How to become a childminder

[Eddas]

I'm sure this has been done before, but here goes anyway

Thinking about minding and have some questions i hope someone can answer?

How long does it take to get registered?

How much does it cost for all the courses, fees etc?

Oh ok, not so many came to mind then

Thanks

About 3 months, though can be a lot longer particularly if there are delays with CRB and Health checks.

Not sure about fees. But you should factor in all initial costs, which will include things like Public Liability Insurance, Business Use Car Insurance, First Aid training course (course in my area is typically £80-£90) and supplies, additional equipment you may need, paperwork supplies you will need.

Also, take a look at EYFS as all childminders will need to be doing that from September. This is new to everyone at the moment, so hard to know what costs may become involved.

Contact you local authority Childcare Information Service for details about how to become a childminder. They will be able to tell you which courses they can provide, free or highly funded.

Hi Eddas, I am nearly registered as a CM. It takes for ever - but then I have moved twice since starting the course!
It shouldn't cost you much, contact your local authority who will run Introduction to Childcare Practice courses and probably fund you for it, some also fund first aid courses - postcode lottery I'm afraid.
The course is easy, one evening a week for about 10wks, and an optional multi choice test at the end. Attendance counts and you HAVE to attend a couple of the sessions on equality and child protection/recognising abuse.
The bit that takes the time is your CRB check, depending how many addresses you have had in the last 5 yrs. I found Ofsted quite quick to come out and talk to me/check premises.
Start up costs are things like insurance, making sure your car insurance covers you for business use, baby gates, toys.
I am joining NCMA for at least my first year so I get insurance included with that while I work out what I need and what they try to tell me I need! Try their website ncma.org.uk for more info
Good luck

From your profile, looks as though you will fall under Kent CIS. They have a good reputation with me, as they post on forums and give good advice.
Their contact details are: 08000 323230 [email protected]

To get a feel for how many childminders are in your area, visit here and enter in your own postcode.

Info from Kent County Council on becoming a childcare provider. Looks as though that area is still getting a Start Up grant, £300.

thanks a lot for the replys.

I will look at the websites/ring the people suggested.

I am on our preschool committee so have been CRB checked but i'm guessing they would do another, more detailed one? and it did take forever would it be quicker as I already have had one?! No? thought not

Yep you're right, a new CRB is done for every job.
CRB check will be done on you and anyone in your home aged 16 or over.

Have you considered how many children you will be able to care for? A typical childminder will be allowed 6 under 8's, or which only 3 can be 5. Your own children, if under 8, will come out of those figures... so if the ages are right on your profile, then you will only get 1 under 5 place, due to having 2 under 5's yourself. Can you afford to only have 1 (fee paying) child most of the day?

the ages are right. Thing is to make enough money for us to live i need to earn £100 per week. obviously more money would be fantastic

dd also starts school in jan, so although she'll only be 4 1/2 i think she'd be classed as an over 5 from then on as she'll be fulltime? so by the time i got all the acceptances/courses out of the way it'll be then anyway so i could have 2 under 5's?

Have you considered other work? Given all that is going on with Childcare regulation at the moment, it may not be an ideal time to join in the fun.
Once your DD starts school, could you find a job which fits with school hours and which would pay enough to cover cost of childcare for DS as well as giving you the salary you need?
Would you also be able to claim working tax credit, if you say worked 16 hours a week?
I'm not saying don't look at childminding, but I am saying look at other things as well and work out what would be better for your family.
Not all childminders make money, especially in the first few years of trading. It is a risk to go into business, so I would advise researching that risk as much as you can, and exploring other possibilities.

thanks for all your help.

Believe me i have contemplated most things work wise. There are lots of things i'm looking nto, this being one of them, and i just don't know where i'm heading work wise.

i have a job atm which is flexible but my childcare has just let me down and it's proving hard to find care for my dc. my mind is all over the place atm.

i'm just trying to think of something to do which doesn't involve care for my dc. working in tesco is looking the best option

Thank you so much for taking the time to post on my thread. This is why I like mn, ther's always someone on hand to offer advice

Please do read this thread which ended up talking about wages (childminder profit). You will find that even some established childminders are making losses.

Why is finding care for your DC hard? Is that perhaps a reason TO DO CHILDMINDING, if locally there are insufficient childcare providers? Or is it an indication that what parents will pay for childcare, does not meet the requirements of providers to be profitable... thus provisions are closing (as someone on a pre-school committee, you probably know quite a bit about how hard it is to remain financially viable as a childcare provider).

If it is of any help... work wise I have done quite a few varied things in the past. What I gained most from that was the knowledge that I am happiest doing a job I like. There is no point in doing a job you hate. So think of things you like doing... and then see if they can in someone way become a job.

thank you again for taking time to post.

As i said my mind is all over the place. I've just been looking at our finances(never a good read) and it's just depressing.

I know before i even look into childminding i need to make sure i want to do it. My inital thoughts were in op. I do enjoy being with my own children and have, on occasion, helped out at preschool, although i realise this is very different to being a childminder.

My childcare problems were sprung on me an hour before i was due in work(suddenly unable to have my dc, very helpful) and since then i have been racking my brains as to a possible solution. in my area it seems a lot of minders have no space nor do nurseries. I am at a loss. If i don't work i have a problem.

What work do you do at present? Could you extend hours there, and find alternative childcare for your DC (if childminders and nurseries are at capacity, then in-home childcare may be an option).

I'm an accountant atm. I can't change my hours, they believe we have more than enough staff. I could work longer in one day so that I only need care for one day. I was looking at this in order to use a day nursery 8-6 so I could then work 8.30-5.30(maybe a little shorter) so i could probably do 8.5 hours instead of the normal 7.5 and then do the rest from home. It's a nightmare tbh. I knew this was going to happen, just not yet.

I will be ringing everyone today, nurseries, childminders you name it i'll ring The trouble is with both dc under 5 it maybe that there just is no space

Went to a pre-registration briefing last night and it was very imformative, but they did not tell anyone much about the changes in Sept 08, except that it would be exiting...ooooh.
Lots of prospective childminders were just trying to get registered to look after friend's children.
So basically they already have the clients and just need to get their registration.
Hardly anyone seemed to be going into it without clients lined up.
I'm one of those, does it mean it's going to be REALLY difficult to fill in spaces unless i work weekends or something?