The national standards for under-eights daycare and childminding south of the border, introduced in 2001, allowed childminders to smack and smoke if they had parents' written consent.
The new rules for childminders will be introduced as part of a review of the national standards and will be implemented from September 2003.
Announcing the review earlier this month, Sure Start minister Catherine Ashton said, 'It is important that we acknowledge the professionalism of childminders who do such a valuable job in supporting our children by giving them standards equal to those of other childcare professionals.'
National Childminding Association chief executive Gill Haynes said, 'We are delighted that the Government has now listened to the views of childminders on these extremely important issues.'
The revision of the standards will also allow childminders in England to look after more than one child under one year old if they have appropriate training and experience.
Following the review, childcare in independent and maintained schools in England will be registered and inspected by the schools inspectorate Ofsted, in line with other childcare provision. Rosemary Murphy, chief executive of the National Day Nurseries Association, which has been campaigning to end the exemption from regulation of childcare in schools, welcomed the move. She said it was particularly important given the recent growth in the number of independent schools providing childcare for very young children and the prospect of thousands of extended schools in the state sector offering childcare over the next few years.
Baroness Ashton said that while there were 'no immediate plans to introduce legislation to register nannies', she was also considering proposals which 'balance our commitment to quality and safety with parental control over private childcare arrangements'.
