Childminder

Childminder

Unique reference number (URN): 2574964 Registered with Ofsted: 16/07/2020 Registers: EYR, CCR

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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 Expected standard

Children make appropriate progress from their starting points and develop the knowledge and skills needed for their next stage of learning. They are becoming increasingly independent and confidently follow established daily routines as they start to learn to take care of their own needs. For instance, before going outside, children find their shoes and attempt to put them on, showing pride as they manage it by themselves.

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Achievement Expected standard

Children develop their communication and language skills through positive interactions with the childminder. For example, during role-play activities, they confidently talk about pretend pizzas, discussing toppings and expressing their preferences. Children develop their physical skills and coordination. For example, they develop strength and coordination as they climb play equipment.

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Achievement Expected standard

Children develop their social and emotional skills as they cooperate with others and gain confidence. They work together successfully to complete a puzzle and proudly celebrate their achievement. Overall, children develop the skills and confidence needed for their eventual move to school.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard

The childminder's calm nature has established a nurturing environment where children are clear about expectations and understand familiar routines. This helps children to feel safe and secure.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard

Overall children show positive attitudes to learning and eagerly participate in activities. They listen attentively during stories, take turns and follow safety expectations. Children play cooperatively, share resources and demonstrate kindness towards others. They develop secure relationships and a strong sense of belonging within the setting. Children develop independence through familiar routines and confidently manage daily tasks. They help tidy resources, prepare for mealtimes, wash their hands and make choices about play. Children manage belongings, happily accessing their cubby holes to gather their belongings. Children respond positively to praise and reminders, and demonstrate good manners and kindness, appropriate to their age and development.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard

There are occasions when children's engagement is not consistently maintained due to the organisation and timing of some group activities. For example, during story time, adults who work with the childminder occasionally focuses on other tasks rather than supporting children's involvement. As a result, children require reminders about expectations and boundaries, which can interrupt learning and reduce sustained engagement.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard

The childminder recognises the importance of regular attendance and punctuality in supporting children's learning and development. She has effective systems in place to monitor attendance and works closely with parents to ensures they do not miss valuable learning opportunities.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard

The childminder knows children well and has a strong understanding of their individual needs and how they learn best. As a result, children develop warm, trusting relationships with both the childminder and adults who work with the childminder. They confidently seek comfort, reassurance and support when needed and respond positively to the affection and praise they receive. The childminder works closely with parents to ensure continuity in children's care and well-being, including meeting their dietary requirements and promoting healthy eating.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard

Children's emotional well-being is supported effectively. In general, the childminder helps them to recognise and understand their feelings, encouraging them to think about why they may be upset and supporting them to manage their emotions. Her nurturing approach helps children feel safe, secure and valued.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard

Overall, the childminder promotes children's growing independence. For example, young children are encouraged to recognise when they need the potty and are supported to manage their personal care routines. Clear guidance and reassurance help them develop confidence in these skills.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard

Children benefit from daily opportunities for fresh air and physical exercise. The childminder promotes good hygiene, positive manners and healthy lifestyles. She teaches children how to keep themselves safe on outings, including learning about road safety. Effective risk assessments and secure premises ensure children can play, explore and learn safely both indoors and outdoors.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Generally, the curriculum is varied and linked well to children's needs and interests. The childminder prioritises children's personal, social and emotional development and their communication and language effectively. She promotes language and literacy through a wide range of accessible books and stories, giving children time to repeat phrases from familiar stories. The childminder extends children's vocabulary, introducing words such as 'sticky' and 'sprinkle' during messy play. She also uses songs and rhymes effectively to support children's language development as they learn new words and follow actions. The childminder encourages discussion by talking about the colours and counting as children sort objects into coloured bowls. This supports children's vocabulary and listening skills, as well as an understanding of basic mathematics.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Overall, the childminder engages positively with children and provides activities that reflect their interests, generally supporting their next steps in learning. However, the quality of teaching is not consistently strong enough to sustain children's engagement or deepen their learning. For example, when older children explore plastic insects, opportunities to extend their understanding and introduce new knowledge are not always identified. As a result, children do not consistently benefit from high-quality interactions that encourage deeper thinking and build on what they already know.

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Inclusion Expected standard

The childminder gathers information from parents about children's starting points, interests and individual needs when they join the setting. She uses ongoing observations and assessments of children's play to monitor their progress and identify next steps in learning. The childminder understands the importance of discussing any emerging concerns with parents and seeking professional advice when needed. She has high expectations for all children and is committed to helping them make good progress, regardless of any barriers they may face.

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Inclusion Expected standard

The childminder effectively minimises barriers to learning for children of different ages and abilities. She ensures resources are accessible to all, for example by placing activities on the floor so younger children can access activities independently. This supports children to make choices and engage in play at their own level.

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Inclusion Expected standard

The childminder does not currently receive any additional funding for children. However, she understands how this could be used to provide specific resources or experiences to meet children's individual needs. For example, she would use it to provide them with opportunities they would otherwise miss out on, and to purchase resources to support what they need to learn next.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

Since the last inspection, the childminder has strengthened her focus on curriculum delivery to help ensure that children make steady progress across all areas of learning. She has worked closely with her local authority support team, which has helped her to recognise what is working well within her setting and identify areas for further development. For example, she has focused on embedding daily routines to support independence. The childminder also keeps herself up to date with changes in legislation and guidance, including safer sleep practices, to ensure that she continues to meet requirements and promote children's well-being.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

Adults who work with the childminder receive regular discussions and supervision meetings. These provide opportunities to reflect on practice, discuss children's progress, and identify training needs. Both the childminder and adults who work with the childminder, complete all mandatory training to ensure they meet requirements and keep children safe. However, the childminder has not yet established a clear professional development plan. This means that opportunities to further develop their knowledge, skills and understanding are not consistently identified and addressed to help ensure children benefit from the highest quality teaching and interactions.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

The childminder has built positive partnerships with parents. She shares information about children's care routines and what they have done and their next steps in learning. Parents are happy with the care provided, commenting that their children make progress in their confidence and speech and language skills.

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

Children feel at home and relaxed in the childminder's care. They form strong attachments with the supportive childminder and her assistant. All children receive nurturing care and build positive relationships helping children to feel safe and valued. Children separate from parents and carers with ease, confidently remove their shoes and put their belongings away. They freely investigate the wide range of activities and resources and make choices about their play.

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

Children have many opportunities to develop their confidence and social skills within the wider community. They regularly take part in outings that help broaden their experiences and understanding of the world around them. For example, children take bus trips to the local library, where they borrow books to enjoy at home, fostering a love of reading and supporting early literacy skills. Daily access to the outdoor environment provides opportunities for children to develop their physical abilities. They confidently climb the ladder to the slide and demonstrate increasing spatial awareness as they play games and navigate ride-on toys. These experiences help to strengthen their gross motor skills and support their overall physical development.

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

Children benefit from activities which help to give them an awareness of people who may have different religious beliefs to them. For example, the childminder ensures that she shares activities from different religious festivals, including her own to help children positively understand the differences between themselves and others. This helps children to have a sense of where they belong.

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About this setting

Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 08:00 - 18:00 Children benefit from the well-established daily routines that support them to manage self- care practices such as, hand washing and preparing for outdoor play. They learn to take turns, cooperate and learn to be kind to one another. This helps develop their social skills and independence in preparation for school. Children's attendance is promoted effectively through secure partnerships with parents promoting the importance of regular attendance.

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Next steps

The childminder should develop consistently high-quality interactions to further enhance the learning experiences of all children. The childminder should plan group times more effectively to help children remain engaged throughout. The childminder should ensure she develops a detailed plan for professional development opportunities to continue to build on the knowledge and understanding to support children in her care.

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About this inspection

The inspector spoke with parents, the childminder and her assistants 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. Local authority: West Northamptonshire

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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. 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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