Inspection report for early years provision
Unique reference number	EY419560
Inspection date	08/09/2011
Inspector	Sally Smith
Type of setting	Childcare on domestic premises

The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (Ofsted) regulates and inspects to achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children's social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, work-based learning and skills training, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for looked after children, safeguarding and child protection. If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk. You may copy all or parts of this document for non-commercial educational purposes, as long as you give details of the source and date of publication and do not alter the information in any way.
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© Crown copyright 2011

Introduction

This inspection was carried out by Ofsted under Sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 on the quality and standards of the registered early years provision. ‘Early years provision’ refers to provision regulated by Ofsted for children from birth to 31 August following their fifth birthday (the early years age group). The registered person must ensure that this provision complies with the statutory framework for children’s learning, development and welfare, known as the Early Years Foundation Stage.

The provider must provide a copy of this report to all parents with children at the setting where reasonably practicable.  The provider must provide a copy of the report to any other person who asks for one, but may charge a fee for this service (The Childcare (Inspection) Regulations 2008 regulations 9 and 10).

The setting also makes provision for children older than the early years age group which is registered on the voluntary and/or compulsory part(s) of the Childcare Register. This report does not include an evaluation of that provision, but a comment about compliance with the requirements of the Childcare Register is included in Annex B.   

Please see our website for more information about each childcare provider. We publish inspection reports, conditions of registration and details of complaints we receive where we or the provider take action to meet the requirements of registration.

Description of the   setting    

Brambles Childcare was registered to provide childcare on domestic premises in 2010. It operates from a private house of a registered childminder where she lives with her two children and partner in a small village near to Church Stretton. The property is accessed by the back door which leads into the children's porch. All areas of the ground floor are used. There are two fully enclosed outdoor play areas. The setting has a dog, chickens, rabbits and snakes. A childminding service is also offered from these premises at times when the childcare on domestic premises is not operating.

The setting opens Monday to Friday all year round. Sessions are from 7.30am to 6pm. Children are able to attend for a variety of sessions.

A maximum of 20 children may attend the setting at any one time. There are currently 13 children attending who are within the Early Years Foundation Stage. The setting also offers care to children aged over five years. The setting is registered on the Early Years Register and on both the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register.

The owner holds a qualification in early years care and education at level 3. The setting employs four members of childcare staff, three of whom hold appropriate early years qualifications. The setting receives support from the local authority. The group provides funded early education for three- and four-year-olds.

The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

 Overall the quality of the provision is outstanding.

 The setting provides exceptionally high quality care and learning for children, ensuring that they make rapid progress in all areas of their development. Planning and assessment arrangements are robust and excellently executed by staff. This means that activities and experiences are clearly tailored to meet children's individual needs. This is enhanced because of the excellent partnerships with parents, contributing significantly to children's individual needs being met. Self-evaluation considers the views of all those involved in the setting and reflects the high aspirations for quality held by adults in order to positively drive ongoing improvement.

What steps need to be taken to improve provision further?

To further improve the high quality early years provision the registered person should consider: increase the range of visual displays, pictures and posters to reflect cultural diversity and disability.

The effectiveness of leadership and management of the early years provision

The childminder and staff have an excellent understanding of their responsibility to safeguard children. They are very secure in their knowledge of procedures to follow should they have any concerns. Excellent measures are employed to ensure children's safety at all times; all adults are conscious of the need to ensure that the environment in which children play is safe, and visually check these areas daily. A written record of risk assessments is maintained, which is continually reviewed and improved. The setting runs particularly smoothly as all staff have a clear understanding of their roles and ensure that all necessary policies and procedures are effectively implemented on a daily basis. A warm and inviting environment is created where children can play and relax according to their needs. A range of exciting and stimulating activities help children to develop their full potential through play, while ensuring that each child's needs are effectively met. As a result, children are confident and secure in their environment and eager to learn.

The setting is extremely well organised, providing children with opportunities to self-select resources and make choices about their play. Excellent use is made of staff's time to ensure children are fully supported in all that they do. Detailed planning is in place and focuses on various themes, although this is flexible to accommodate children's needs and interests as they vary. Children have a wealth of resources to choose from, which are in excellent condition, clearly labelled and readily accessible. These, along with the well-organised space, maximise play and learning opportunities for all children. The childminder and staff are fully committed to meeting all children's needs, resulting in children feeling valued and developing high levels of self-esteem. While the setting is not currently caring for any children who have special educational needs and/or disabilities, staff understand the importance of working closely with outside professionals to support children's welfare and development.

The childminder and staff establish excellent partnerships with parents based on mutual respect. Information is regularly shared about what the children have enjoyed and achieved. Parents are extremely pleased and exceptionally complimentary about the service provided. They value the staff's passion and dedication to their work and the wonderful learning opportunities they provide. Parents are regularly consulted for their views and ideas in order to enhance the service. Staff show an outstanding commitment to driving improvement. They all contribute to the self-evaluation process, highlighting the setting's considerable strengths while also identifying any areas that they wish to improve. An action plan identifies manageable and achievable targets for all staff in order to continually improve outcomes for children. This well-targeted approach to driving improvement shows the clear ambition of the setting to provide high quality provision.

The quality and standards of the early years provision and outcomes for children

The childminder and staff excel in offering activities that promote all areas of children's learning most effectively. There are a superb mix of opportunities that include free-flow play indoors and outside, frequent outings in the local community and exciting adult-led activities that enrich their learning. High regard is given to promoting children's independent learning, ensuring they become confident learners. From the outset, there is excellent assessment and monitoring of children's development. Information is sought from parents in relation to children's starting points and specific areas of interest. This results in well-targeted and focused planning of activities. The childminder and assistants keep assessments updated, providing an accurate record of children's progress. These are used to plan appropriate and challenging next steps aimed at each individual child. Parents speak highly of the care and learning their children receive and particularly value the parents evening to share information regarding their children's learning and development.

Children are confident, articulate and self-assured. They place their photograph on the self-registration board on arrival and quickly make themselves at home, selecting resources from the wide range available. They develop a great sense of belonging as they excitedly observe pictures and a slideshow of themselves on a large television monitor. The provision is located in a rural community and this provides a solid foundation for exciting learning potential. For example, they learn many aspects of farming life, such as bottle feeding newborn lambs, helping with the harvest and collecting eggs.

Staff support children's learning exceptionally well; they encourage lots of purposeful discussions during play, asking children questions to make them think and use language to explore ideas and feelings. Children are exposed to a good range of books to support their communication, language and literacy skills. They enjoy changing the ending of well-known tales or putting their own interpretation on the story. This enables children's imaginations to 'run riot' while encouraging great humour and expression.

Children develop good skills in information and communication technology due to resources, such as computers and remote control toys. Novel ways are incorporated into their play to explore how things work. For example, they use a metal detector to unearth hidden treasures in the garden or on outings. They learn about numeracy and problem solving by playing with the range of games and resources freely available to them. For example, children explore running their cars through pipes and excitedly watch them emerge at the end. Staff discuss the width and size of the cars, encouraging children to explore which will fit, developing their awareness of shape and size. Children's imagination is encouraged through dressing up, role play, music and dance. There are fantastic opportunities for children to develop their creative talents. They explore using a variety of paints, different sized brushes and textured paper. Children learn about people's differences, although there are limited pictures and posters displayed to reflect cultural diversity and disability.

Children have a positive attitude towards being active and developing their physical skills. Excellent use is made of the outdoor environment, with a fantastic array of resources and activities to fully promote all areas of their development. Children make wonderful use of natural and recyclable resources. For example, they collect sticks and twigs and deftly weave these onto the fence, making an attractive outdoor feature. Exceptional regard is attached to children's welfare in general. They enjoy healthy, well-balanced snacks and meals, often from home grown or locally bought produce. The children help to pick, prepare and cook some of the food they consume. They take baskets and gather blueberries, strawberries and blackcurrants from the garden, checking first that they are ripe. Children put forward fantastic suggestions as to what to make with the produce and are actively involved in this. For example, they use a blender to make smoothies and fresh juice and chop up fruit for fruit salad, crumbles and pies. Children learn the importance of how to keep safe. They know what to do in the event of a fire because they routinely practise the evacuation procedures. Road safety is firmly instilled before every outing and children know why they wear high visibility protective clothing. When playing, older children check toys for safety before giving these to babies and younger children. Children use real equipment and tools under close supervision while learning how to keep safe. For example, children use a workbench to saw wood. This helps to develop exceedingly good hand-eye coordination.

Children are developing exemplary behaviour as they receive an abundance of praise and encouragement. They are supported to work cooperatively and to respect one another and their differences. Children's behaviour is managed in a calm and sensitive manner by staff, who set clear, reasonable and consistent limits which help children to feel safe and secure. Overall, children are extremely content within their environment and develop many skills which help to set a secure foundation for future learning.

Annex A: record of inspection judgements

The key inspection judgements and what they mean Grade 1 is Outstanding: this aspect of the provision is of exceptionally high quality Grade 2 is Good: this aspect of the provision is strong Grade 3 is Satisfactory: this aspect of the provision is sound Grade 4 is Inadequate: this aspect of the provision is not good enough

The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

How well does the setting meet the needs of the children in the Early Years Foundation Stage?	1
The capacity of the provision to maintain continuous improvement	1

The effectiveness of leadership and management of the early years provision

The effectiveness of leadership and management of the Early Years Foundation Stage	1
The effectiveness of leadership and management in embedding ambition and driving improvement	1
The effectiveness with which the setting deploys resources	1
The effectiveness with which the setting promotes equality and diversity	1
The effectiveness of safeguarding	1
The effectiveness of the setting’s self-evaluation, including the steps taken to promote improvement	1
The effectiveness of partnerships	1
The effectiveness of the setting’s engagement with parents and carers	1

The quality of the provision in the Early Years Foundation Stage

The quality of the provision in the Early Years Foundation Stage

1

Outcomes for children in the Early Years Foundation Stage

Outcomes for children in the Early Years Foundation Stage	1
The extent to which children achieve and enjoy their learning	1
The extent to which children feel safe	1
The extent to which children adopt healthy lifestyles	1
The extent to which children make a positive contribution	1
The extent to which children develop skills for the future	1

Any complaints about the inspection or report should be made following the procedures set out in the guidance available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

Annex B: the Childcare Register

The provider confirms that the requirements of the compulsory part of the Childcare Register are:

Met

The provider confirms that the requirements of the voluntary part of the Childcare Register are:

Met