How to contact / locate childminder?

[firsttimer08]

I found an ofsted report for a childminder that sounds perfect for my needs and appears to be fairly close to home based on the description. However OFSTED don?t give contact details ? I tried contacting my local council, but since the particular childminder is not advertising vacancies at the moment, they will not give me her details! But as I am looking for a childminder next year, I would really like to get on her waiting list if she has any. Is there anyway that I can try and locate her? Ideas /suggestions welcome !

OK

Hard work

BUT if you get lots of post codes and see where she is closest to, when you find her road she will be top

Or ask at local schools

At present I don't think you will be able to find out, the best you could do is work out the postcode, but that will take some time. Even with the postcode, you then need to establish house number.

The Ofsted online list is sorted by distance from the postcode entered, thus as KatyMac says, once they are at the top, they are as close to (or actually at) the postcode entered.

Back in February (2008) Ofsted consulted on what information should be provided on-line (see Question 2 of Childcare Register Survey). I have been unable to locate the results of this consultation, but I suspect that come September, more information about providers may be available online - possibly including address details of childminders.

I hope that is not true Nick. I do not want my address details available online to anyone! People will just turn up on your doorstep and I would not like that!

You could try and work out from the postcode who it could be, then look at the cis list (depending on how many people are on it for that area!) and phone cm's and ask for their ofsted reg number and then you would be able to see who it was!

Maybe the local childminding network could help?

Or call your local CIS and enlist their help?

hmm it seems short of hiring a spy or knocking on random doors, its really tough

just when i thought i had found the perfect childminder - hmpph !

Maybe its one of us. What is the postcode or at least the first bit?

SE10 in Greenwich, London !

I'd get the CIS list, there may well also be other good CMs close to home. If you're looking well in advance, it's worth contacting ones who don't have current vacancies too.

I would recommending meeting CMs and then following up on info like OFSTED reports - communication etc between your child and the carer, and your instincts, are just as worth considering as a formal inspection.

Not me then, sorry. Anyone in SE10?

elkiedee the problem is that (at least in Greenwich) the CIS list only gives the details of CMs that currently have vacancies. So no way of finding out about those that may have a vacancy some months down the line. Only way is to keep requesting an updated vacancy list on a regular basis.