Despite offering flexibility, high ratios and a home from home for thousands of children across the country, childminders have faced a devastating hit during the Covid-19 pandemic.
A survey by PACEY in March found that fewer than half of childminders that closed due to the Covid-19 pandemic planned to re-open within the year.
Ofsted’s most recent statistics found that the 36,600 childminders in the country on 31 August 2020 had reduced by 1,800 (5 per cent) to just 34,800 by 31 March 2021. This continues a longer-term downward trend, with 13,100 (27 per cent) fewer childminders than on 31 August 2015.
A decrease in the numbers of all types of childcare providers during these periods is overwhelmingly due to the declining numbers of childminders, who make up nearly half of all registered providers. In the past two years, a 5 per cent (2019–20) and 6 per cent (2020–21) decrease in their numbers has been noted, while the number of providers on non-domestic premises has remained fairly stable.
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