Childminder inspection report. McDill, Ann Maybole

Transcription

1 Childminder inspection report McDill, Ann Maybole Inspection completed on 09 June 2015

2 Childminder inspection report Service provided by: McDill, Ann Service provider number: SP Care service number: CS Inspection Type: Unannounced Care services in Scotland, including childminders, cannot operate unless they are registered with the Care Inspectorate. We inspect, award grades and set out improvements that must be made. We also investigate complaints about care services and take action when things aren't good enough. Please get in touch with us if you would like more information or have any concerns about a care service. Contact Us Care Inspectorate Compass House 11 Riverside Drive Dundee DD1 4NY enquiries@careinspectorate.com page 2 of 16

3 1 Introduction The Care Inspectorate regulates care services in Scotland. Information about all care services is available on our website at This service was previously registered with the Care Commission and transferred its registration to the Care Inspectorate on 1 April This is a childminding service and Ms Ann McDill may look after a maximum of six children aged up to 16 years of age of whom no more than six will be under 12 and of whom, no more than three may not be attending primary school and of whom no more than one may be under one year of age. Numbers are inclusive of the childminder's family. The service is located in a residential area within the town of Maybole in South Ayrshire near to local schools, shops and parks. The childminder provides her service in a semi-detached house specifically used for childminding. Minded children have access to the lounge, kitchen, bathroom, upstairs bedrooms and the garden. The childminder's main priority is for 'the children's safety, security, wellbeing and happiness at all times.' What we did during our inspection We spoke with: - one minded child - the childminder. We also observed the childminder's practice and her care of the minded child. We looked at: - certificates of registration and insurance - questionnaires returned to the childminder - posters and newsletters - documentation for the children including permissions - accident and incident paperwork - medication paperwork - information booklet - photographs Childminder inspection report page 3 of 16

4 - policy statements and written procedures - the environment and equipment - registration as food provider - risk assessments for the environment and other activities - safety records - training records. Childminder inspection report Views of people using the service The childminder was caring for eight minded children at the time of this inspection and we met one of them during this inspection. The child was happy and relaxed in the care of the childminder. The child could freely choose from a very good selection of age appropriate play materials and clearly was used to the attentions of the childminder. The child readily spoke with us and told us about the materials she was using. It was evident that the childminder knew the child well and told us of how she had discussed the child's care with the child's mother and had made appropriate provision for the child. We found that the care of the child was in keeping with the well-being indicators from the national programme 'Getting it Right for Every Child' (GIRFEC) and was specific to the individual needs of the child. We saw from feedback the childminder had received that children and their families were very satisfied with the service provided by the childminder. Self assessment Every year all care services complete a 'self assessment' telling us how their service is performing. We check to make sure this is accurate. The childminder had completed a new style self-assessment. The childminder had completed this with some good information for each of the quality themes that we grade. The childminder identified what she thought she did well and things she had done since her previous inspection. She told us how the children and families who used the service had taken part in the self-assessment process. What the service did well The childminder was friendly and approachable and had established effective working relationships with the families whose children were in her care. We found that she had been responsive and inclusive and had considered the page 4 of 16

5 children's views when planning activities and outings. She had continued to develop personal plans for the children and used the GIRFEC wellbeing indicators to help her identify positive outcomes for children. She had also involved the children in creating a chart for the GIRFEC wellbeing indicators that she used alongside her reward chart to promote consideration and respect of others. What the service could do better We made one recommendation. This was in relation to: - fire safety. Childminder inspection report 2 The grades we awarded We grade the quality of care and support, the quality of the environment and the quality of management and leadership. If the childminder employs an assistant, we also grade the quality of staffing. In each case, we award a grade on a scale from 1 to 6, where 1 is unsatisfactory and 6 is excellent. Quality of care and support Quality of environment Quality of staffing Quality of management and leadership 4 - Good 3 Quality of care and support Findings from the inspection We found that the childminder had gathered information about the children on her register and was familiar with their preferences and had followed the wishes of their families for their day-to-day care. The childminder had established very effective working relationships with the families. She had done this mostly through day-to-day exchanges, texts and private Facebook messages. In addition, she had issued each family with an information booklet and had displayed a wealth of information about her service in her premises. She had also shared photographs with families and had invited them to social page 5 of 16

6 Childminder inspection report evenings when they could talk about their children's experiences. The childminder had recorded mandatory and some additional information for the care of the minded children. The childminder had compiled written personal plans for each child in consultation with their families. We looked at two of these and saw that she had reviewed these as required in consultation with the families. We found that these focused on the children's individual care needs and included next steps for progress using the GIRFEC wellbeing indicators. The childminder provided drinks and families supplied all snacks and meals. We saw that she encouraged the minded child to select an appropriate midmorning snack from her packed lunch. The childminder advised that she had discouraged fizzy drinks and had promoted plain water and milk and had reduced the amount of juice she had provided. Although the childminder did not provide food, she was familiar with the risks involving allergens and had asked families to provide her with information about allergens that have affected their children. We found that outdoor play had been a feature of activity programmes throughout the year. We saw that there was space for active energetic play in the childminder's garden. In addition, the childminder had taken minded children on outings to local parks and soft play facilities where they had space to take part in energetic activities. The children had also enjoyed visiting the country park of Culzean, the Burns Centre and the village beach at Dunure. The children also liked the holiday time sports activities including golf tuition that the childminder offered. The childminder had a Child Protection policy and was familiar with her role in safeguarding children. She had also discussed with the children road safety and stranger danger to increase their awareness of being safe. She used the 'Ziggy' picture books to promote various aspects of safety awareness for the children. The childminder advised that she had cared for generally well-behaved children. She had established some basic house rules and encouraged the children to share, take turns and respect each other. They had helped to create the GIRFEC chart and the following are some of the children's contributions for the wellbeing indicators: page 6 of 16

7 Childminder inspection report Respected - 'you listen to everyone' Nurtured - 'talking about each other's feelings' Included - 'everyone joins in together' Safe - 'hold hands when you cross the road.' We also saw how she quietly but firmly guided the young child in her care to develop her social skills during the inspection. The childminder felt that her system of praising and rewarding good behaviour encouraged and motivated the children who had named her reward chart the 'Fan- Dabby-Dozy Tree'. We saw that the childminder had forms to record the administration of medication and that these were in accordance with current best practice guidance. The childminder advised of being aware of new guidance for 'Management of medication in daycare of children and childminding services on the Care Inspectorate website We found that choices available to the children at the time of this inspection were very good. We saw that the downstairs lounge was set up as a playroom for mainly younger children but that the older children could choose from a selection of materials suited to them and could play Ping-Pong on the table in the playroom. In addition, the older children could select from materials upstairs and could use the 'music room' set up with full size drum kit and keyboard or select from the dressing up clothes and board games and other equipment. The childminder had also provided some music tuition for budding musicians. Grade The quality of care and support is graded Requirements Number of requirements - 0 Recommendations Number of recommendations - 0 page 7 of 16

8 4 Quality of environment Findings from the inspection Childminder inspection report We found that the childminder had ensured that her environment was fit for the care of young children through day to day cleaning and on-going visual risk assessment. She also had written risk assessments and checklists for her home, outings and other activities. A recognised contractor had serviced her heating on an annual basis. She had available appropriate insurance cover for her childminding and business cover for the use of her car. The childminder had registered with Environmental Health as a provider of food and her premises complied with the requirements for a provider of food. The childminder advised that she had tested her smoke detectors periodically and had practised evacuations with the children when doing these. The childminder could not locate her fire safety records to evidence smoke detector tests during this inspection. We also reminded her to observe the fire safety guidance for childminding in domestic premises and ensure that an adult without the use of a key may open final exit doors from the inside. (see recommendation 1 for this quality statement). The children mainly had access to the lounge/playroom and kitchen on the ground floor and the bathroom. In the lounge, there was ample space to play and child height tables and chairs. Low-level storage units allowed children to easily access play materials. The rear garden was safely enclosed and the surface consisted of some paving and gravel. The childminder advised of her intention to lay some bark under the swings. We have asked that the children do not have access to the swings until the childminder makes the frame secure and lays a softer surface in the area where the swings were located. The garden was in need of some maintenance and a facelift to make it a more attractive play area. The playhouse was out of bounds as the childminder needed to clean it and an old shed was not fully secure. We found that the childminder was familiar with good practice to minimise the spread of infection. All areas accessed by the minded children were clean. The childminder knew of exclusion periods for infectious illness and of the need to observe these. She was familiar with best practice when changing children and of the need to wear personal protective equipment. She promoted hand page 8 of 16

9 washing at key times and had provided minded children with individual hand drying. She also had permission for the children to clean their teeth and toothbrushes were stored safely to minimise the risk of cross infection. The childminder advised that since the previous inspection no minded child has had an accident. She had available a basic first aid kit to deal with minor accidents and forms to record accidents and she took some basic first aid materials with her on outings with the children. Grade The quality of environment is graded Requirements Number of requirements - 0 Recommendations Number of recommendations - 1 Childminder inspection report 1. The childminder should test her smoke detectors weekly as advised in the fire safety guidance for childminding in domestic premises and keep a record of these to minimise the possibility of harm to children. In addition, she should observe the guidance in relation to final exit doors to ensure there are no obstacles to hinder prompt evacuation in the event of an emergency. National Care Standards for early education and childcare up to the age of 16: Standard 2: A safe environment. 5 Quality of staffing We only assess this where the childminder employs an assistant. Findings from the inspection At the time of this inspection the childminder's husband Mr Charles Roy was named as an assistant on her certificate of registration. The regulator approved him as an assistant after completing fit person vetting at the time of the childminder's registration as a childminder. The childminder advised that it is not her intention to recruit any more staff and that she does not have a safer recruitment procedure. In May of this year, we received satisfactory Protection page 9 of 16

10 of Vulnerable People checks (PVG) for the childminder and her husband. We found that the childminder's husband has only assisted in the care of minded children on an occasional basis as he works full time on a shift basis. The childminder advised that she has only used her husband to help with the children on an ad hoc basis sometimes with sport or craft activities. The childminder advised that her husband does not have sole responsibility for minded children at any time. The childminder advised that her husband had knowledge of key policies and procedures such as child protection, fire and behaviour management. We have assessed there to be suitable supervision of the assistant when he is in the presence of minded children. Grade The quality of staffing is graded 4 - Good Requirements Number of requirements - 0 Recommendations Number of recommendations - 0 Childminder inspection report 6 Quality of management and leadership Findings from the inspection There was some very good evidence that the childminder had kept up to date with best practice and legislation since her previous inspection. She had received current information in relation to childcare from the local childminding support group, the Scottish Childminding Association (SCMA) and from magazines such as the Care Inspectorate 'Care News' and The Care Inspectorate online resource the 'Hub'. She also had a range of up to date best practice guidance documents such as 'Building the Ambition', 'Pre Birth to Three, Infection Control in Children's Daycare and Childminding Services'. She also had a publication from SCMA, 'Childminding Fundamentals' which she felt had page 10 of 16

11 served as a useful refresher for the business side of childminding but with easy read sections about a variety of other topics such as GIRFEC. From our discussions with the childminder, we found that these documents had helped her to keep abreast of current developments and best practice in childcare. We also found that the childminder had undertaken some training courses since her previous inspection. These included training about GIRFEC and toddler development training. She was aware that her First Aid certificate would expire at the end of the year and she with other childminders intended opening 'Individual Learning Accounts'. With help from the local childminder support group, they hoped that they would be able to arrange and pay for training more convenient for their location. We have suggested that the childminder consider some refresher courses for topics such as Child Protection, Infection Control and Sensible Risk Assessment.. The childminder had relied mainly on day-to-day exchanges with children and their families for feedback about the quality of her service since her previous inspection but from time to time had also used questionnaires. The childminder's written records showed that she had developed very good lines of communication with the children and their families and had respected their views and preferences in relation to the care of the children. Grade The quality of management and leadership is graded Requirements Number of requirements - 0 Recommendations Number of recommendations - 0 Childminder inspection report page 11 of 16

12 Childminder inspection report 7 What the service has done to meet any recommendations or requirements we made at our last inspection Previous requirements 1. (1) You have submitted a fully completed application with relevant payment for either membership of the Protection of Vulnerable Groups (PVG) Scheme or for a Scheme Record Update for regulated work with children to the Care Inspectorate (including verification of identity). And (2) you have ensured that application(s) for Scheme membership/ Scheme Record Update of the Protection of Vulnerable Groups (PVG) Scheme for regulated work with children have been submitted to the Care Inspectorate with relevant payment for any individual working for you in the care service as a childminding assistant This is in order to comply with The Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland (Requirements for Care Services) Regulations 2011 (SSI 2011/210), regulation 4 - Welfare of Users, in particular regulation 4(1)(a) and regulation 13 - Protection of vulnerable groups listings, in particular, regulation 13(1). Regulation 4 states: 4.- Welfare of users (1) A provider must - (a) make proper provision for the health, welfare and safety of service users; page 12 of 16

13 Childminder inspection report Regulation 13 states: 13.- Protection of vulnerable groups listings (1) A person who is listed in the children's list in the Protection of Vulnerable Groups (Scotland) Act 2007 must not provide, manage or be employed in a care service for children. Timescale for compliance: by 14 January This requirement was made on Wednesday 3rd December 2014 The childminder submitted the required paperwork and payment in respect of herself and her named assistant and checks were found to be clear. Met - Outwith Timescales Previous recommendations 1. The childminder should contact the fire safety officer regarding the use of the first floor for childminding and implement any required safety precautions before using this floor for childminding. National Care Standards for early education and childcare up to the age of 16 years, Standard 3: A safe environment. This recommendation was made on Thursday 21st November 2013 The childminder had asked the fire safety officer to visit and decided to put additional smoke detectors in each of the three upstairs bedrooms in addition to the one on the first floor landing. Recommendation met. page 13 of 16

14 Childminder inspection report 8 Complaints There have been no complaints upheld since the last inspection. Details of any older upheld complaints are published at 9 Enforcements No enforcement action has been taken against this care service since the last inspection 10 Other issues None. page 14 of 16

15 Childminder inspection report 11 Inspection and grading history Date Type Gradings 28 Jan 2015 Re-grade Care and support Not Assessed Environment Not Assessed Staffing Not Assessed Management and Leadership 1 - Unsatisfactory 21 Nov 2013 Unannounced Care and support Environment Staffing Management and Leadership Not Assessed 15 Apr 2010 Announced (Short Notice) Care and support Environment Staffing Management and Leadership Not Assessed Not Assessed 25 Apr 2008 Announced (short notice) Care and support Environment Staffing Management and Leadership page 15 of 16

16 To find out more This inspection report is published by the Care Inspectorate. You can download this report and others from our website. You can also read more about our work online. Contact Us Care Inspectorate Compass House 11 Riverside Drive Dundee DD1 4NY Other languages and formats Childminder inspection report This report is available in other languages and formats on request. Tha am foillseachadh seo ri fhaighinn ann an cruthannan is c?in eile ma nithear iarrtas. page 16 of 16