Childminder in DorsetOfsted report card, 23 Sept 2026

Childminder

Unique reference number (URN): 2876621 Registered with Ofsted: 19/03/2026 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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Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard

The childminder helps children to begin to build excellent knowledge on how to lead a healthy lifestyle. Children enjoy brushing the teeth of their toys as the childminder talks about the importance of this, supporting their awareness of oral hygiene. The childminder works with parents and carers to ensure that they understand the expectations around healthy eating. She shares policies and checks lunches to monitor this. Children enjoy healthy snacks and excitedly point out the tomatoes and cucumber they have grown in the garden. Children freely access their water, and the childminder reminds them that water is good for our bodies. They have daily access to outside and fresh air, supporting their physical health and wellbeing. Children begin to learn about their own personal safety from a young age as they turn to manoeuvre steps safely and learn about the spikes on the rose bush. These skills help children to become independent, curious and safe learners.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard

The childminder has a clear focus on supporting children's wellbeing. She is extremely attentive and quickly notices when children may need a little reassurance. She works closely with parents to recognise children's care routines, interests, families, cultures and achievements. For example, when children are feeling more tired than usual, she adapts her practice to ensure that children feel secure and settled. She uses her knowledge and training to positively impact on children's emotional health. She consistently uses language based around emotions throughout her teaching, such as through books and discussions and uses moments when children feel frustrated to talk this through with them. This provides children from a young age opportunity to hear this language and begin to make connections between their feelings and how to label these.

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Inclusion Strong standard

The childminder gathers information from parents and carers right from the start. She uses this information excellently to support children's individual needs and abilities. This helps to reduce barriers to children's learning and/or wellbeing. For example, she provides staggered starts to help new starters settle and transition steadily from parents. This supports children's emotional security. The childminder knows the children very well. She consistently adapts her approach when communicating or supporting them.

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Inclusion Strong standard

The childminder uses her effective assessment and monitoring procedures to regularly track children's development from her baseline assessment when children begin. This provides secure oversight of how children are progressing from their starting points. The childminder shares regular feedback to parents about children's learning and development and provides home goals, to ensure continuity in children's learning. The childminder has formed relationships with local nursery settings and is aware of the importance of sharing relevant information to provide consistency for children's learning as well as to support their transition to other settings.

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Inclusion Strong standard

The childminder provides an inclusive environment where children feel confident to explore and navigate their learning. She provides age-appropriate resources, and next steps are tailored to children's individual needs. The childminder currently has no children with special educational needs and/or disabilities on roll. However, she demonstrates a secure

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Expected standard

understanding of how best to support children and families, including how to access and utilise funding to provide a positive impact on children's learning and development.

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Achievement Expected standard

Children make steady progress from their starting points across all areas of learning. This helps them to gain the skills they need for their next stage of learning, including school. Children eagerly practise and strengthen their physical skills, as they climb in and out of toy cars and run in the spacious garden. They point to their home-grown tomatoes and cucumbers, gaining the childminder's attention who then explains how well they have grown. Children bounce and have fun on the trampoline, building their coordination and stability. Children show a keen interest in books as they begin to turn pages, point at the pictures and say key words such as 'bird' and 'choo choo'. They develop confidence in their communication and language, alongside a love of books. This supports their early literacy skills. Children smile and join in with actions when listening to the childminder sing their favourite songs.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard

Children develop kind and caring relationships with each other, as they begin to recognise the care needs of others. For example, children reach for their peers' water bottles and offer them water. The childminder sets age-appropriate expectations around respect, kindness and consideration to others. She is an excellent role model who guides and supports children when they need it, such as with turn-taking. Her calm, patient approach, alongside consistent praise and encouragement for children, supports their self-worth and positive attitudes towards their learning. Children happily play alongside each other and share moments of collaborative play, as they begin to form friendships.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard

The childminder works closely with parents and carers to ensure that any changes to children's routines are considered. This helps the childminder to adapt her expectations accordingly and reduce barriers to their learning and/or wellbeing. The childminder has secure procedures in place to monitor attendance. Children begin to participate in some basic routines, such as sitting up for mealtimes, washing hands and getting ready to go outside. Overall, transitions are calm. However, some routines do not yet provide a seamless transition for children. During these times, children become distracted and lose focus on their learning.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

The childminder draws on her secure knowledge of child development to provide a curriculum that covers all areas of learning. She typically provides activities that clearly link to each child's next steps. Through her high-quality interactions and children's spontaneous learning moments, she introduces new ideas and concepts that help children build skills securely over time and develop firm foundations for future learning. For example, she understands that children need to master each stage of physical development, such as crawling, pulling themselves up and cruising, before walking. She also adapts the inclusive environment, so children have the opportunities they need to extend what they know and can do.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

The childminder places a keen focus on supporting children's communication and language, and this is a key strength. Through her day-to-day routines, she incorporates songs, stories and narrates what is happening. Children learn new vocabulary such as 'city' as the childminder begins to widen their knowledge about the world around them. The childminder weaves various mathematical concepts through children's play. For example, during song time, they count backwards as they pretend to zoom off in a rocket. Children generally focus and engage well inside and outside in the spacious garden. However, some routines and transitions are not yet as fully embedded as others, and at times, children's learning is interrupted. This means during these times children become frustrated when they are unable to continue with their learning and explorations.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

The childminder has developed effective partnerships with parents, carers and the local community. Children benefit from visits to the aquarium and farms, as well as weekly toddler groups, attended with other local childminders. These experiences broaden children's understanding of their community and support their social development through interaction in larger groups. The childminder regularly reviews and updates her policies and procedures in response to changes in legislation and guidance, including guidance on safer sleep. Parents and carers speak highly of her warm and welcoming approach and value the consistent information she shares, which supports continuity between home and the setting. They also recognise the positive role she plays in helping children develop healthy habits for the future.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

The childminder has a clear vision for her practice and setting. She understands the importance of self-evaluation in maintaining high-quality care and education for children, while recognising that a more consistent approach would help her identify precise and targeted priorities for development. She also prioritises her own wellbeing and professional development. For example, training on children's mental health has strengthened the quality of her teaching and enhanced the support she provides for children's emotional development. The childminder always places children at the heart of her decisions.

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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 thrive in the childminder's warm and nurturing environment. They settle quickly and form close bonds with the childminder. Children demonstrate their emerging friendships with their peers, as they interact and play joyfully together. Children clearly show that they feel safe and secure, as they explore confidently engaging with all aspects of the well-resourced learning environment. Children's unique personalities are celebrated with warmth, care and respect. This means children quickly develop a secure sense of belonging and know that their needs will be met effectively. These trusting relationships extend to families right from

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About this setting

the start. Parents and carers report that they 'feel at ease' when dropping their children off as they begin their exciting day with the childminder.

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About this setting

Children achieve well across all areas of learning and access activities and resources that are based on their interests and next steps in learning. Children demonstrate positive attitudes towards their learning, showing curiosity and engagement with various activities. For example, they explore 'The Stick Man' story, using various props, such as real sticks and their own family photos. This provides opportunities for children to develop their literacy skills alongside beginning to learn about similarities and differences in their own families. Children excitedly point and repeat the names of their family members. Children repeat key words, including 'stick,' as they also practise and develop their language skills. Children are well prepared for their next stage of learning.

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About this setting

Children develop their emerging independence from an early age. They happily engage with routines to support this. For example, they know to sit on the step and wait to find their shoes before they go outside. Children begin to put on their shoes and enjoy washing their hands and faces. Children begin to make choices as they develop confidence and awareness of their own abilities, likes and dislikes.

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Next steps

The childminder should strengthen the organisation of daily routines, such as nappy changing times to help minimise interruptions to children's play and learning. The childminder should embed a consistent approach to evaluation processes to ensure that these precisely identify ways to further improve the quality of teaching and practice.

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About this inspection

The inspector spoke with the childminder, children and parents shared their views 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): 2876621

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About this inspection

Operating hours: Tuesday,Wednesday : 08:00 - 16:00

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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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