Information about pre-childminding courses here appears to be non-existent. After two months of trying to get information, I attended a pre-registration meeting where I was told I would have to equip my house for the inspection by Ofsted, at great cost. I was also told that Ofsted could then refuse to allow my house to be used, without any explanation as to why it had failed, and the initial outlay for childcare resources would be lost and that this was 'a chance I would have to take'.
At 2.50 per hour per child (the recommended rate), child-minding would not provide me with an income that would even match the national minimum wage. Perhaps this is why the number of childminders nationally is dropping.
I find it incredible that organisations such as the National Childminding Association try to explain this by disputing the statistics. After all, childminders need to make a decent living from what is a hard and responsible job.
Hazel Robinson,
Lancaster, Lancashire
* See our special report on childminding in this issue
