According to ‘Childcare providers and inspections’, as of 31 August 2024 there were 26,000 childminders, down from 27,060 the year prior.
It comes after the closure of the biggest childminder agency, Rutland, in November 2023, which had around 766 members.
According to the inspectorate, as of 31 August this year, there were seven childminder agencies registered with Ofsted. Of these, three had childminders on roll.
The figures show that as of the end of August, there were a total of 61,200 childcare provider registered with Ofsted.
The inspectorate says that the decline in providers has slowed each year since 2021/22, mostly because fewer are leaving the sector.
The Early Years Alliance (EYA) called the ‘continued trend of plummeting childminders deeply concerning’.
Chief executive Neil Leitch explained, ‘Childminding professionals are an incredibly important source of quality, flexible home-based care and education, and it has never been more important to ensure that this critical part of the sector receives the support it needs – both now and in the long-term – to reverse this worrying trend. ‘
He added, ‘With less than a year to go until the final phase of the entitlement expansion, it is absolutely vital that the Government takes swift and decisive action to ensure that providers are supported not just to remain open, but to increase capacity to meet rapidly growing demand. The harsh reality is that if nothing changes, not only will providers continue to struggle but more and more families will find it difficult – if not impossible – to find a place that meets their needs.’
Places
Despite the drop in childminder numbers, the number of early years places have risen, reveals the data. As of 31 August, there were 1.28 million childcare places, up by 12,100 since last year.
Of the total number of places this year, 1.11 million are being provided by nurseries, while 158,000 are provided by childminders.
Inspection
The latest figures from Ofsted also include data on inspections. They show that of the 8,270 full inspections of registered early years providers carried out since 1 September 2023, 88 per cent received a judgement of good or outstanding.
Of the inspections that were previously judged requires improvement or inadequate, 78 per cent were found to be good or outstanding at their next full inspection.
A breakdown of the figures show that of all the 380 nursery schools in England, 97 per cent were judged good or outstanding at their most recent inspection.
