Fitzsimon, Kerry

Childminder

Unique reference number (URN): 2800284 Registered with Ofsted: 23/09/2024 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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Achievement Strong standard

Children make excellent progress from their starting points. The childminder knows them well and tailors learning to their individual needs and interests. They develop confident communication and language skills through meaningful conversations, stories, songs and skilful questioning that continually extends their vocabulary and thinking. Children eagerly share their ideas, ask questions and explain their thinking with growing confidence.

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Achievement Strong standard

Children develop secure knowledge and skills across all areas of learning. They become increasingly independent, curious and resilient as they make choices, solve problems and persevere with new challenges. Everyday experiences and carefully planned activities help children gain the confidence and skills they need for their next stage of learning.

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Achievement Strong standard

Children facing barriers to learning and/or wellbeing receive timely, personalised support that enables them to achieve as well as their peers. Close-partnership working with parents and other professionals ensures that children's needs are identified early and support is reviewed regularly. This ensures every child leaves the setting as a confident, resilient and highly capable learner, equipped with the knowledge and skills to thrive at school and beyond.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard

The childminder has created a calm and nurturing environment, where children feel safe, secure and eager to learn. Clear routines and high expectations help children to understand what is expected of them, enabling them to behave with kindness, respect and consideration for others. Warm, trusting relationships give children the confidence to express their ideas, manage their emotions and try new experiences.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard

Children consistently demonstrate positive attitudes to learning. They are curious, motivated and persevere when faced with challenges. For example, during an ice investigation, children confidently predicted what would happen as the ice melted, tested their ideas and celebrated their discoveries. The childminder's thoughtful questioning encouraged them to think critically, solve problems and keep trying until they found answers.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard

Children naturally share, take turns and support one another during play. Daily outdoor experiences, including climbing, balancing, riding wheeled toys and using the swing, help children to build resilience, confidence and an awareness of how to manage risks safely. The childminder carefully adapts her approach to each child's age, stage of development and individual needs, ensuring that everyone feels included and succeeds.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard

Attendance and punctuality are promoted through close partnership with parents and consistent daily routines, helping children develop positive habits for future learning. Children develop the attitudes, behaviours and social skills that enable them to flourish in the setting and prepare them well for school and later life.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard

Children's welfare and wellbeing are at the heart of the childminder's practice. She knows every child and family extremely well, enabling her to provide high-quality care that reflects each child's individual needs, routines and circumstances. Children form warm, trusting relationships with the childminder and confidently seek reassurance, comfort and encouragement, giving them a secure base from which to explore and learn.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard

Children are supported to understand how to keep themselves healthy and safe through meaningful and highly innovative everyday experiences. They learn about healthy eating as they prepare and cut their own fruits, develop good hygiene through regular handwashing routines and build positive oral-health habits through daily discussions and activities. Daily outdoor play encourages children to manage risks safely while developing confidence, coordination and resilience through activities such as climbing, balancing and riding wheeled toys.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard

The childminder prioritises children's emotional wellbeing, responding sensitively to their feelings and using targeted resources, including early years pupil premium resources, to support emotional understanding and regulation. For example, when a child with additional emotional needs becomes overwhelmed during group play, the childminder provides a calm, quiet space with familiar comfort items and uses visual-emotion cards to help the child identify and communicate their feelings, before gently supporting them to rejoin activities at their own pace. Children facing barriers to learning and/or wellbeing receive carefully tailored support, developed in partnership with parents and other professionals, ensuring they feel safe, included and able to thrive. As a result, children are emotionally secure, physically healthy and develop the confidence and resilience needed for lifelong wellbeing.

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Curriculum and teaching Strong standard

The childminder has systematically designed an ambitious, purposefully sequenced curriculum that meets the requirements of the early years foundation stage and reflects each child's interests, stage of development and next steps. She continually reviews the curriculum through observations, assessments and reflection, ensuring that learning builds on what children already know and can do.

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Curriculum and teaching Strong standard

The childminder plans activities carefully while remaining flexible, allowing children to lead and shape their own learning. A particular strength is her ability to recognise and make the most of spontaneous learning opportunities. For example, when children began making footprints in the water, she extended their learning by encouraging them to compare the different sizes and explore how and why the footprints disappeared after a while.

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Curriculum and teaching Strong standard

The childminder prioritises children's physical, personal, social and emotional development throughout the curriculum. She provides daily outdoor play that builds children's confidence, resilience and coordination while supporting them to assess and manage risk safely. She offers a range of activities, such as climbing, balancing, riding wheeled toys and using the swing, encouraging children to persevere and celebrating their achievements.

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Curriculum and teaching Strong standard

Assessment is used effectively to identify what children know and can do. Teaching is adapted to children's different starting points and individual needs. Younger children enjoy interactive flap books to develop early language, while older children explore more challenging stories to extend vocabulary and comprehension. Children facing barriers to learning and/or wellbeing receive tailored support, enabling them to make excellent progress and become confident and capable learners, who are very well prepared for their next stage of learning.

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Inclusion Strong standard

The childminder has created a highly inclusive environment where every child is known, valued and supported to achieve their full potential. She develops an in-depth understanding of each child's strengths, interests and individual needs through close partnerships with parents, careful observations and accurate baseline assessments. This enables her to identify emerging needs early and take prompt action to prevent barriers to learning and wellbeing.

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Inclusion Strong standard

She is committed to ensuring every child succeeds. Learning experiences, resources and teaching are expertly adapted so all children are fully included and make excellent progress alongside their peers. Children's progress is rigorously monitored and support is reviewed regularly to ensure strategies remain highly effective and continue to meet children's changing needs.

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Inclusion Strong standard

The childminder works collaboratively and seamlessly with families, the local authority and other professionals to secure the best possible outcomes for children. She continually strengthens her knowledge through high-quality professional development, enabling her to confidently implement the graduated approach and respond skilfully and effectively to children's individual needs. Additional funding is used purposefully to provide targeted resources that improve children's emotional well-being and reduce barriers to learning. She also has a secure understanding of her responsibilities for children known, or previously known, to social care, ensuring they receive timely, personalised support. As a result, every child flourishes in a highly inclusive environment where they feel safe, respected, valued and empowered to reach their full potential.

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Leadership and governance Strong standard

The childminder demonstrates reflective, aspirational and well informed child-centred leadership, and has a thorough understanding of her setting's strengths and priorities for improvement. She continually reflects on her practice, using observations, self-evaluation and feedback from parents to refine the curriculum and improve outcomes for children. Her decisions consistently place children's wellbeing, learning and development at the centre of everything she does.

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Leadership and governance Strong standard

The childminder has created an inclusive environment where every child is supported to succeed. She identifies barriers to learning early and works closely with parents, the local authority and other professionals to ensure children receive timely, appropriate support. Additional funding is used purposefully to provide resources that promote children's emotional wellbeing and reduce barriers to learning.

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Leadership and governance Strong standard

Professional development is valued and embedded in practice. The childminder regularly updates her knowledge through training in relevant areas, enabling her to continually enhance the quality of care and education she provides. She recognises that recording professional development more systematically, and evaluating its impact on practice, is the next step in strengthening her reflective practice, although this has not affected children's excellent progress.

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Leadership and governance Strong standard

Her leadership creates a culture of high expectations, continuous improvement and inclusion. Children benefit from thoughtful decision-making, purposeful teaching and a nurturing environment where they are safe, valued and achieve highly.

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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 experience an ambitious, purposefully sequenced curriculum that reflects their interests, stage of development and next steps. Children benefit from learning that is regularly reviewed through observations, assessments and reflection, ensuring it remains purposeful and builds on what they already know and can do.

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

Children benefit from intentional teaching and make the most of everyday interactions to extend their thinking, develop vocabulary and engage in meaningful conversations. They persevere when faced with challenges, use mathematical language in their play and respond thoughtfully to open-ended questions, developing their problem-solving and critical- thinking skills.

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

Children's physical, personal, social and emotional development is woven throughout the curriculum. Children take part in everyday routines that become meaningful learning opportunities. Children prepare their own fruit using child-safe knives, strengthening fine- motor skills, coordination and independence, while developing the hand control needed for early writing. Children benefit from daily outdoor experiences that further support their balance, resilience and confidence.

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

Children's learning is precisely understood through ongoing assessment, which identifies what they know, understand and can do. Children experience teaching that is thoughtfully adapted to meet different starting points and individual needs. Younger children enjoy interactive flap books that promote early language, while older children explore more challenging stories that deepen vocabulary and comprehension. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities, disadvantaged children and those facing barriers to learning, receive carefully tailored support, enabling every child to make excellent progress and become confident, capable learners who are very well prepared for their next stage of learning.

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Next steps

The childminder should continue to secure transformational improvements that maximise children's academic achievement, emotional wellbeing, and readiness for future learning and life.

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About this inspection

The inspector spoke with the childminder, the children and the 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

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About this setting

Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 08:00 - 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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Our grades explained

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

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Urgent improvement

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Urgent improvement

Store Street Manchester M1 2WD T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

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