I have been a registered childminder for more than ten years. I take my job very seriously and consider that I carry it out in a professional manner.
It was with pleasure, then, that I greeted the news two years ago that Ofsted was to take over the inspections in England from local social services departments. I anticipated universal standards with consistent and fair inspections, and no variation between outcomes expected from one childminder or another.
Unfortunately this does not appear to be happening. Several of my colleagues have been inspected recently and have received very different treatment. One was given permission to carry out overnight care, while another was told that to offer this service would mean getting her smoke alarms 'hard-wired'. Another was told to accompany her charges to the toilet, while another was told this was unnecessary, even though the layout of both houses was similar. A colleague was told that her husband could no longer be on her registration unless he underwent further training such as First Aid and the Introducing Childminding Practice course. In order to get this decision reversed, she submitted letters from the parents of her minded children asking for him to be allowed to remain on her certificate.
She was finally given permission after much extra correspondence - only to discover that another colleague was asked if she wanted her husband to remain on the certificate and was allowed to do so without any mention of it being a problem or discussing further training.
These are just a few of the inconsistencies that have come to light locally; there must be many more. Much bad feeling will be created if one childminder considers she has been dealt with harshly while another has not met the same demands. Surely the idea of national standards for under-eights daycare means standards that apply to all, not just depending on whichever Ofsted inspector one happens to get.
