Haughey, Sharon Child Minding Type of inspection: Unannounced Inspection completed on: 29 March 2018 Service provided by: Haughey, Sharon Service provider number: SP2005947467 Care service number: CS2005097593
The service Introduction Mrs Haughey (referred to as the childminder) is registered to provide a care service to a maximum of 7 children at any one time under the age of 16, of whom no more than 3 are not yet attending primary school and of whom no more than 1 is under 12 months. Numbers are inclusive of the childminder's family. Her service is provided from a mid-terraced two storey house in Glenrothes. The service is close to local amenities and served with good bus links. Children had the use of an enclosed rear garden, where they could engage in active play experiences. The written aims and objectives of the service included the following statement: "I aim to provide a safe, stimulating, home from home environment where the children and their parents will feel happy." What we did during our inspection We wrote this report following a short notice announced inspection on Thursday 29 March 2018. One Inspector undertook this inspection. The visit took place between 9.15 and 11.15. We gave feedback to the childminder about our findings during the inspection. As part of the inspection, we looked at the self assessment, which is what we ask services to complete and submit to us. During this inspection process, we gathered evidence from various sources, including the following: - children's personal information - accident and medication records - discussion with the childminder and observations of the interaction between her and the child present at the time of inspection - We also looked at the toys and equipment which were available to the children and the environment. The Care Inspectorate is committed to improving the health and wellbeing of all children receiving a care service. We want to ensure they have the best start in life, are ready to succeed and live longer, healthier lives. We check services are meeting the principles of Getting it Right for Every Child (also known as GIRFEC). Set up by Scottish Government, GIRFEC is a national approach to working in a consistent way with all children and young people. It is underpinned by the principles of prevention and early intervention. The approach helps services focus on what makes a positive difference for children and young people - and what they can do to improve. Getting it Right for Every Child is being woven into all policy, practice, strategy and legislation that affect children, young people and their families. There are eight wellbeing indicators at the heart of Getting it Right for Every Child. They are: safe, healthy, achieving, nurtured, active, respected, responsible, and included. They are often referred to as the SHANARRI indicators. We use these indicators at inspection, to assess how services are making a positive difference for children. Information on SHANARRI can be found at: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/topics/people/young-people/ gettingitright page 2 of 8
Views of people using the service There was one child present during this inspection. The child appeared comfortable in the childminder's care. The interaction between them both reflected a warm and nurturing relationship. Parents made the following comments: "I love the service our childminder provides. My child loves going there and has made lots of friends. My child has come on a lot since starting the childminder's especially with talking. I would recommend our childminder to anyone!" "My child is made to feel welcome, safe, nurtured and included at all times. I feel our childminder is 'The Gold Standard'. We are very privileged to be able to access this wonderful service!" Self assessment We received a fully completed self assessment from the childminder. We were satisfied with the way this was completed and with the relevant information included. We advised the childminder that this form could be adapted throughout the year so a current self assessment remains available. The childminder identified what she thought the service did well, some areas for development and any changes she had planned. She told us how the people who used the care service had taken part in the self assessment process. What the service did well The childminder had continued to provide families with a high standard of care and support. Children were provided with a wide range of play experiences to promote their learning. Responses from parents highlighted that they valued their childminder very much What the service could do better The childminder should continue to provide families with a high standard of service, which we have reflected within this report. From this inspection we graded this service as: Quality of care and support Quality of environment Quality of staffing Quality of management and leadership 5 - Very Good 5 - Very Good not assessed 4 - Good page 3 of 8
Quality of care and support Findings from the inspection We found the childminder to be performing well in this area. We confirmed this after observing the interaction between the childminder and the child in her care. We also took account of the comments made by parents who used this service. The childminder had very good methods in place for settling children into her service. For example, she encouraged prospective parents to visit with their child for the first few times to enable the child to become familiar in their new surroundings in the company of their parents. This helped the child to feel secure because they could explore their new environment from a safe base. Gathering relevant information such as routines, likes and dislikes ensured that in the first few days the childminder could meet children's specific needs and provide activities to support the settling in process. Mirroring daily routines further contributed to children feeling safe because the care they received was similar to the way their parents cared for them. Chatting to parents at drop off and pick up times allowed them to pass over information that they felt was important to their child's care needs. For example, if a parent told the childminder that their child had eaten very little for breakfast, then the childminder was mindful that the child may need a little extra food at snack time. This practice demonstrated to the child that the childminder cared about them and this made them feel nurtured. Children were supported to achieve because the childminder worked closely with parents to promote their development. Supporting particular areas of the child's progress, such as potty training meant that the child experienced consistency of care because the childminder had the same expectation as their parents. The childminder gave very good examples of why it was important to monitor the progress children were making as it enabled her to identify any regression in their development. Using the wellbeing indicators to track the progress children were making allowed the childminder to accurately assess where children required additional support and care. Children were safe because the childminder had very good systems in place to protect them. For example, if she had child protection concerns she knew that it was important to seek advice from her local social work department in order to reduce the likelihood of further harm to individual children. Observing the interaction between the childminder and child present on the day of this inspection highlighted that she knew him really well. She was very good at picking up on his non-verbal cues for nurture and support. Requirements Number of requirements: 0 Recommendations Number of recommendations: 0 Grade: 5 - very good page 4 of 8
Quality of environment Findings from the inspection The childminder's home was welcoming and she described how she tried to promote a home from home environment where children felt part of her extended family. On the day of the inspection, the child who was present seemed very much at home and comfortable in his surroundings. Children were kept safe and healthy because the childminder had very good systems in place to prevent the spread of infection. For example, if a child was sick or suffering from a contagious illness, the childminder asked parents to keep them at home until the infectious stage had passed. This minimised the likelihood of other children becoming ill. Chatting to the children about the importance of washing their hands helped to raise their awareness of their responsibility for keeping themselves healthy. We noted that children had lots of access to outdoor play and exercise. The childminder made very good use of local parks and woodland. She described the need for children to get out and about frequently as it helped to keep them fit and healthy. We saw that children had opportunities to climb trees and explore their natural environment, which allowed them to take positive risks. The childminder demonstrated a very good understanding of why it was important for children to experience an element of risk in their play. Requirements Number of requirements: 0 Recommendations Number of recommendations: 0 Grade: 5 - very good Quality of staffing This quality theme was not assessed. Quality of management and leadership Findings from the inspection The management and leadership within the service was good and we found that the childminder was good at allowing parents and children to influence what was happening within the service. Networking with another childminding service allowed the childminder to keep up-to-date with changes in legislation and best practice. She told us that she used the information gained at these meetings to review what she was providing and ensure that she continued to offer families a good standard of service. page 5 of 8
Discussion with the childminder confirmed that she had a good understanding of why it was important to accurately maintain information she held in relation to individual children. We informed the childminder that children's records must be reviewed on a six monthly basis or sooner, depending on any changes to a child's care needs. This was acknowledged by the childminder. Through discussion, the childminder demonstrated a good understanding of why it was important to undertake training relevant to her role, because she knew it helped improve outcomes for the children in her care. The childminder was unfamiliar with 'Building the Ambition' (this is best practice guidance for all staff working in the field of early learning and childcare). The childminder also told us that she was not using My World Outdoors, Our Creative Journey or My Childminding Experience. We advised the childminder that moving forward she needed to become more familiar with these documents and begin to refer to them when planning the service. We advised the childminder that the Care Inspectorate 'HUB' is a very useful link for services to keep up-to-date with best practice as it becomes available. 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. page 6 of 8
Complaints There have been no complaints upheld since the last inspection. Details of any older upheld complaints are published at www.careinspectorate.com. Enforcement No enforcement action has been taken against this care service since the last inspection. Inspection and grading history Date Type Gradings 18 Mar 2014 Unannounced Care and support Environment Staffing Management and leadership Not assessed 12 Jan 2010 Announced Care and support Environment Staffing Management and leadership Not assessed 10 Mar 2009 Announced (short notice) Care and support Environment Staffing Management and leadership 4 - Good Not assessed page 7 of 8
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 www.careinspectorate.com Contact us Care Inspectorate Compass House 11 Riverside Drive Dundee DD1 4NY enquiries@careinspectorate.com 0345 600 9527 Find us on Facebook Twitter: @careinspect 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 8 of 8