Natalie's Childminding Service Child Minding

Transcription

1 Natalie's Childminding Service Child Minding Type of inspection: Unannounced Inspection completed on: 14 September 2016 Service provided by: Wallace, Natalie Service provider number: SP Care service number: CS

2 The service Introduction Natalie Wallace registered with the Care Inspectorate in January She is registered to provide a care service to a maximum of six children at any one time under the age of 16, of whom no more than three are aged one year to not yet attending primary school, of whom no more than one is under 12 months. Numbers are inclusive of the childminder's family. Minded children cannot be cared for by persons other than those named on the certificate. Overnight service will not be provided. The service is provided from the family home in Dundee, close to local parks, nurseries and schools and within walking distance of the city centre. Minded children have access to the lounge and the kitchen and the upstairs toilet. There is a fully enclosed back garden where the children can play with the outdoor toys. What we did during our inspection We wrote this report following an unannounced inspection, which took place between 9.35am and 12.05pm on Wednesday 14 September The inspection was carried out by a Care Inspectorate Early Years Inspector. During the inspection we spoke to the childminder and the minded children present. We observed the care given by the childminder, her interactions with the minded children and looked at a number of documents including health and safety records, planning tools and training information. This was the first inspection of the service since it registered. We check services are meeting the principles of Getting It Right For Every Child (also known as GIRFEC), Scotland's national approach to improving outcomes and wellbeing for children by offering the right help at the right time from the right people. It supports them and their parents to work with the services that can help them. There are eight wellbeing indicators at the heart of Getting It Right For Every Child: safe, healthy, achieving, nurtured, active, respected, responsible and included. Views of people using the service The minded children present appeared relaxed and confident around the childminder and within the childminding environment. They enjoyed a healthy breakfast and were keen to dance and sing along to their favourite nursery rhymes and action songs. Five parents returned completed questionnaires to us. They were all very happy with the care and support their child received at the service. Additional comments included: "The childminder goes over (Child's name) needs, and daily routines." page 2 of 9

3 "(Child's name) gets toast or cereal for breakfast. Snacks are fruit or rice cakes or yoghurt. Lunch is pasta in sauce, macaroni cheese, fish fingers or soup." "I feel 100% happy with the service I receive from Natalie. My son loves going there and cries when he has to come home. I am completely comfortable leaving him there and would recommend Natalie to anyone." "Natalie acts in a very professional manner. She is very enthusiastic in her care of the children and engages well with them." "Natalie is an amazing childminder and lady in general. She is so friendly and is always talking and advising of anything new with the children. It is such a relief to leave my daughter with someone I trust 100%. Also my daughter loves going to Natalie's and is always asking on the days that she doesn't attend if she is going to Natalie's today. I think this in itself speaks volumes." Self assessment The Care Inspectorate received a fully completed self assessment from the childminder. She had identified what she did well and had involved parents and children in the evaluation of her service. What the service did well The childminder knew children and their families very well, respected their views and valued their opinions. Children were relaxed and comfortable in a homely setting and enjoyed a variety of activities and experiences. What the service could do better The childminder should address the recommendations made at this inspection and continue to develop her service through routine evaluation. From this inspection we graded this service as: Quality of care and support Quality of environment Quality of staffing Quality of management and leadership 4 - Good 4 - Good not assessed 4 - Good Quality of care and support Findings from the inspection The childminder was caring, friendly and enthusiastic. She was in her first year of childminding and told us that she really enjoyed her work and was dedicated to providing a quality service for the children in her care. She had developed very good relationships with parents and children. She knew the children very well and was able to talk about how she supported them. page 3 of 9

4 Settling in visits were arranged to help the children and families settle into the childminding service. This gave the children time to get to know the childminder and the other children who attended the service and vice versa. During these visits, the childminder got to know the children and gathered information about them, which was recorded in their individual personal plans. Children's care routines were outlined in the plans. (Please see Recommendation 1) Photographs of the children involved in a variety of activities and experiences were displayed in their SHANARRI scrapbooks. The childminder had recorded her observations of the children's development and learning and had identified how she would support them to progress. She told us that she tried her best to provide consistency with home routines. This was a child centred service where activities and experiences led from children's interests. During the inspection the children happily danced and sang to their favourite songs and rhymes before having fun with the playdough and listening to one of the children's favourite stories. We saw the childminder cuddle, reassure and support the children throughout our visit. The children were encouraged to share and take turns as they played. The childminder joined in their play, extending and encouraging when needed. Healthy lifestyles were encouraged at the service through healthy breakfasts, snacks and lunches. Nutritional guidance and the children's likes/dislikes were taken into consideration when planning snacks and meals. The children were enjoying their breakfast of toast, ham and Weetabix when we arrived at the childminder's home. The children had many opportunities to access fresh air and physical activity while they attended the service. They walked to nursery and school as the childminder does not drive, they have fun playing in the garden with the outdoor toys, they visit the library, playgroups, soft play centres and local parks. The childminder was very aware of her responsibility in keeping children safe and protected. She administered medication after gaining parental permission and recorded every time medication was administered. Although the childminder asked parents the last time they had given the medication to the child before it was handed to her this information was not recorded. We asked the childminder to record this information so that she followed best practice guidance and kept children safe from overdose. We also advised the childminder to put a medication policy in place which explained to parents what and how medication was administered in the service. We signposted the childminder to 'Management of medication in daycare of children and childminding services' accessible on the Care Inspectorate Hub. (Please see Recommendation 2) Child protection training had been undertaken as part of the childminding pre-registration course and the childminder was fully aware of the signs that may concern her and the procedures she would follow should she have a concern. She told us that she was confident to contact the appropriate agency should she have a concern or need to seek advice. Requirements Number of requirements: 0 Recommendations Number of recommendations: 2 1. The childminder should ensure that children's plans are reviewed with children and parents, at least every six months, to continue to meet children's needs, in accordance with legislation. The plans should be dated on review or update. page 4 of 9

5 National Care Standards, Early Education and Childcare up to the Age of 16, Standard 3: Health and wellbeing 2. The childminder should ensure that she puts in place a medication policy that explains to parents the service procedure for administering medication. She should update the administration record to ensure that it records all necessary details and follows best practice guidance. National Care Standards, Early Education and Childcare up to the Age of 16, Standard 3: Health and wellbeing Grade: 4 - good Quality of environment Findings from the inspection We found the childminding environment to be good. The childminder's home was comfortable, safe and clean. Children had space to play in the lounge area and at the kitchen table. The utility room had become a storage room where the children were able to access easily a variety of age appropriate toys, games and books. We saw the children choose what they wanted to play with or the story books they wanted read to them during the inspection. Daily visual checks were carried out of the childminding areas before the children attended each morning to ensure that all risks had been identified and minimised. Written risk assessments were also in place and reviewed regularly. We reminded the childminder that all outings should be risk assessed before the children are taken on that particular trip. These risk assessments should be recorded. Accidents and incidents were recorded and the parents received their own copy of the record when informed by the childminder. The childminder should record the treatment given to the child, if any, to keep parents and carers fully informed. (Please see Recommendation 1) The childminder had effective infection control measures in place to prevent the spread of infection. She washed her hands regularly, encouraged the children to wash their hands before eating, after toileting and playing in the garden. Toys were washed often and the childminder told us she wore disposable aprons and gloves when nappy changing or dealing with bodily fluids. There was a fully enclosed back garden where the children enjoyed playing with the outdoor toys and equipment. We saw the children have fun playing in the back garden, blowing their bubbles during the inspection. Requirements Number of requirements: 0 page 5 of 9

6 Recommendations Number of recommendations: 1 1. The childminder should ensure that she records on the accident forms the treatment she gives to the child following an accident. This would keep parents and carers fully informed of the accident and any treatment given. National Care Standards, Early Education and Childcare up to the Age of 16, Standard 3: Health and wellbeing. Grade: 4 - good Quality of staffing This quality theme was not assessed. Quality of management and leadership Findings from the inspection The childminder had been operating her service for less than one year and was managing it well. She told us she kept up to date with best practice guidance and legislation through reading the quarterly Care Inspectorate magazines, accessing childminding forums and chatting with other childminders, she met up with locally. The childminder was aware of the Care Inspectorate Hub and its contents of best practice guidance, legislation and examples of exemplary practice. She had recently acquired literature on child development and early years activities that she told us was interesting and informative and had given her ideas for activities and experiences she wanted to try with the minded children. The childminder was committed to further developing her knowledge and practice through professional development. She had undertaken pre-registration training before completing her registration with the Care Inspectorate and had accessed further training opportunities such as, Child Protection Raising Awareness, Elementary Food Hygiene and First Aid. The childminder told us she was looking for appropriate infection control training to reinforce her knowledge and understanding in that area. We encouraged her to go ahead with this when it became available. We discussed the various methods of accessing and recording professional development, for example, reading, watching documentaries or elearning. Policies and procedures were in place to underpin the childminding service and were to be reviewed at least annually. Parents were able to read the policies and procedures when they started using the service. The complaints policy was made available to the parents and explained how the childminder would proceed should they raise a concern or complaint with her. The contact details for the Care Inspectorate were included should the parents feel they needed to take their concern or complaint further. Parents and children were routinely encouraged to share their views and suggestions on service improvement. The childminder had built very good relationships with parents and children. She spoke with parents daily and distributed questionnaires where she encouraged them to express their opinions on her service. Children were page 6 of 9

7 actively involved in the service and their views were valued. They told the childminder what activities and experiences they wanted to take part in and this was recorded on the activity planner. The childminder asked the children informally about how she could improve the service. We discussed including short child-friendly questionnaires as another method of gaining feedback from children and recording any verbal suggestions made by parents, carers and children. Requirements Number of requirements: 0 Recommendations Number of recommendations: 0 Grade: 4 - good What the service has done to meet any requirements we made at or since the last inspection Previous requirements There are no outstanding requirements. What the service has done to meet any recommendations we made at or since the last inspection Previous recommendations There are no outstanding recommendations. Complaints There have been no complaints upheld since the last inspection. Details of any older upheld complaints are published at page 7 of 9

8 Enforcement No enforcement action has been taken against this care service since the last inspection. Inspection and grading history This service does not have any prior inspection history or grades. page 8 of 9

9 To find out more This inspection report is published by the Care Inspectorate. You can download this report and others from our website. Care services in Scotland cannot operate unless they are registered with the Care Inspectorate. We inspect, award grades and help services to improve. We also investigate complaints about care services and can 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. You can also read more about our work online at Contact us Care Inspectorate Compass House 11 Riverside Drive Dundee DD1 4NY enquiries@careinspectorate.com Find us on Facebook Other languages and formats This report is available in other languages and formats on request. Tha am foillseachadh seo ri fhaighinn ann an cruthannan is cànain eile ma nithear iarrtas. page 9 of 9