Childminders and the NVQ: In evidence

When your workplace is your home, how do you gather evidence and get yourself assessed for an NVQ 3? Meg Jones talks to successful candidates and advisors

For Sue Griffin, the National Childminding Association's national training and quality assurance manager, there is no doubt that when considering which NVQ to undertake, childminders should aim for level 3.

'Childminding is a level 3 role: childminders work unsupervised, plan and organise their own work, look after children from a wide age range - and must work towards the standards required for NVQ Level 3,' she says.

There are two particular difficulties for childminders taking an NVQ. Being based at home, the childminder may be unsure how to gather evidence for their NVQ portfolio, and the assessment centre and training agency may not understand how childminders work. However, there are various steps childminders can take to overcome potential problems and get the most out of doing an NVQ3.

• Find out what is involved in doing an NVQ3. Childminders will need to reflect on their role as a childcarer and what evidence gathering will be needed for their NVQ portfolio.

Childminder Sue Bate of Findern near Derby feels very strongly that when it comes to evidence gathering, childminders actually have advantages over candidates working in pre-schools and nurseries.

She is accredited with Derbyshire Childminding Network, receiving education funding for three- and four-year-olds, and believes childminders are likely to work with a wider range of children, be involved in a wider variety of activities and have a greater range of responsibilities than a single staff member in a nursery.

'I wear lots of hats,' she says. 'We do cooking, look after the environment, paint; I do planning and assessment, health care and administration.

On one assessment, she says, 'I did an activity, gave the children a snack, changed the baby, and so on. It's a good way of covering lots of performance criteria and ranges. In fact, childminders may need less assessor time than in other settings.' A good assessment plan is essential for home assessments, she believes.

In addition to the home assessments, she also collected witness testimonies from many sources including parents, a fire officer and a librarian, and gained evidence from Ofsted reports, assessment records from the childminding network, policies and visit reports from a teacher.

• Choose a method of study that is right for you. Guildford childminder Sue Monk gained her NVQ3 in 2001, having already completed a Certificate in Childminding Practice (CCP). She tried distance learning first but found she really needed to attend college to stay focused. It paid off, as it took her only ten months to get the NVQ, and she is now working as a training and development worker for NCMA.
  
  
• Find out what support you can expect while doing the course. Candidates in nurseries and pre-schools may have the advantage of having colleagues who have already completed the course or are doing the course at the same time. There may even be on-site assessors. However, childminders may find that they receive support from local childminder networks and childminder groups. Sheila Hornby, NCMA childminding project officer (Hampshire), suggests childminders try to ensure there will be other childminders in their cohort of students.
  
  
• Choose your course carefully. There seems to be a national shortage of assessors, and some trainers focus on nurseries and pre-schools. Check that the assessment centre will not expect you to go into unfamiliar settings, with unfamiliar children, to gain your evidence. A childminder's place of work is their home and that is where evidence should be gathered.

Don't be frightened to ask questions, particularly in relation to assessors, standards, consistency, experience of tutors, and completion rates, says Sue Bate. She was allocated an assessor who had been a childminder and together they were able to work out what was expected of her during the course. Sheila Hornby recommends that before committing yourself to a course, agree a time frame for completion, and ensure an assessor is available before registering.

• Consider doing the Certificate in Childminding Practice (CCP). This level 3 award is based on written assignments and provides childminders with the underpinning knowledge required for an NVQ, which is based on practical assessments.

Fareham College in Hampshire piloted a fast-track approach to NVQs where candidates, who had taken the CCP with the same tutor, completed one unit every other week. Childminders worked together, and assessors met parents. It proved to be a success, with all 35 childminders gaining the award. Basingstoke College of Technology, with Hampshire EYDCP funding childminders for CCP, also ran a similar fast-track programme, with students taking the NVQ afterwards and completing in six to 12 months.

However, some colleges have disregarded the underpinning knowledge provided by the CCP and expected childminders to attend other courses. Sue Griffin at the NCMA, however, emphasises that this is not necessary, and that the underpinning knowledge provided by the CCP is acknowledged in the NVQ, under 'accreditation of prior knowledge'.

It is not essential to have the CCP before doing the NVQ. Sue Bate completed her NVQ3 in 18 months, without the benefit of CCP. 'There were none running in this area, and I knew there was an expectation to get qualifications, so I just got on with it.'

Whatever the route childminders choose to do the NVQ 3, Sheila Hornby warns that it is hard work so candidates need to be disciplined.

But childminders who have completed the course have found it worthwhile. Sue Bate says, 'I liked the idea of training, but being a grandma and mum I thought I knew everything there was to know. I was wrong.'

She found the course 'a bit of a challenge' and felt 'I was in at the deep end to start with'. But she concludes, 'It was a really good learning experience. I enjoyed doing it and getting professional recognition. Although I work at home, I do a proper job.'