Julia Harris (above), who runs North West Childcare, based in Manchester, is lobbying the Government on the issue. If agencies were registered, Julia says, 'Parents would be able to select an agency secure in the knowledge that it adhered to strict vetting procedures. And they would be able to claim the new tax credit introduced on 6 April.'
One supporter is her local MP Graham Brady, who criticises the way nannies are excluded from the tax credit system and registration. He says, 'This discriminates against thousands of carers who hold qualifications which are entirely suitable and appropriate for caring for children. Its impact is to steer parents away from carers holding NNEB and similarly demanding qualifications, in favour of those who have attended a six-week course for two nights a week. I am calling on the Government to end this anomaly.'
In Scotland it has been proposed that all recruitment agencies involved in childcare must be registered with the Scottish Commission for the Regulation of Care and must carry out thorough checks on all job candidates. Julia admits that many nannies would slip the net simply by not getting their jobs through agencies. 'But if the only way for nannies to be regulated is through nanny agencies being regulated and screening the applicants, I am totally in favour of it,' says Julia.
