Can someone please help?

[pepperpots]

can someone please tell me the legal number of children a childminder can have please?
tia

i think its 1 under 12 months (unless permsiion for more than 1 is granted ie twins...

is it 3 under 5 in total...

but as many over 8s as she wants.... ie 20 or 30 if she really wanted that many kids in her house

A total of 6 under 8's (usually split as 1 under 1 , a total of 3 under 5 + 3 5-8's) plus as many over 8's as you like as long as it does not affect the care of the under 8's

only asking because my childminder looks after my ds1 who is 4 my ds2 who is 2 and she also has a dd who is 3, and now looks as though she has taken another mindee who is 4. is this legal?

is the 4 year old in reception?

dont they count as being 5 once in full time school... even if they are 4?

if she looks after all 4 at one time and the 4 year old is not in reception it doesnt sound right, no

Are either of the 4 year olds old enough to be in reception at school? I think that if they are, they are 'counted' as 5 year olds.

No my ds1 who is 4 is only in nursery, and only part time as he missed the school year as he turned 4 in october (iyswim)

So she has
Your DS 4 at nursery
Your DS 2
Her DD 3
4th child at the same time age 4 (not at school)

Then her certificate (which should be on the wall for you to read - easily) should read

.....4 children under 5

If it doesn't then she is over minding - she can't say..."I am waiting for the cert to arrive" that not legal & her insurance will be invalid

katymac thanks for this, to top it all off i found out that this little boy is only 2.5 now what do i do?

Read her certificate

Are they all there at the same time?

I'm a Nanny and have a close friend who is a childminder.I know she would never mind being asked regarding her provision of care...but then she follows the rule to the letter!

It must be hard as this is your organised care but it seems sad that you don't seem to have the relationship with your child's carer in order to simply ask her outright. Is there a problem there?

FACTS time!! Ages covered
A childminder may look after any age of child, from baby to teenager, but registration regulations only apply to care provided for children under the age of eight.

According to Government regulations, a childminder is allowed to look after six children under the age of eight (under 12 in Scotland and Northern Ireland). Of those six, no more than three should be under the age of five; of those three, no more than one should be under the age of one (exceptions are made for siblings). Any care for children over the age of eight should not be allowed to adversely affect the care provided for children under eight

I don't think attendance at school makes a jot of difference. It is their actual age.

You could say something like..."I don't mean to be a pain but I'm really worried that you may not be covered insurance wise now that you've taken on a fourth child under 5. Is everything still okay?"

One thing to note....this is children all together at the same time. She can take on as many as she likes if their times are staggered and they are never around together.

good luck
xx

I don't think attendance at school makes a jot of difference. It is their actual age.

In England, Attendance at school does make a difference, but it needs to be 10 Educational Sessions (full time school) and they must be aged 4. They are then counted as being aged 5 for ratio purposes. See Childminder Guidance for additional information - 2001 2004
2005

Pepperpots, talk with your childminder about your concerns. Check the registration certificate. If you get no joy, contact the regulator (Ofsted if in England) to confirm the childminders registration status.

I've always thought the certificate states the number of Minded children the childminder can care for, so this Excludes the minders own children. It may say something like may care for no more than 5 children under 8 years; of these, not more than 2 may be under 5 years, and of these, not more than 1 may be under 1 year at any one time.

Whoops Nannynick is right sorry (my DD is 9 and hasn't been on my cert for ages) very sorry for the mix up - I really apologise

Her cert should say

3 children under 5
(unless you are in Scotland.....which is different again)

Well mayb she is applying for a variation and thats why she hasnt taken on this little 4yr old yet as she is waiting to hear whether she can have this or not??
The 1under 1years doesnt apply in Wales - It is no more that 2 under 18mths here!
Just pop into the conversation to your cm - oh your taking a lot on - how many is it then you are actually allowed to mind? She should then explain!
Hope u find out soon

She could have applied for a variation. I did this when i minded two girls last year.
I had a 3yr old and his brother 1yr old, on a strange pattern - 1 week i had them 3 days the next 5 days the next again 1 day. the 2 girls i had 8am till 4pm, but the older one went to playgroup from 9am till 1pm. Every other week the younger one was picked up at noon by her dad.I didn't actually have all four together that often, but i couldn't do it until i got my variation on my vertificate.

like to say thank you all very much for all information. I do have a good r/ship with her so i think i will bring it up when i see her tomorrow. She does have them all at the same time in answer to somebodys question they are not staggered.