Ofsted consults on childminders' data

The inspectorate made the move earlier this week after thousands of complaints to the National Childminding Association (NCMA) about Ofsted's intention to begin placing childminders' details on its website from the beginning of the next round of childcare inspections in England (News, 27 March). However, Ofsted said it followed 'concerns raised during a consultation on the issue with the Early Years National Consultative Forum earlier this year'.

Childminders' reports and personal details, such as their names and addresses, will now be delayed from going up on the Ofsted website from June, as originally planned, although inspection reports for group daycare will appear.

Ofsted's decision to hold the consultation followed a meeting last week at the Department for Education and Skills headquarters in Westminster between the education secretary, Charles Clarke, and Lynn Daley, NCMA chair, and NCMA chief executive Gill Haynes, who brought with them a box containing more than 1,000 letters and e-mails written by concerned childminders and parents. Afterwards they described the meeting as 'positive'.

Mrs Daley said, 'The letters from childminders and parents were very powerful. They vividly expressed people's feelings about making children unnecessarily vulnerable, and stressed the need for joined-up thinking so that parents could get the information they need to make an informed choice about quality childcare through existing Children's Information Services.'

At present childminders give their details to Children's Information Services and its website on a voluntary basis.

Ofsted said on Monday it had 'successfully completed' inspections of all 85,000 childminders and daycare providers that had transferred to Ofsted from local authorities in September 2001. The second round of inspections, which began on 1 April, sees the introduction of Ofsted's controversial childcare inspection quality grading system.

, which has three grades of 'good', 'satisfactory' and 'unsatisfactory', and covers all registered childcare such as childminders, day nurseries, pre-schools and playgroups, out-of-school clubs, creches and holiday playschemes.