient precision. As a result, the quality of interactions children experience is variable, and some children do not make the progress they are capable of.

p.3

Curriculum and teaching Needs attention

Interactions are sometimes reactive rather than purposeful, this limits how well children's thinking is extended. Although children show curiosity and engagement during some activities, questioning lacks depth and does not consistently prompt children to think beyond the immediate task. This limits opportunities for them to explain their thoughts, ideas or engage in sustained conversation. This reduces opportunities for children to develop expressive language, reasoning and problem-solving skills.

p.3

Curriculum and teaching Needs attention

The childminder provides regular opportunities for children to develop their physical skills. For example, outside, children climb, balance and make marks using chalk and large pots of water with paint brushes on the fencing. Children strengthen the small muscles in their hands, using tweezers to pick up small objects in the sand. These experiences support children's communication, early mathematical understanding and physical development. However, inconsistencies in teaching practice mean that learning is not consistently maximised for all children. Variations in interaction quality reduce the overall impact of planning learning experiences and the curriculum is not always implemented with the precision needed to secure expected standards.

p.4

Leadership and governance Needs attention

Leadership oversight is not yet securing consistently high-quality practice or ensuring that children benefit from well-planned, individualised learning opportunities. The quality of teaching remains inconsistent due to variations in practice.

p.4

Leadership and governance Needs attention

The childminder has established systems for monitoring practice, including regular observations and supervision discussions. While these procedures create opportunities for professional discussion, they do not yet ensure that the assistants know how to consistently support children's learning effectively. This reduces the purpose and impact of activities. Despite this, assistants report feeling supported through regular supervision.

p.4

Leadership and governance Needs attention

The childminder shares information with parents about each child's learning needs and offers guidance on how learning can be supported at home. The childminder also provides useful information about the local community and signposts families to additional support when needed. The childminder has begun to review aspects of practice and consider changes to improve the quality of provision. Recent adjustments to daily routines and reflections on behaviour expectations have started to improve children's experiences and outcomes. These early steps demonstrate a developing capacity for self-evaluation, although further work is needed to ensure that improvements are embedded and consistently impact teaching and learning.

p.4

Compulsory Childcare Register requirements

This setting has met the requirements of the compulsory part of the Childcare Register.

p.5

Register

When we check if settings meet the Compulsory Childcare Register requirements, they can have the following outcomes:

p.5

Voluntary Childcare Register requirements

This setting has met the requirements of the voluntary part of Childcare Register.

p.5

Register

When we check if settings meet the Voluntary Childcare Register requirements, they can have the following outcomes:

p.5

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

The quality of education that children receive is variable. There is not always sufficient curriculum knowledge or a secure understanding of how to support children's learning consistently. As a result, some children experience inconsistent learning interactions, and some do not fully engage in the group activities provided. For example, younger children can become disengaged during group story and circle times, this reduces the continuity and overall quality of learning for all children. Children arrive happy and emotionally secure, greeted by adults who are kind, caring and attentive. The childminder offers comfort and reassurance, helping children settle quickly and feel confident in the environment. Most children demonstrate positive attitudes to learning and show clear enjoyment in the experiences on offer. They take part in a wide range of purposeful activities, including sensory exploration, construction, mark making and

p.5

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

singing. Through these experiences, children investigate colour and texture, develop early mathematical language and strengthen their dexterity. For example, children are encouraged to draw their portraits as they observed and counted their features in the mirrors provided. Children also develop increasing independence through everyday routines, such as accessing drinks and helping to tidy resources.

p.6

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

Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those children who face barriers in their learning join activities alongside their peers and enjoy the same experiences. The childminder works closely with parents, carers and other professionals to support children's progress. Children's individual needs are managed with sensitivity, giving families reassurance and trust in the setting. This promotes inclusion and helps children to feel a sense of belonging.

p.6

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

Children are supported effectively to recognise, express and manage their emotions. The childminder listens attentively and offers reassurance, helping children to regulate their behaviour and stay focused on learning. As a result, children show positive attitudes, growing independence and increasing confidence. Children are becoming familiar with secure hygiene routines, such as washing their hands before eating. These experiences strengthen their social skills, resilience and self-care abilities, contributing to their wellbeing and readiness to learn.

p.6

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:

p.6

Action Completion Date

ensure that planning of all activities provides meaningful experiences for all children 01/10/2026

p.6

Action Completion Date

identify and implement targeted professional development opportunities for assistants to ensure they offer quality learning and development experiences for children that continually improves 01/10/2026

p.6

About this inspection

The inspector spoke with the childminder, assistants and children during the inspection.

p.6

About this setting

Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 07:00 - 19:00

p.7

Facts and figures used on inspection

This data was available to the inspector at the time of the inspection.

p.7

9

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.

p.7

Exceptional

Practice is exceptional: of the highest standard nationally. Other settings can learn from it.

p.8

Strong standard

The setting reaches a strong standard. Leaders are working above the standard expected of them.

p.8

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.

p.8

Needs attention

The expected standards are not met but leaders are likely able to make the necessary improvements.

p.8

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.

p.8

Urgent improvement

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk .

p.9

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 .

p.9

Urgent improvement

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.9

Urgent improvement

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

p.9