Were you a CM, why did you give up?

[Shoshe]

With the numbers of CM's falling, it would be interesting to see if it is all because of the paper work.

So if you have given up since Ofsted took over or are going to in the near future, would you mind signing in.

Shoshe : going July 2009, Registered since 1980. Paperwork became to much, fed up of home having to look like a nursery. Ofsted Inspectors having different standards.

Oh I am having a bad morning. Sorry didn't mean to post twice, I don't think I pressed the button twice - sorry.

Oh dear

I have very mixed feelings about cming at the moment. On the one hand dd has just gone to school, all my spaces are filled and I now feel like I am doing a job (don't know why but before, when dd was here, it sort of felt like i was just looking after others while here rather than a 'job'. I know that doesn't make sense but never mind )
On the other hand, I can not stand how things are going and all this rubbish with EYFS. I like looking after the children, watching and helping them develop, playing with them, making them feel at home in my home and enjoying coming. It is turning into me 'making' them do things they might not really want to so that I can write an observation and take a photo to prove we do those things. That is not how it is supposed to be and I don't like it. I am really thinking that next time my inspection is due (last one August 2007) I will see how it goes and if it doesn't go well (ie I am not doing obs, assessment, plannning 'right') then I will consider getting a different job. Although that thought does sadden me.

I started June 06
I have loved my time minding, fond of the children and chance to earn and stay home with my baby boy.
However...

too much paperwork,
we are ready for house to become less like a nursery,
son is FT at school & I'd rather 'go out' to work.
DH shift worker and would like his house to himself in the day, understandable.
I now feel it's time for 'adult' company and a new challenge, hence why I'm a TA in local school.

Question to anyone who has resigned.
Did you resign completley. Or put your registration ' on hold' until your annual renewal - just in case you wanted to do a little CM..??

Thanks.

..just to add.. I found this ever so old thread.. after hunting for one about "Leaving Childminding"

If you have and can offer any advice or pointers - I would be very grateful.

I have spoken to Ofsted, and if I resign, as of today, I will of course, have to re register from scratch, should I want to look after anyone.

I could put my registration - on hold... just in case, I say took someone on before my annual registration runs out.

Oh I don't know... what to do ! Typical I keep getting enquiries! now that I am ready to quit

Thanks everyone

There are some names on that list that I definitely recognise as still loitering around this forum!!

If your'e doing TA have you thought about taking mindees in school hols, may as well hang onto your registration, it's not as if you will have any paperwork etc to do if not minding and you can put your house back to normal.

Have a re-think when membership / insurance is due again, you may find after a few months not doing it you can never see yourself as a cm again or you might miss it soo much you decide to restart

I registered in 2002 and redigned in 2003 when pg with twins (3 under 2). roll onto 2006 when twins almost 3 and I re registered. Now they are at school Y1 and Ive ummmed and aaahhed between minding and going back out to work. My main concern is childcare costs for my own kids during school holidays with hubby on shift work and 4 kids would really cost me a lot of money, my eldest is 11. In the last few weeks though things have been going well, new enquiries and increased hours from a few people mean that £ for £ Im better of here. I`m now doing my NVQ in CCLD funded through smart training with a veiw to becoming a TA in a few years time when my eldest are no longer in lower school.
In the mean time its heads down to the grind stone with studying and EYFS and looking forward to getting outside in the summer, something I know I would miss badly if I were stuck indoors at work.

Hi atwork - thank you, for your advice.

I'm going to continue with the school hols mindees that I already have, until my registration renewal, to see how it goes..
However, Can you explain to me what you mean by no paperwork?

I understood that all the time that I am registered and have children on roll, that I will be as usual regarding paper work and house as it should.

It was more to the point of having to keep up to date with fees/house fully ready for just a few days each half term (6 in summer) - weighing that up against the ££ and efforts for such in frequent minding,

I already miss the kids, but I dont miss the paperwork, & liking the house a bit more looking less like a nursery.

Totally agree with you Southern Belle.. You posted 2 years ago, I wonder if you are still about and what did you do in the end?

Yes your'e quite right you will still need RA's and P&P's, Registers etc. But if you are just doing holiday clubs I would imagine that you will not need safety gates, high chairs, travel cots and all of the usual baby / toddler parafinalia.

The paperwork I was thinking of was the EYFS stuff, I find that the other stuff just needs updating a couple of times a year or when any changes come into force, once you have RA's P & P 's they are just kind of their without a great deal of updating.

Well I am on this thread as SammyK, I actually stopped cm'ing earlier than I planned, spring 09. I cut my hours to part time before that as there weren't enough hours in the day when I was working full time, but part time I wasn't earning enough to pay my bills, so I went to work in a nursery which is a whole other thread. I am now simply a carer for my DS and we are both much happier and less stressed.

There are at least 2 cms on this thread who said they were hanging up their cm hats who haven't!

HI
I have chosen not to renew my registration in July and have to say I am looking forward to stopping. Paperwork is a joke, my house too feels like a nursery, and I feel for the amount of energy needed and extra hours for the paperwork, you need to have alot of children to make it worthwhile, and with 3 of my own it has proven to be too much.
I charge £4.25 an hour, and if I was not giving up I would have increased my prices this year(I am in Buckinghamshire) and I would have had no problems as there is a real shortage of childminders in my area-perhaps eyfs related, I don't know.

I now feel the need to get back to working with adults.

This thread makes me sad My Mum was a childminder until I was about 13 (I think). She gave up because me and my two sisters had grown up and it meant that she could move onto other things she wanted to do rather than feeling forced out iirc.

But it does sadden me as I remember having so many other children around and loving it, I felt that I had three other younger siblings and when Mum quit we didn't get to see them anymore Though we bump into a boy my Mum had from 6 months to 8/9 years old and my god he's all grown up and about 16 now

Childminders are very special people and it's crap how they're being forced out of work because of the EYFS crap. What ever happened to letting kids be kids?

I registered 18 months ago, just do after school. Really love it and the kids are great. It's all good. However I'm really not sure if I could go through the stress of another ofsted inspection again. It was the most nerve racking day of my life and there is so much that is wrong and unjust with the whole system.

I've done all the courses I need to do (for Now) but found them so mind numbingly boring and lots of time taken up by women who couldn't even speak English. I started the diploma but gave up after 4 sessions as it was really depressing me having to attend and be stuck in a college for 6 hours every other saturday when it all could have been said in an hour. I'm not a quitter but I just couldn't take it and knew I wouldn't be able to do all the assignments either. I've never done an assigment in my life and would to have had to do a computer course to enable me. Am going through a horrid divorce too and have 3 kids of my own.

In a couple of years the diploma will be compulsary and then I might stop as I don't think I can face it.

The whole thing makes me so angry that I actually feel ill just revisiting it all again on here.

I love my mindees, I fetch them from school and we laugh and joke and have fun (it's like "the sound of music").

I have a great relationship with the parents, I earn well. It's all good, everyone very happy.

The ONLY downside is ofsted with their countless policys, risk assesments, courses, diploma, procedures, self evaluation, record keeping, etc etc etc etc is just a bad joke.

The demands that they put on childminders are totally unreasonable and unjustifiable, verging on the ridiculous and it's a scandle.

I'm going to stop now before I burst a blood vessel.

Sorry about my bad spelling !

pinksmarties Have you checked out the exemptions to registration, if you offer no more than 2 activities for no more than 3hrs (per child, per day) you won't have to register. Just thought as you are only doing after school mindees, this may be an option, cuts out a lot of paperwork and inspections.

Thankyou "atwork", Ive not heard of that at all. I thought I had to be registered if my mindees are under 8 which they are.

Nope some childcare is exempt, but you do need to notify ofsted and they send a cert to say that you have no need to reg. worth checking if you are just doing a few hours a day.

Ok I'll check, thank you so much. x

Hi
I thought that was very interesting.... @ atworknotworking.
By activities - How do you mean ?
So 1 over 8, 2 hours a day after school, 4-5 days a week, would that need a registration?/ inspection?

I thought any minding for more than 2 hours a day meant registration??

Any help would be great thanks
(I probably should just call Ofsted!)

The children can be over 5, as long as they are not cared for by you, for more than 3 hrs in any one day, so it could be 8-9 before school and then say 3-5pm after school. By activities it gives a few examples such as - Arts and Crafts, Music, drama etc, basically the main function of the club is the activity on offer, the care of the child is secondary IYSWIM. I will dig out the ofsted reference to the guidance when I get a min and post on here.

But you still need to inform ofsted of the setting and get a cert to say that reg is exempt. I'm thinking of doing this as most of my mindees are now b/a schoolers and will be by Sept. Not sure how it will work come holiday club though so still need to look into that side of things.

Just saw this and realised I started the thread, because I was giving up, fed up with it all.

I am still here

OOO looks like the rules have changed a bit, its 4hrs and over 3's, heres the linky fing

www.ofsted.gov.uk/Ofsted-home/Forms-and-guidance/Browse-all-by/Other/General/Factsheet-childcare-Reg istration-not-required

Shoshe I'm glad your'e still here, have a

I would love to give up. As you said Shoshe, paperwork home looking like a nursery plus whatever we do will never be good enough.
I've been in childcare for approx 11/12 years. I was a nanny previously with absolutely glowing references. Ofsted make me feel like shit and have made me question my abilities.
There's no joy in my work now.
However, I can't afford to give up and I dong know what else I can do from home. It'd be pointless going out to work as I'd be working to pay for childcare