Educational activities

We have a comprehensive range of toys and equipment to suit the needs of all ages and abilities including: construction toys, Lego, K'nex, craft materials, puzzles, drawing, art, role play toys, farm, garage, dolls, games, dressing up, educational activities, musical instruments and worksheets for the older children, pop up toys and many others.

We have a large safe grassed garden, totally enclosed, water tray play tunnel, footballs, paddling pool, bikes, trucks, prams, pushchairs and hoops, also children's chairs and tables and an enclosed trampoline.

A child's day will include a structured activity, crafts, cutting and sticking, painting, cooking, storytime, singing and music. Time is also set aside for physical play and free play, with a range of toys to stimulate the imagination, challenge the child intellectually and encourage independence in learning. Children have access to all the toys and equipment themselves. They are encouraged to select for themselves and put away when finished, or wanting to move onto something new.

We believe in healthy living. So unless the weather is particularly inclement we will be outside for some part of the day. We normally do a school run. We visit the park, the garden center, the weekly market, the farm and the fresh fish shop, or a toddler group. During the school holidays we make trips to the zoo, the farm, the museum, and places of local interest.

We have a BMW (which is fully insured and serviced annually). All children are securely seated in the appropriate restraints. We are a member of the RAC and carry a mobile at all times. We have class 1 insurance for business use for the car.

We offer a service between the hours of 7:00am and 6:00pm Monday - Friday. Unsocial and overtime hours are negotiable.

We have pushchairs, highchairs, and travel cots, child size table and chairs, steriliser unit, car seats, booster seats and a seat on my bike! Our equipment is checked regularly and renewed every 3 years.

We are able to provide a healthy cooked lunch and tea (breakfast can also be provided) to suit all dietary needs. We are familiar with nut allergies and special diets, e.g. wheat and dairy free. We are willing to make up bottles and purée food for babies. Parents are welcome to provide their own food for their child.

Risk assessments are regularly updated and each every month a structured fire drill takes place to ensure the safety of our children.

We have policies on:

All our policies and Ofsted reports are available upon request.

There are very few house rules. We expect good manners and respect for each other and for the home. We only have rules for keeping children safe and happy.

We always meet with parents as many times as they feel necessary. We like you to meet all members of our family home and tour the house and garden. We use this time to discuss details and answer queries before deciding if the arrangement meets mutual expectations.

We use contracts, these are discussed fully, cover fees, hours, holidays, ilness, overtime and lateness. Contracts are reviewed yearly. A settling in contract is agreed for the first four weeks with a week's notice on either side, thereafter, four weeks' notice or pay in lieu of notice is required.

I am pleased to be able to provide references from past and present parents on request. References can also be sent via my email/ you can contact me by sending an email to: maria68@hotmail.co.uk

We understand how difficult it can be for parents to leave their child with a childminder and return to work. We will therefore work with you to ensure your child is settled and that you are happy with the care that we are to provide.

We like to organise one or two settling in sessions for the parents and child together and where the parent might leave the child for say up to an hour to ease the child into the environment. These sessions will be free prior to signing the contract. This gives you the opportunity to provide us with lots of information about your child, their likes and dislikes, routines, favourite activities, how to comfort them if they become upset and how they have reacted when left before. It gives us the opportunity to start to build a relationship with you and your child and to understand both your needs and wishes.

When leaving the child for the contracted hours we are happy for you to stay until you feel that your child is settled subject to our other commitments. Some children do take longer than others to settle and some settle quickly and then become distressed a few weeks into the placement. We will work with you to support your child through this transition period and make it as easy as possible. It is important that you and your child are relaxed and happy in my home and with the care we provide.

Some parents find it helpful to call us during the day to find out how their child is. We are happy to take your calls, but we are sometimes not able to talk for long, or even to answer the telephone if we are attending to a child’s personal needs, for example, changing a nappy or at meal times, so please do not panic if you call and there is no answer.

We appreciate that as a working parent you need to be able to go to work. However, if your child is unwell then they will be better cared for in their own home, with a parent. We are happy to care for children with minor coughs and colds but will not for children who are very unwell, infectious or running a high temperature. I have to consider the welfare of all children in my care.

If your child has had diarrhoea or sickness in the last twenty-four hours please do not bring them, but do call and let me know.

If your child becomes ill whilst in my care, We will make them as comfortable as possible, isolate them from the other children if necessary and reassure them. We will contact you immediately and continue to care for your child until you arrive.

We are happy to administer prescribed medication after obtaining a signed consent form.

We will contact you if one of my own children is not well, inform you of the illness/ symptoms and if we are able to work. This then allows you to make an informed decision as to whether to bring your child or not.

The care of your child is of utmost importance and we will always strive to ensure that they remain with us and are safe.

However, sometimes children can become ‘lost’ in busy places and therefore as a responsible childminder we have written a procedure that will be followed in the unlikely event of this happening.

We will immediately raise the alarm to all around us that we have lost a child and enlist the help of everyone to look for them.

If it is a secure area such as a shopping centre, we will quickly alert the security staff so they can seal off exits and monitor the situation on any CCTV.

We help the children understand the house rules, which are realistic and we are consistent in the enforcing of them. We do not give out confusing signals, Saying 'No' means No!

We are aware of the different reasons why children misbehave and will endeavour to keep to routines so that your child feels safe and is not over tired or hungry.

However, all children will

misbehave sometimes. We have developed several different strategies on how to deal with a child misbehaving and use different ones depending on the age/ stage of ability of the child and the situation:

If a child misbehaves we will let you know by either writing it in their contact book or by ringing you later after collection. Some children can become upset if the incident is retold in front of them. We will also inform you of how the matter was dealt with.

If you have any concerns regarding the managing of your child’s behaviour, please do not hesitate to contact us. It is important that we work together on managing behaviour in order not to confuse your child.

We hope that you are happy with the service that we provide, but we appreciate there may be times when we are not offering you and your child the service that you require. We hope that you will feel able to discuss any concerns or issues that you may have with us directly. If you would rather not talk in front of your child then we can arrange a more convenient time, for example, on an evening or a weekend.

It is a requirement by Ofsted that all complaints are logged along with the outcome and any action taken. These records must be available to show an Ofsted Childcare Inspector if required.

If you feel that you are unable to talk to me or that after talking the matter remains unresolved then you can talk in confidence to:

The National Childminding Association on 0800 169 4486

If you wish to make a formal complaint then you can contact the Ofsted Complaints and Investigation Unit on 0845 640 4040

Children learn when they are in a safe and caring environment where they are stimulated through play.

Babies and young children develop best when they are in a caring relationship with an adult so we will strive to provide your child with an environment that will be caring, safe, fun and stimulating at all times.

We believe that we could provide your children with the individual attention they require and as we would have only have a small number of children in our care at any one time and with my home being child friendly, smoke free and clean we have the perfect environment to do so.

There is a large area of grass and patio in the garden where the children can enjoy countless activities such as paddling pool play, cars, bikes, ride alongs, slide, sand and water, skipping and ball games.

We would take regular outings to the park, town etc.

This is situated only a short walk away and provides a secure area of mainly grass with safety surfaces under the play equipment.

We will provide a variety of activities for children of all ages, all planned according to the age and stage of development your child is at. We have a range of equipment for children of varying ages which is maintained and updated on a regular basis.

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