Valerie Paton Childminder Child Minding Type of inspection: Announced (short notice) Inspection completed on: 5 September 2016 Service provided by: Service provider number: SP2012983800 Care service number: CS2011305961
The service Introduction This childminder is registered to provide a care service to a maximum of six children at any one time under the age of 16, of whom a maximum of six will be under 12, of whom no more than three are not yet attending primary school. Numbers are inclusive of children of the childminder's family. The service operates from the lower level of the childminder's home in the Newton Mearns area of East Renfrewshire. The aims and objectives of this service include the following statement: "To offer a high standard of care within a warm, friendly and family orientated environment for children to play and learn in." What we did during our inspection We carried out a short noticed announced inspection of this service on Friday 2 September 2016 between 12pm and 1.30pm and Monday 5 September 2016 between 12pm and 1.30pm. During this inspection we spoke to the childminder's own child and one minded child. We observed the care given by the childminder and looked at a number of documents including children's personal plans, sections of policies and procedures and insurance certificates. The inspection was carried out by a Care Inspectorate Early Years Inspector. 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. We received three questionnaires from parents/carers prior to our inspection visit. Parents/carers commented very positively within the questionnaires about the service. Some of their comments can be found in the body of this report. Views of people using the service Some of the comments made by the minded child included: "This is our Mearns Nursery top, Valerie picks me up from nursery." "I like it when we go to the park." "I have already washed my hands for lunch." Some of the comments we received from parents/ carers included: for Valerie Paton Childminder page 2 of 8
"There are a range of toys for different ages. When we started she made an effort and got some boys toys as it had been mainly girls toys she had before. Her house is always very tidy and clean, there are stair gates and a fireguard." "She also texts me if she needs to ask anything, she always listens and responds to any changes or concerns." "We have a quarterly review here, I complete a feedback questionnaire. My son also completed a questionnaire about what is important to him." "She has undertaken health and safety training and provides a safe environment." "Valerie provides varied activities and days out and takes into account my child's interests." "Communication is timely and she responds very quickly to any queries." Self assessment The Care Inspectorate received a fully completed self assessment from the childminder. The provider identified what they thought the service did well. The self assessment clearly identified some areas that the childminder believes could be improved and showed how the service intends to do this. What the service did well Throughout our inspection the childminder ensured that the children were happy and that their personal needs were being met. She encouraged them to get involved in play independently to enable her to speak with the inspector and provide evidence. What the service could do better The childminder should take a more formal approach to assessing risks particularly risks associated with taking children on outings. 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 for Valerie Paton Childminder page 3 of 8
Quality of care and support Findings from the inspection The childminder provided a very good level of care and support to children she cared for. She knew children and families well and had developed good relationships with them. Parents who returned questionnaires told us that the childminder listened to them and provided information to them about their child and the service regularly. Parents confirmed that they met formally every few months to review and update information that the childminder held about their child. The childminder had developed personal plans for children. We sampled some of these and found that the childminder asked important questions of parents to make sure that she knew as much about the minded child as possible. The childminder told us that prior to starting the service children and their families are invited to visit the service as often as they can so that they can become familiar with the childminder, her home and family. During our inspection visit a child arrived with his mother for a settling visit. On our return visit the childminder and the minded children told us that the child had settled well and that they had played together and were now friends. We observed the childminder supporting children to wash their hands after using the toilet and before lunch time. Children washed their hands routinely and were familiar with the routine of effective hand washing before lunch and after using the toilet. Parents provided their children with packed lunches which the childminder stored and safely and served to the children at lunchtime. At the time of our inspection visit the minded child sat with the childminder's child (his friend) and had lunch. The children were very relaxed and chatted to each other very comfortably. Lunchtime was a pleasant and relaxing experience for the children. We noted that the childminder was aware of children's medical conditions and allergies. She administered medication safely and effectively to children, always ensuring that she had obtained appropriate consent prior to administration. In addition to this we saw evidence that the childminder had accessed training to increase her knowledge and enable her to better support a child with a medical condition. All of these procedures contributed to the health and safety of the children attending the service. Requirements Number of requirements: 0 Recommendations Number of recommendations: 0 Grade: 5 - very good for Valerie Paton Childminder page 4 of 8
Quality of environment Findings from the inspection The childminder's family home provided a very good base for children to be looked after safely. We observed her home to be clean, well maintained and well prepared for childminding. Children had access to a family room, kitchen, downstairs toilet and large secure rear garden. Over the course of our inspection visit we observed children happily playing in the family room. There was a range of resources available for children. We observed children happily choosing and tidying up resources such as puzzles, games and dressing up clothes. We also observed the children selecting a movie to watch for a short time after lunch as they were tired and wanted to rest. The childminder was aware of the importance of children who did not require to sleep but required a period of rest and relaxation. The childminder, children and parents told us about the opportunities children had to benefit from fresh air and exercise outdoors. The large garden area provided very good opportunities and was very well resourced with appropriate safe outdoor play equipment for children to play and run about safely. In addition to this they told us about their regular visits to parks, beaches, soft play places, toddler groups and places of interest further afield. The childminder showed us a selection of photographs were children had been enjoying such outings. Whilst we have acknowledged the value and the enjoyment of these outings for children we have asked the childminder to take a closer look and formally consider the potential risks and hazards associated with these outings. The childminder agreed to do this. The childminder collected and dropped children off at school and nursery. The minded child who was attending was able to tell us the rules of being in the childminder's car. The childminder provided us with a valid car insurance document which allowed her to transport minded children in her car. Requirements Number of requirements: 0 Recommendations Number of recommendations: 0 Grade: 5 - very good Quality of staffing This quality theme was not assessed. for Valerie Paton Childminder page 5 of 8
Quality of management and leadership Findings from the inspection The childminder was committed to her own personal learning and development. We saw evidence that she had participated in a variety of training courses which kept her up to date with current best practice as well as supported her to look after individual children. The childminder made sure that parents were kept up to date with any training that she had undertaken as well as informing them of other developments in the service through quarterly review newsletters. In addition to this the childminder displayed certificates she had received as a result of training activity, this ensured that parents knew about the childminder's commitment to further enhancing her knowledge and ultimately improving the service she provided. The childminder should continue with her plans to access additional training and record the impact that the training has had on the quality of her work and of the service she provides. Children's photographs and achievements were displayed in a hall way. The display celebrated children's successes and achievements and allowed both children and parents to be involved in the celebration of achievements. We noted that the childminder displayed her registration certificate and public liability insurance certificate, this reassured parents/carers that the service was operating within its registration conditions and that appropriate insurance was in place to safeguard and protect children and families. The childminder had a range of policies in place which supported and safeguarded children. We noted that the service's complaints policy provided clear information for parents of the steps they should take if they wished to raise any concern or complaint. This information included contact details for the Care Inspectorate. 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. for Valerie Paton Childminder page 6 of 8
What the service has done to meet any recommendations we made at or since the last inspection Previous recommendations Recommendation 1 The childminder should seek confirmation from her car insurance provider that adequate cover is in place for taking minded children on car journeys. She should send confirmation of this to the Care Inspectorate. National Care Standards, Early Education and Childcare up to the age of 16, Standard 2: A safe Environment. This recommendation was made on 13 December 2012. Action taken on previous recommendation The provider provided a valid car insurance certificate which evidenced that she had adequate cover in place for taking minded children on car journeys. 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 13 Dec 2012 Announced (short notice) Care and support 4 - Good Environment 4 - Good Staffing 4 - Good Management and leadership Not assessed for Valerie Paton Childminder 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. for Valerie Paton Childminder page 8 of 8