Dent, Kym Child Minding Type of inspection: Unannounced Inspection completed on: 24 May 2017 Service provided by: Kym Dent Service provider number: SP2005955341 Care service number: CS2005113626
The service Introduction Kym Dent registered with the Care Inspectorate on 1 April 2011. She provides a childminding service from her family home in a residential area in Dunfermline which is close to local amenities, including parks and primary and nursery schools. The care service may be provided to a maximum of 6 children under the age of 16 years at any one time, of whom no more than 3 are not yet attending primary school, and of whom no more than 1 is less than 12 months. These numbers are inclusive of the childminder's children. From 20 January 2017 inc, at the times stated below*, the care service may be provided to a maximum of 7 children under the age of 16 years at any one time, of whom no more than 4 are not yet attending primary school, and of whom no more than 1 is less than 12 months. These numbers are inclusive of the childminder's children. *School term times, Friday's only between the 15:00 and 18:00. The area of the premises not to be used is the childminder's bedroom. Overnight childcare will not be provided. The childminder is currently minding 5 children. The childminder is committed to providing high quality childcare, in a home from home environment where children will be able to take part in the practical daily activities such as shopping and gardening. She aims to provide an environment which the children will consider their second home and enjoy the wide range of resources and activities. One minded child was in her care during the time of the inspection. A further minded child was present as she had come for a play date along with her parent. The Care Inspectorate is committed to improving the health and wellbeing of all children receiving a care service to ensure they have the best start in life, are ready to succeed and live longer, healthier lives. The Care Inspectorate has an important role to play in supporting this approach in inspecting care services for children. The Getting it Right for Every Child (GIRFEC) approach is underpinned by the principles of prevention and early intervention. It's a consistent way for people to work with all children and young people. The approach helps practitioners focus on what makes a positive difference for children and young people - and how they can act to deliver these improvements. Getting it right for every child is being threaded through all existing policy, practice, strategy and legislation affecting children, young people and their families. In Scotland, the Getting it right for every child (GIRFEC) approach puts wellbeing at the very heart of its approach. The eight 'indicators' of wellbeing that form the basis of GIRFEC are - safe, healthy, achieving, nurtured, active, respected, responsible and included - often referred to as 'SHANARRI'. page 2 of 9
What we did during our inspection We wrote this report following an unannounced inspection which took place on 24 May 2017 from 13.00 until 14.40. As part of the inspection we took account of the annual return and self assessment forms that we asked the childminder to complete and submit to us. We sent three Care Standards Questionnaires to the childminder to give to families using her service. Two of these were completed and returned to us before the inspection. During the inspection process, we met with the childminder and one parent. We looked over the premises and resources and observed how she cared for and interacted with child. Views of people using the service We received two care standards questionnaire for inclusion in the inspection process. Parents/carers indicated that they were very happy with the service provided. They told us: - "Kym's communication is fantastic. I always feel involved as I get regular updates and Kym adapts this also to my requests, She has the interest of my child at the heart of what she does." - "I am more than happy with the service Kym provides. My child is very relaxed at Kym's and treats Kym and her family as her extended family." We spoke with one parent on the day of the inspection. She told us that she received daily updates from the childminder and was always made aware of any accidents. She said that the childminder was "brilliant" and "supportive." The parent complimented the childminder as she had made herself available to accompany her to the child's hospital visits. 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 and submitted a self assessment. She highlighted examples of things she did well and other areas she was proposing to develop. What the service did well The trusting relationships between the childminder and parents enabled the children to feel secure, comfortable and confident. We saw the positive interaction she had with the children as she answered their many questions with ease therefore extending their learning and development. page 3 of 9
What the service could do better The childminder could further develop children's personal plans to describe how she intends to work in partnership with parents to meet children's needs. 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 5 - Very Good Quality of care and support Findings from the inspection We saw that the childminder provided a warm, caring and nurturing environment. She spoke to the children in calming tones whilst encouraging them in their learning and development. We noted mutual respect and affection, with praise given to the children for their achievements and encouragement to be kind to each other and share resources. She knew the children well and was responsive to their needs and interests. The childminder recorded personal plans for all children. These had information about children's routines, care and health needs. We found that the childminder was using her knowledge of SHANARRI well to provide responsive and individual care for children. The childminder's awareness of the children's interests allowed her to help them achieve their next steps in their learning and development. The childminder told us about resources such as the bug catcher and posters that had been provided to take forward the children's learning and development of bugs and creepy crawlies. We saw that children enjoyed a child centred, relaxed and homely environment with lots of fun and humour. The childminder had very good relationships with parents and children and communicated well with them to meet children's individual needs. During our discussion with a parent it was very apparent that there was mutual respect between her and the childminder. The parent told us of times when the childminder had gone above and beyond her expectations such as when she had accompanied her on hospital visits. Children had regular access to energetic play outside. The childminder also took the children out for walks in the local. These approaches were helping children keep safe and healthy and learn good lifestyle habits and understand risk and how to stay safe indoors and outdoors. The childminder also ensured that they regularly walked to and from school and the extended community. The childminder used these times to help children learn about road and personal safety and learn good lifestyle habits. Requirements Number of requirements: 0 page 4 of 9
Recommendations Number of recommendations: 0 Grade: 5 - very good Quality of environment Findings from the inspection We noted that the childminder's home was very clean, tidy and well maintained. She told us that she took pride in a clean and safe home and that her routine cleaning schedules linked with daily/weekly cleaning of resources ensured the liked to keep her home The playroom was well organised which meant that children could be independent in their selection of toys and activities. The childminder encouraged the children to tidy away after themselves therefore promoting respect of resources and safety for others. The childminder promoted good infection control procedures such as regular handwashing and NHS exclusion guidance during times of illness. These helped to minimise the risks of cross infection within risks in the setting. Children made very good use of the childminder's large, well resourced garden and for active, energetic play. The children we spoke with knew the rules of the garden play. The told us about the areas that the older children could use and that the childminder monitored their play on her phone if she had to go into the house for any reason. The children explained that the fence had fallen down the previous day as the childminder had tried to remove some debris and then told us that they were not to go near this newly created gap in the fence. This showed us that the childminder had risk assessed the children's safety and shared this with the children.7 of 13 The childminder had policies, procedures and was maintaining records of medication administered, accidents and incidents although she had not required to complete and of these recently. She was aware of the notification requirements to the Care Inspectorate. Attendance records were included in her diary and these showed that the childminder was working within the conditions of her registration. These records and policies helped the childminder maintain a safe service. Appropriate public liability insurance was in place and car insurance for business purposes had been purchased. The children's safety within her car was promoted as the childminder had a good understanding of car safety seat guidance and had a variety of age appropriate seats available. Requirements Number of requirements: 0 Recommendations Number of recommendations: 0 Grade: 5 - very good page 5 of 9
Quality of staffing This quality theme was not assessed. Quality of management and leadership Findings from the inspection We found the service to be well-managed. The childminder was very good at keeping up to date with current best practice and legislation. She did this by making herself familiar with, and implementing, best practice information received from the Care Inspectorate and from the Scottish Childminding Association (SCMA). We discussed the Care Inspectorate website, and in particular the Hub section of this, and encouraged the childminder to use these resources to help her continue to develop her service. The childminder attended regular training and had reflected on her learning. She told us that the benefits of training such as child protection training increased her knowledge and skills and increased her confidence in her ability to take forward concerns. The childminder informed us that the safety of children was paramount to her. A recent abduction scare in the local area had prompted her to discuss such dangers with her own family and the minded children with their parental consent. She told us she regularly reviewed polices and procedures and amended practice, to ensure that she promoted the safety of all of the children. The childminder confirmed that she was aware of Getting it right for every child (GIRFEC) and the SHANARRI (safe, healthy, achieving, nurtured, active, respected, responsible and included) wellbeing indicators and was using these well within her service to promote positive outcomes for the children within her care. The childminder had developed a range of written policies and procedures that she shared effectively with parents. This helped to ensure that parents knew what to expect of her service and how they could raise concerns and be involved in service developments. This helped promote respectful relationships. Parents confirmed within the questionnaires that they were aware of polices and procedures including those relating to the complaints process. Requirements Number of requirements: 0 Recommendations Number of recommendations: 0 Grade: 5 - very good page 6 of 9
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 www.careinspectorate.com. Enforcement No enforcement action has been taken against this care service since the last inspection. page 7 of 9
Inspection and grading history Date Type Gradings 18 Apr 2013 Announced (short notice) Care and support 5 - Very good Environment 5 - Very good Staffing 5 - Very good Management and leadership Not assessed 6 Jul 2012 Announced (short notice) Care and support 4 - Good Environment 4 - Good Staffing 4 - Good Management and leadership Not assessed 10 Dec 2010 Announced Care and support 4 - Good Environment 5 - Very good Staffing 4 - Good Management and leadership Not assessed 12 Mar 2010 Announced (short notice) Care and support 3 - Adequate Environment 3 - Adequate Staffing 3 - Adequate Management and leadership Not assessed page 8 of 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 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 9 of 9