Child minders at toddler group

[geogteach]

Have been going to a toddler group for a number of years, it is a church group but open to all comers and run by a committee made up of volunteers from amongst the parents.
This term a number of child minders have started coming, this is not a problem in itself but they seem to treat it as a sort of social club paying very little attention to the children they are responsible for. Today one child with SEN who can't walk followed a member of staff into the adjoining preschool, I had to go and ask the group of child minders to get him back. In another incident a child was hit and fell hitting his head on a table, again the person responsible for the child was nowhere to be seen.
We also have an issue in that we as parents set up, provide drinks, clear up etc and this relies on volunteers, the child minders say that as they are paid to look after their charges they can not join the rota.
Anyone got any inspiration on how to tackle these issues?

that's really tricky. can't join the rota but can spend time chatting. Can't make a cup of tea at playgroup, but somehow doubt they go without all day. . I went to a playgroup where all the parents mucked in (best way to run a playgroup imo) and we had 2 childminders who never had a problem with helping. Can you say to them that the group works best when everyone helps and would they mind asking their mindees' parents if they mind them doing this. Then, every week, ask them if they asked and what the mindees said? maybe they'll either get the hint and start to help or get fed up with you asking and go and find a different sort ofplaygroup

what the parents said, thta's meant to be

wow! i think you're quite within your rights to say that everyone mucks in at the group. i don't buy the line that their employers won't let them help. i think that's a very nice made-up line on their part to get out of doing anything.

i would very pointedly keep bringing their attention to their charges in a loud voice and keep doing it until they get the hint.

it's not ok to bring your mindees to a m&t so that everyone else can do the work while you chat to your friends.

Hi Geogteach

I am a childminder and it is actually true that we are not allowed to attend a m&t group and leave the mindees with other mums.

But you can leave the mindees with another registered minder so no reason not to get them to pull their weight imo.

@ can do the rota and 2 can look after all the mindees for the short time it takes to do the teas/coffees.

Quite right WWH.

WTF can't they help exactly? How does being paid to look after these kids prevent them from joining a rota?

agalch - it may well depend on the jobs but at my old playgroup there were plenty of jobs you could sign up for where you didn't have to leave the children. The only jobs that required you being out of the main hall were making the drinks, and washing up afterwards, and washing up the paint things. And none of us ever minded if someone said they didn;t want to do these coz they didn;t want to leave their los (own kids or mindees), but they still did other stuff - setting up at the beginning, putting away at half-time, getting ride on toys out after drink time, staying 5 mins late to sweep the floor.

I think one of the problems highlighted in the OP was not only the lack of co-operation in joining the rota, but also the lack of supervision of their 'mindees', so quite curious as to how that fits in with them conscientiously NOT leaving their mindees unattended to help clear up?

yes annie - hence my first ever scpetic emoticon! here's another for good measure

Thanks for the replies. Agalch is interesting, they are definately in groups so watching each others kids could be an option. I think the committee are going to have to tackle some of them as the group is in danger of folding if we don't get more help. Thanks again.