Munro, Nicola Child Minding Type of inspection: Announced (short notice) Inspection completed on: 8 August 2016 Service provided by: Munro, Nicola Service provider number: SP2009974680 Care service number: CS2009229656
The service Introduction The Care Inspectorate regulates care services in Scotland. Information about all care services is available on our website at www.careinspectorate.com This service was previously registered with the Care Commission and transferred its registration to the Care Inspectorate on 1 April 2011. Requirements and recommendations If we are concerned about some aspect of a service, or think it could do more to improve, we may make a recommendation or requirement. - A recommendation is a statement that sets out actions the care service provider should take to improve or develop the quality of the service, but where failure to do so will not directly result in enforcement. Recommendations are based on the National Care Standards, relevant codes of practice and recognised good practice. - A requirement is a statement which sets out what is required of a care service to comply with the Public Services Reform (Scotland) Act 2010 and Regulations or Orders made under the Act or a condition of registration. Where there are breaches of Regulations, Orders or Conditions, a requirement must be made. Requirements are legally enforceable at the discretion of the Care Inspectorate. Mrs Munro is registered as a childminder to care for 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 and of whom no more than one is under 12 months. Sandra White, Fiona Campbell, Roderick Munro and Christine Williamson are employed as assistants. When the childminder is working together with one or more assistants, the service will be registered to provide a service to a maximum of nine children at any one time, of whom a maximum of nine children will be under 12 years, of whom no more than six are not yet attending primary school and of whom no more than two children are under 12 months old. Mrs Munro provides her childminding service from her home in a quiet residential location of Grantown-on-Spey. She made use of the open plan kitchen/dining room/lounge/sunroom, hallway and bathroom. There is also a large fully enclosed outdoor area which is very well used. The childminder also made use of various local facilities including parks, walks and playgroups to offer the children the opportunity to be healthy, active and have access to fresh air and exercise. The childminder's aims stated: "I aim to provide children with a friendly, fun and nurturing environment where they can play, learn, socialise, build confidence and gain new interests in a clean, warm and safe house. I endeavour to keep Leapfrogs a home from home experience for the children in my care. I will be closely working with parents and carers to gain the best insight in to how to care for each child as an individual and support their families also." page 2 of 10
What we did during our inspection We wrote this report following a short notice announced inspection. This was carried out by one inspector. The inspection took place on 8 August 2016, between 3.30pm and 5.30pm. We gave feedback to the childminder on the day of the inspection. We sent care standards questionnaires to the childminder to distribute to parents and carers of children who attend the service. Two parents and carers completed and returned questionnaires. During this inspection process, we gathered evidence from various sources including the following: - discussion with the childminder - talking with an assistant - speaking with the children - talking with two parents - childrens' records - policies and procedures - information folder made available to parents and carers - certificate of registration and public liability insurance - examination of the premises. Views of people using the service There were three minded pre-school aged children present on the day of the inspection, as well as the childminder's own two school aged children. They were all very happy and relaxed in the care of the childminder and her assistant. The children were very happily engaged in a range of activities in the playroom. The parents who completed and returned the care standards questionnaires were very positive in their comments about the standard of care provided by the childminder. They all strongly agreed with the statement; 'Overall, I am happy with the quality of care my child receives in this service'. Comments made included: "On a daily basis Nicola and I share information about my child. She tells me how the day went, what they've done, what she ate and so on..." "I am very happy that my child is involved in many activities at Nicola's - different projects, art work, painting, drawing, sticking, variety of toys to play with indoors and outdoors." "All art work is sent home which is very good." "When Donna joined the service we received a letter explaining the changes and introducing the new member." "She is always open to new ideas and keen to help if there are any problems." "We often see projects the children are working on, there is a large board in the playroom with current projects on it." "Nicola always discusses changes. She is very organised." page 3 of 10
During the inspection we had opportunity to speak with two parents when they came to collect their children. They both made very positive comments about the service provided. They were of the opinion that the childminder and the assistants were very good at information sharing and providing feedback at the end of the day. Parents were also very happy with the opportunities the children had to get outdoors to play and visit local resources such as the park, duck pond and the woods. Self assessment 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 childminder was very committed to the ongoing development of her service to ensure that she continued to provide a service of a very high standard which met the needs of each of the individual children attending. The childminder and her assistant were both very attentive to all the children who were present during the inspection. They made sure that they all had appropriate toys and games to occupy them. There was lots of positive interaction, praise and reassurance provided to each of the children. The childminder made very good use of local resources including walks, parks, the wood and toddler group. What the service could do better The childminder and her assistants should continue to keep up-to-date with current best practice and access any relevant training. She should routinely update her policies and procedures to ensure that they reflect and take account of current best practice. 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 5 - Very Good 5 - Very Good Quality of care and support Findings from the inspection We found that the childminder continued to provide very good care and support for the children. We were able to see that the childminder's practice supported very good outcomes for each child and we were able to gather information to support this. page 4 of 10
Establishing close working relationships with the parents and carers continued to be extremely important to the childminder. She explained that she had worked with many of the families for a number of years and she had very good relationships with them all. The comments parents made in the completed care standards questionnaires confirmed how well the childminder worked with families. The parents we spoke with during the inspection were equally positive in their comments about the quality of their working relationship with the childminder. Much of the information sharing took place informally when parents and carers came to collect their children. Following discussion with parents and carers, the childminder no longer completed written daily diaries to give feedback about a child's day. She now shared information via emails. She stated that parents and carers were much happier with this arrangement and liked receiving feedback and photographs in this way. The childminder also made use of texts, instant messaging and a Facebook page to share information with parents and carers. We discussed with the childminder the importance of ensuring that the page was private, secure and only parents and carers had access to it. We also discussed checking as to whether she should be registered with the information commissioners office. It was important to the childminder to work with parents and carers to ensure that she met the individual needs of the children attending. Before a child started attending, the childminder invited their parents and carers along with the child to visit, share information, ask any questions they might have and to see around her premises. From our observations and discussions with the childminder and her assistant, it was very evident that they both knew each of the children in their care extremely well. The childminder had in place written records and personal plans for each child, which contained relevant background information and details of the child's routine. She completed these records with parents and carers and routinely reviewed them to ensure that she continued to meet the changing needs of the children. The parents we spoke with confirmed that they were fully involved in this process. Involving parents/carers and the children, in the ongoing evaluation of the service was important to the childminder. She explained that she tended to get most feedback informally when talking with parents and carers at the end of the day when they came to collect their children. She also made use of questionnaires to get comments and suggestions. The childminder stated that she always let the parents and carers know the outcome of any questionnaires either in an email or during informal feedback. It was important to the childminder to listen to the children, take account of their comments and suggestions and encourage the children to express their feelings. She stated that the children gave her lots of ideas as to what they would like to do while they were with her. During the visit the childminder and her assistant were very attentive and responsive to the needs of the children. There was lots of positive interaction, chatting and reassuring cuddles, especially for the youngest child who had only started attending that day. When the children were unsure as to what to do, the childminder gave them helpful suggestions and allowed them to decide. The children learned about how to keep themselves safe, be healthy and active during various daily activities. Infection control was important to the childminder and she spoke to the children about why they should wash their hands before meals and after messy play and going to the toilet. The children learnt about road safety while out for walks and visits to the park and library. The childminder and her assistants each held a current food hygiene qualification. They took account of various best practice guidance, including setting the table, when planning snacks. page 5 of 10
Requirements Number of requirements: 0 Recommendations Number of recommendations: 0 Grade: 5 - very good Quality of environment Findings from the inspection We found that the environment was of a very good standard. The childminder ensured that children in her care were safe and healthy by maintaining her premises, equipment and toys to a very good level. The childminder explained that she checked the playroom and its contents on a daily basis before the children arrived and also at the end of the day. Toys and equipment were cleaned on a regular basis. As well as ensuring her premises and equipment were clean and safe, the childminder had various risk assessments in place which she routinely reviewed and updated. We talked with the childminder about involving the children in this activity to allow them to learn about how to keep themselves safe. The childminder made very good use of the space available both indoors and outdoors. The rooms she used were all very clean, bright, homely, welcoming and child friendly. The dedicated playroom contained a wide range of toys, equipment and resources which provided children with the opportunity to have fun learning. During the inspection, the older children told us which toys they liked to play with. The childminder had organised her toys and equipment to make them more accessible. During the inspection, we were able to observe the children freely selecting what they would like to do. The children took pride in showing us the drawings they had completed while we sat in the playroom. The childminder explained that the children all enjoyed spending time outdoors and she continued to make regular use of her garden to give the children the opportunity to take part in games and physical exercise in the fresh air. The childminder explained that they also now had an allotment which the children were all excited about. As well as using her garden for active outdoor play, the childminder also made use of local parks, walks, visits to the duck pond and woods. Requirements Number of requirements: 0 Recommendations Number of recommendations: 0 Grade: 5 - very good page 6 of 10
Quality of staffing Findings from the inspection The childminder explained that she had three assistants who had each attended an interview and had been appropriately checked prior to commencing work with her. There was one assistant who tended to work with the childminder full time while the other two assistants filled in as and when required. The childminder advised that each of the assistants attended support and supervision meetings with her on a regular basis. The purpose of these meetings was to discuss the assistants practice, any training needs and the general running of the service. The childminder explained that because she worked directly with the children along side the assistants, there was daily opportunity for informal discussion. The childminder stated that it was important that the assistants kept up to date with best practice guidance in the same way as she did. She explained that whenever she received any new information she shared this with her assistants. Supporting staff to attend training was equally important. The assistants had current moving and handling and food hygiene qualifications and were booked to attend child protection and first aid refresher courses. They had been due to attend child protection training however it was cancelled. During the inspection, we discussed the option of the assistants and the childminder applying for ILA funding to cover training costs. During the inspection we spoke with one of the assistants who told us how much they enjoyed working with the children. They confirmed how they were encouraged by the childminder to give any feedback they might have about the service they provided and how it might be developed further. The comments made by parents and carers either when spoken with during the inspection or included in the care standards questionnaires, were all very positive about the assistants. One parent described the assistants as being 'an integral part of the team'. The assistants were considered to be very caring, professional and approachable. Requirements Number of requirements: 0 Recommendations Number of recommendations: 0 Grade: 5 - very good Quality of management and leadership Findings from the inspection The childminder managed the service to a very high standard. It was important to her that she and the assistants had the appropriate knowledge and skills to meet the individual needs of the children attending. She had completed a range of training including child protection, first aid and messy play. The childminder was on the mailing list for the local authority and Scottish Childminding Association and received information from them page 7 of 10
about training events. She also routinely attended a forum for childminder's. We discussed the option of online training. The childminder had in place a full range of policies and procedures which she routinely reviewed. She explained that she kept up to date with best practice and got ideas as to how she could develop her service by reading various publications such as SCMA magazine and regular Care Inspectorate publications. She stated that she found these magazines very informative. She had also read any best practice guidance sent to her including the Building the Ambition document and Setting the Table. The childminder continued to encourage parents and carers to give regular feedback and suggestions. This was confirmed by the comments parents made during discussion and in the completed care standards questionnaires. The childminder explained that she routinely spoke informally with the children and their parents and carers to ask for their comments and ideas. She stated that the children had some very good ideas, and activities were very much led by them. The childminder had in place a clear complaints policy and procedure which she shared with all parents and carers. There had been no complaints at the time of the inspection. Requirements Number of requirements: 0 Recommendations Number of recommendations: 0 Grade: 5 - very 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. page 8 of 10
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. Inspection and grading history Date Type Gradings 24 Jul 2014 Announced (short notice) Care and support Environment Staffing Management and leadership 24 Jul 2012 Announced (short notice) Care and support Environment Staffing Management and leadership Not assessed 10 May 2011 Announced (short notice) Care and support Environment Staffing Management and leadership Not assessed page 9 of 10
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 10 of 10