Getting registered as a childminder: ask the expert

I want my friend to look after my children (I’ve had a bad experience with childminders). She has tried to get registered as a childminder, but there are too many in the area.  Can she get registered? I am a single parent so using registered childcare cuts costs.

I’m sorry to hear that you have had a bad experience with childminders. All registered childminders are trained, inspected by Ofsted and have to follow national standards set out in the Early Years Foundation Stage.

It is understandable that you want your friend, someone you know and trust, to look after your children and good that you are considering using registered childcare and know the importance of this in order to get help with your childcare costs.

The best place to start would be to contact your local Family Information Service (FIS) to find out more about the number of childminders working in the area, and for your friend to book a place on a pre-registration course for childminders. The pre-registration courses can be very popular, so it may that the course is oversubscribed rather than there being too many childminders in the area – the FIS will be able to tell you more.

To find out more about registering as a childminder, she could also contact the National Childminding Association (NCMA) – www.ncma.org.uk – who have a step by step guide on how to become a registered childminder which includes everything she would  need to do to prepare for Ofsted/CRB checks.

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• Childcare Education