Childminder in BarnetOfsted report card, 18 Sept 2026

Childminder

Unique reference number (URN): 2814922 Registered with Ofsted: 02/04/2025 Registers: EYR

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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 generally make appropriate progress from their starting points. Children who have recently started become more secure, explore independently and gain confidence in familiar routines. Babies develop balance and coordination as they crawl, pull upright, stand while holding low furniture, cruise along it and take supported steps. Babies and young children join in songs and play a range of instruments during musical sessions.

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Achievement Expected standard

Children develop communication through stories, repeated vocabulary and play. Some babies use individual words and actions, while older children combine words into short phrases and sustain role play for longer. Children count, compare quantities and use early mathematical language during everyday activities. Children develop independence by choosing resources, feeding themselves, replacing pen lids and helping to tidy.

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Achievement Expected standard

Typically, babies and young children communicate their needs and regulate their emotions with sensitive adult support. In the main, across the areas of learning, children acquire essential age- and stage-appropriate knowledge and skills that prepare them for future success and their next stage of learning.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard

The childminder establishes age-appropriate expectations and guides any assistants she works with to apply them. She models gentle behaviour, uses a calm voice and praises children for sharing, waiting and helping. Babies receive prompt reassurance when distressed, while older children learn to name feelings, take turns and resolve simple disputes. The childminder considers whether behaviour reflects tiredness, hunger, anxiety or difficulty communicating and adapts her response accordingly. This inclusive approach helps children regulate their emotions and remain involved in play.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard

Children form warm relationships with the childminder. They confidently seek reassurance before returning to their play. Children generally show curiosity and persistence as they explore toys, join songs, make marks and investigate sand and water. Children follow familiar routines, help to tidy and respond to simple instructions. However, routines are not always sufficiently flexible. For example, children are interrupted from sustained mark making for snack, reducing their concentration and opportunity to extend their ideas.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard

The childminder promotes attendance and punctuality. She records attendance, follows up absences and reviews patterns. When patterns of lateness arise, she explains to families how regular and punctual attendance increases children's opportunities to play and learn.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard

The childminder supports children's welfare and wellbeing through appropriate care practices, which she regularly reviews. She gathers information from families about sleep, feeding, comfort items, allergies and home routines and uses it to personalise care. Children settle gradually because parents and carers can stay initially and increase separation at each child's pace. This flexible approach helps children form secure attachments.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard

The childminder follows safe-eating practices, such as by seating children securely, cutting fruit into suitable pieces and supervising children until they finish chewing. Children drink water freely from labelled bottles throughout the day. Children with specific dietary requirements receive appropriate alternatives, according to information from their families. The childminder follows hygienic nappy-changing routines, narrates what she is doing and sings songs. This develops children's communication and helps them become familiar with hygiene practices.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard

Babies and children sleep in suitable cots and sleep mats, while the childminder supervises them closely, using sleep monitors and regular physical checks. The childminder discusses children's sleep routines with families and shares information about their rest. Children typically learn about healthy food and oral hygiene through books, role play, activities and displays. Children develop physical health through daily outdoor play. The childminder provides comfort, quiet spaces and predictable routines that generally help children express and regulate their emotions.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

The childminder designs a broad curriculum across all areas of learning. She builds on babies' and young children's starting points and prepares them for later learning. The childminder prioritises children's personal, social and emotional development, communication and language, and physical development. She plans around children's ages, stages, interests and settling needs. The childminder observes children, consults parents and carers and identifies what children know and can do before planning their next steps. She adapts teaching for children who are new to her care and those who face barriers, including children with special educational needs and/or disabilities, by using repetition and familiar routines, for instance.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

The childminder generally teaches purposefully. She sits at children's level, narrates play, repeats vocabulary, sings songs and asks simple questions. The childminder engages children in role play about caring for babies, developing language and understanding. During sand play, she introduces simple numbers, colours and mathematical words and encourages older children to predict and compare. Mark-making materials, stickers, blocks and interactive toys support coordination and independence. The childminder reviews observations to improve planning and teaching. However, she does not always provide varied outdoor resources that sustain babies' exploration. In addition, at times, daily routines interrupt older children's sustained play and reduce opportunities to extend their learning.

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Inclusion Expected standard

The childminder creates a typically inclusive environment by gathering detailed information about children's routines, interests, languages, health and development, before they start. She uses this information to adapt routines, experiences and care arrangements and shares this with any assistants she may work with, as appropriate. As a result, children experience continuity between home and the setting, settle more securely and participate confidently. The childminder observes children closely, identifies emerging needs, records concerns and involves parents and carers, local early years services and other professionals to support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. This coordinated approach supports children to receive suitable support promptly. When children experience delays in developing communication skills or difficulty managing emotions and sensory experiences, she introduces visual timetables, pictures, gestures, quiet spaces and predictable routines.

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Inclusion Expected standard

These adjustments reduce children's anxiety, help them understand what will happen next and enable them to communicate, participate and play alongside others.

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Inclusion Expected standard

The childminder typically completes relevant training and works closely with parents and professionals to review and refine support according to children's individual progress. She directs families to local authority services so they can access any funding and support to which they are entitled. She also seeks advice from health visitors, speech and language therapists and other professionals to help reduce barriers to children's learning.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

The childminder generally sets clear priorities for children's care, learning and development. She reviews her practice and makes changes that benefit children. For instance, reorganising the main playroom has helped children choose resources and play more independently. In addition, a rain cover and soft flooring in the garden has given some children more opportunities to explore and develop their physical skills throughout the year. The childminder oversees her provision to support children's welfare and safety and checks that any assistants remain suitable to work with them. The childminder follows safe- recruitment procedures when appointing any assistants. She assesses their suitability and completes relevant checks before they start.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

The childminder and any assistants complete mandatory training and apply what they learn in their daily practice. This helps them identify concerns promptly, respond appropriately to emergencies and provide safe, hygienic care that supports children's health, behaviour and emotional wellbeing. The childminder provides induction and regular coaching sessions. During coaching sessions, she discusses safeguarding, children's needs, assistants' workload and their wellbeing. She monitors any assistants' practice through observations and feedback. However, she does not yet use this evidence precisely enough to plan targeted training that develops assistants' knowledge of child development and further improves teaching.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

The childminder works with parents and carers, local authority advisers and other professionals. She shares relevant information when children move to other settings, helping them experience continuity in their care and learning. Parents feel welcomed and involved. They value daily conversations about their children's experiences and ideas for extending learning at home. The childminder listens to their feedback and uses it to review and develop the provision.

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

Children arrive happily and separate from their parents and carers with increasing confidence. Children who are new to the setting settle at their own pace. They seek reassurance when needed, choose familiar activities and gradually move away from adults to explore, returning when they need comfort. These secure relationships help children feel safe. Families feel welcomed and share information about their children's interests, routines and needs, which the childminder uses to help children settle and take part.

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

Children enjoy songs, musical instruments, role play, mark making and sensory experiences. Babies and young children copy actions, join in with familiar songs and begin to use words to communicate. They develop coordination as they crawl, pull themselves up, ride wheeled toys and climb. Older children count, compare quantities and use words, such as 'full' and 'empty', as they fill containers with sand. These experiences build skills that prepare children for their next steps in learning.

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

Children play alongside their peers and learn to cooperate as they help to tidy, pass instruments, take turns with support and join shared celebrations. Babies and young children learn to manage frustration, as adults offer calm explanations and sensitive support. Children, including those who need additional support, benefit from familiar routines and adaptations that help them communicate and participate. They choose toys from low-level shelves, make simple choices and explore musical instruments, showing increasing confidence, independence and curiosity.

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

Children experience continuity between the setting and home. The childminder and families regularly exchange information and ideas for extending learning. Children make progress because the childminder understands their starting points and responds to their individual needs. Children have continued opportunities to learn as the childminder monitors attendance, follows up absences and helps families understand the value of attending regularly.

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Next steps

The childminder should adapt daily routines to help children remain focused and extend their play and learning. The childminder should strengthen the outdoor curriculum and provision to sustain babies' and children's exploration and physical development. The childminder should build on existing supervision arrangements to provide targeted professional development matched to assistants' individual needs, to further improve the quality of teaching.

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About this setting

Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 09:00 - 15:30

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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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About this inspection

The inspector spoke with the childminder and the assistants who work with her 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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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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