Childminder in TraffordOfsted report card, 1 Oct 2026

Childminder

Unique reference number (URN): 2856337 Registered with Ofsted: 01/10/2025 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 make steady progress from their starting points across all areas of learning. They develop a variety of key skills that support them to be ready for their next stage of learning and move on to school. For instance, children develop their independence and confidence as they make choices about what they would like to play with. They also get ready for the garden with minimal support and show pride in accomplishing tasks by themselves.

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Achievement Expected standard

Children show interest, enthusiasm and well-developed concentration skills when engaging in a range of activities available to them. When listening to stories, they demonstrate positive listening and attention skills. Children enjoy discussing the characters and sequence of the story. This fosters their memory and early comprehension skills. Children make clear progress in their communication and language skills as they interact with the childminder and their peers during play. They enjoy talking about their families, their birthday parties and favourite local outings. Children also develop their early mathematical understanding as they discuss numbers, colours and shapes and count during their interactions.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard

All children recognise and follow well-established routines and behave well. When they arrive, they take off their shoes and hang up their coats and bags independently. Children are respectful of their environment and are keen to help to tidy up resources. They also display positive table manners as they engage in sociable mealtimes at the table. The childminder is a positive role model. She reminds children that they are capable learners and fosters their independence throughout the day. The childminder provides lots of encouragement and acknowledges their efforts when they persevere on more difficult tasks. This builds children's self-esteem and confidence over time.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard

The childminder teaches children about different feelings and emotions through discussions and play. She reads them the 'Colour Monster' story, and they discuss things that make them happy and sad. This supports them to understand about different emotions through storytelling and play. Children are polite and respectful towards each other. They take turns and generally wait patiently during conversations. This supports children's collaborative play skills well. The childminder monitors children's attendance. She engages effectively with parents and carers to understand the reason for any unexplained absences. This helps to ensure the wellbeing and welfare of children.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard

The childminder is passionate about ensuring that children are safe at her setting. This is apparent when she engages in fundraising to raise money for a defibrillator to be installed on the side of her home for the local community to use in case of an emergency. The childminder structures the day to give children a balance of active outdoor time, indoor play and calm resting times. Children move between the routines with confidence and ease. The childminder works closely with parents and carers to ensure that children generally eat a wide range of balanced and healthy foods. She uses routines, such as snack time, to teach children about making healthy food choices. For instance, the childminder asks children what they are eating and why it is good for them, which builds their understanding of nutrition. Children have daily opportunities to be active. They frequently visit local parks, soft-play centres and go on nature walks. They also benefit from a wide variety of equipment

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard

and resources in the childminder's spacious garden, which helps them to have daily fresh air and exercise.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard

Children show they feel emotionally secure at the setting. They approach the childminder for support, reassurance and guidance. This is a clear sign of the quality of the relationships she has built with them. Children evidently form positive views of themselves. They show keen attitudes towards learning and are motivated to try new things and try to accomplish new skills by themselves.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

The childminder provides a generally varied curriculum that supports all areas of learning. This is evident when children enjoy using water spray bottles to reveal a variety of colours on large-scale paper. This helps to develop their hand-eye coordination and knowledge of different colours. Children also have fun participating in puzzles together. The childminder teaches them about classifying the pieces according to the colour and matching the borders. This fosters children's concentration and problem-solving skills.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Children delight in helping to care for the childminder's rabbit. They enjoy stroking their fur and discuss the importance of being kind and gentle. They also discuss how they like eating carrots and lettuce. Children have excellent opportunities to develop their gross motor skills. They have fun playing on a slide and develop their core strength as they climb on a climbing frame. Children are well supported to develop their mathematical knowledge.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

The childminder weaves mathematical language into purposeful interactions that expose children to new vocabulary and concepts. For example, she uses mathematical and prepositional language when teaching children about trains going 'over' and 'under' the bridge. The childminder uses high-quality interactions to capture children's attention and to positively engage them with new learning. However, at times, the simplicity of the way in which she plans some of the activities on offer does not extend and stretch children's learning to the very highest level. The childminder plans some experiences to develop children's awareness of others' lives different to their own, such as when visiting a local care home. Despite this enriching experience, the childminder recognises that planning an even broader range of experiences to teach children about different backgrounds and cultures will support children's understanding of diversity even further.

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Inclusion Expected standard

The childminder strives to create an inclusive culture where she recognises and supports all children's specific needs. She carefully monitors children's progress and completes termly assessments and the progress checks when children are aged between 2 and 3 years. This helps the childminder to assess if children's development is on track. Although she is not currently supporting any children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) or those that may face additional barriers to their wellbeing and learning, the childminder demonstrates a secure knowledge about how to work with parents and carers and other professionals to make swift referrals to target any gaps in learning. She discusses how she would liaise with local health visitors, speech and language teams or the local authority's inclusion team to ensure that children and families receive the right support.

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Inclusion Expected standard

The childminder also displays a clear understanding of making adaptions to her environment and planning targeted sessions to support children's individual developmental need. As part of her own self-evaluation process, she has identified that she would like to engage in some training around supporting children with SEND to enhance her knowledge and skills further. In addition, the childminder displays an awareness of how additional funding can be used to support children to close any gaps in their learning and development.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

The childminder organises her setting effectively, placing children's best interests at the centre of what she does. She has an accurate view of her provision. The childminder identifies her strengths well and is equally clear about areas she wants to develop further. She engages in professionals discussions with local childminders about changes to the early years foundation stage, including changes to safer sleep guidance. The childminder also participates in mandatory training, such as first aid, food hygiene and safeguarding. The childminder identifies that engaging in further special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) and learning and development training will help to strengthen her curriculum and knowledge of supporting children with SEND even further. The childminder discusses the importance of using any additional funding appropriately to target children's learning and close any developmental gaps.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

The childminder has secure safeguarding knowledge and can confidently discuss indicators that may suggest a child is at risk of harm. She can also outline how she would swiftly report any concerns to protect children's welfare. Parents' and carers' written feedback speaks positively about the setting. They describe the childminder as approachable and caring, with many stating that their children love attending. They hugely value the varied experiences their children enjoy throughout the week. Parents express their children enjoy visiting farms, zoos, the beach and going pumpkin patch picking.

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

Children show that they feel happy, safe and comfortable at the setting. They are well cared for by the nurturing childminder, who knows them very well. Children show confidence to explore their surroundings and join in with a range of activities with enthusiasm. They learn and play in a calm, welcoming and well-resourced environment that supports their learning effectively. Children receive clear support to hear new language and broaden their vocabulary. For instance, when reading the 'Gruffalo Granny' story they discuss the meaning of the word 'vegetarian'. Children also delight in playing with a 'Gruffalo Granny' inspired large tray and explore a range of vegetables as they pretend to make vegetable stew. Children also enjoy playing with small-world resources and discuss different animals and creatures. This helps to foster their imaginations and storytelling skills.

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

Children clearly thrive in the childminder's care and make positive progress in their learning. They develop a variety of age-appropriate skills and are well prepared for their eventual move to school. Children learn independence skills and begin to manage their own personal care needs by themselves. For example, they help to tidy up their toys and wash their hands before eating. The well-established routines encourage positive behaviour as children know what is expected of them. Children also benefit from an inviting and very well-resourced garden. They have fun on the swing, climbing frame and slide, and build on their physical skills as they have daily opportunities to climb and balance. In addition, children benefit from a range of outings with the childminder to local parks, playgroups, soft-play centres, farms and the library. These experiences help children to gain an understanding of their local

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

community. Children also frequently meet up with other local childminders and children. This broadens their social skills and builds their confidence playing with a wider range of children.

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Next steps

The childminder should continue to engage in further professional development opportunities to develop her curriculum further to help extend children's learning further. The childminder should build on children's opportunities to learn about diversity and lives different to their own further.

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About this inspection

The inspector spoke with the childminder and children 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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About this setting

Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 08:00 - 16:30

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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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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

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

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