early years have fallen particularly hard on childminders. Charlotte
Goddard reports on how they are bridging the support gap.
Childminders used to be able to count on local authorities for training, advice and guidance at little or no cost. But during the recession, quality improvement services were slashed - down a quarter between 2009 and 2011, according to the Times Educational Supplement - while the CPD available to early years providers has also been hard hit.
'Levels of support and training are a postcode lottery across the country,' says Bea Heath, director of trade association Independent Childminders. While her local authority, Richmond, still provides core training such as safeguarding and first aid for free, others do not. Sarah Neville, registered childminder at Knutsford Childminding, says, 'We used to have three childminding co-ordinators in our local authority, Cheshire East, and now there is just one. Support visits now only take place if the childminder is below a good rating, and there is no longer enough help with paperwork and policies.'
Another factor is the slow take-off of the new childminder agencies, launched in September last year to 'help increase the number of childminders entering the profession and deliver improved quality', according to the Department for Education. At last count, there were four agencies formally registered. Many childminders have been critical, especially as there are charges associated. 'The government has taken away with one hand and provided the solution at cost with another,' says Ms Heath. 'Also, a lot of the training these agencies will be offering is basic-level, such as first aid and safeguarding - experienced childminders need the next level up.'
As a result, childminder groups, many of which have been around for decades, are coming into their own. Childminders across the country have shared their knowledge for years, but some are evolving to fulfil a more professional role.
One is the Magic Minders childminding group in Worthing, West Sussex, which started around 14 years ago (see case study). Group chair Sue Williams says, 'When we started we were more about the social side of things. Now we are more along the lines of supporting each other with things like paperwork and training, although the social element remains.'
Ms Williams, who has been a childminder for around 25 years, says that when the group first started there were more local authority grants, as well as training and advice. 'It was good for morale,' she says.
In the current climate, being able to access training courses at a reasonable cost is a bonus. Groups of 15-20 childminders are bypassing local authorities completely and bulk purchasing training themselves, says Ms Heath. With co-operation, there are many variations. 'A trainer could offer a childminding group training for a certain amount if it can find a room - then everyone pitches in on costs and the trainer can fill them in on the specific areas where they want to improve,' suggests Ms Neville. The trainer will charge for the course as a whole, so the more childminders that can attend, the cheaper it will be.
Groups can also help each other by providing transport to those who couldn't attend otherwise. Training is also becoming more available online; www.childcare.co.uk, for example, has teamed up with trainer EduCare to offer certificated courses, which are free to members.
Setting up
One of the first things to do when setting up a group is to form a committee, especially if you are going to be handling money, and a constitution, agreeing rules on how the organisation should operate. Tunja Stone is events manager of Leighton Buzzard Childminding Association (LBCMA), set up in the 1980s. She says the group keeps an eye on local funding streams and will apply when necessary - grants have come from the local authority, and the local Rotary Club. The group also fundraises through raffles and similar activities. Groups can use their buying power to negotiate member discounts with local retailers and soft-play venues.
It is important that members of a group can communicate with each other - a website, Facebook page, email group or phone list is helpful, as is a newsletter. One of the simplest things for groups to offer is a regular opportunity for childminders to meet up and share their experiences, which can double as a chance for the children to meet new friends and take part in fun activities. Groups have found homes in church halls, children's centres, libraries, nurseries and even members' houses.
LBCMA runs a monthly meet-up at a children's centre. 'We used to meet at the library, but we had to pay for the room and they kept double-booking us,' explains Ms Stone. The group also meets regularly in members' homes, and organises popular trips such as Christmas visits to an animal park. 'This gives childminders opportunities to discuss any problems they might have; for example, they might have a child who doesn't eat,' says Ms Stone. 'It is particularly welcomed by new childminders.' Evening meetings are also important, giving childminders a chance to network without having to keep an eye on their charges.
Sharing information can also happen online - www.independentchildminders.co.uk, for example, aims to offer free, up-to-date information and advice, and childmindinghelp.co.uk offers free activity and learning resources as well as a forum of more than 28,000 members.
Some groups support each other through a central vacancy list, which allows parents to contact childminders with space, and can match childminders to parents' particular needs. They can also offer, formally or informally, a way of providing cover when a childminder is on holiday or sick.
However, sharing information is not without its difficulties, as professional jealousies must sometimes be overcome. 'In some areas, childminders can be a bit cloak-and-dagger about how they run their business, but in our area we work together as an unofficial team,' says Sue Asquith from Kirklees, a registered childminder and PACEY associate.
As some of the lowest-paid professionals in the country (the average salary was just £7,600 in 2012) it behoves childminders to do what they can to share resources. 'Our hope is that all childminders throughout England will join together, put their rivalries to one side and support each other to stay well informed and trained,' says Ms Neville. 'We need each other now.'
Mentoring
Though council support is patchy, it is always worth researching as there are still useful schemes available. Leicestershire County Council's Childminding Mentor Scheme offers support in areas including administration, financial planning and engaging with parents. Communication takes place at least once a week through a mixture of email, phone conversations and face-to-face meetings over six weeks.
Leicestershire mentor Josie Mapes, a childminder for eight years, says while the council still offers good support, inevitably local improvement advisers are time-stretched. 'With budgets the way they are, improvement advisers only have so much time to see people,' she explains. 'And I think, because I am one of them, that childminders are more able to ask me questions - it's more informal.' She mostly encounters experienced childminders who are not up to speed on the changes in paperwork, while she also spends time building confidence.
PACEY associate Sue Asquith also provides mentoring for childminders across the country over the phone. She spends an hour a day giving advice on subjects from meeting the requirements of Ofsted and EYFS to tackling the issues of individual children. 'Childminding can be a really isolating job if you don't have a network of people to support you,' she says. 'A lot of what I do is just reassuring people that they are doing things right.'
CASE STUDY: MAGIC MINDERS, WORTHING
Around 70 childminders are part of Magic Minders, a Worthing-based childminders group. The group runs drop-in sessions for childminders and children four days a week in different venues including a children's centre and a church hall. 'People can come and talk to each other and say, "I've got this problem with a child, or a parent,"' says Sue Williams, Magic Minders chair. 'We can provide facilities for messy play, which they might not have at their house.' Members chip in to tidy up and also take it in turns to bring an activity to the group.
The group recently used some grant money to put on training in autism awareness, and has also run sessions on speech therapy and first aid. 'We are trying to find out about safeguarding training,' says Ms Williams. 'Although we have 70 members, they don't all want training at the same time, which limits our buying power, so we are trying to have more contact with other childminders, perhaps not in our area.'
Magic Minders members often cover for each other when needed, although there are no formal agreements in place. 'We are quite a friendly group so a lot of childminders tend to work in little hubs, and when there are holidays we can usually help out,' says Ms Williams.
'We surveyed our members and they are not all that keen on an agency, so hopefully what we provide is filling that gap,' she concludes.
- More information: www.magicminders.co.uk.
