Nursery World - Most childminders lack formal training (1)

Fewer than three in ten registered childminders in Northern Ireland have had any formal childcare training, an audit by the Northern Ireland Childminding Association (NICMA) has found. In the light of its findings, NICMA has called for the development of a regional training strategy specifically for childminders that was supported by appropriate funding and took into account all the barriers to training that they faced. It also called for mandatory 'Introduction to childminding' training prior to starting to care for children. At present, under the Children (NI) Order 1995, childminders are the only childcarers in the province who are not legally required to undergo any formal training.

In the light of its findings, NICMA has called for the development of a regional training strategy specifically for childminders that was supported by appropriate funding and took into account all the barriers to training that they faced. It also called for mandatory 'Introduction to childminding' training prior to starting to care for children. At present, under the Children (NI) Order 1995, childminders are the only childcarers in the province who are not legally required to undergo any formal training.

The audit of 2,410 members of NICMA - more than half (54.7 per cent) of all registered childminders in Northern Ireland - found that less than 30 per cent had received basic training before becoming registered by social services.

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