returning to work after mat leave

[MrsC1977]

Hi, my friend is going back to work this week following maternity leave & is planning on leaving her 8mo son for 40 hours a week with a person who is not a registered childminder. Is this right, can this be done? I always thought you had to be registred to care for under 5s and for that amount of time. Hi, my friend is going back to work this week following maternity leave & is planning on leaving her 8mo son for 40 hours a week with a person who is not a registered childminder. Is this right, can this be done? I always thought you had to be registred to care for under 5s and for that amount of time.

If she's paying for it, then yes, the childminder must legally be registered with Ofsted. To be clear - providing childcare on domestic premises for reward (ie money) WITHOUT being registered is ILLEGAL.

You are correct although not sure it is actually illegal. She may be shooting herself in the foot financially too - won't be eligible Tax credits to cover childcare or be able to use vouchers or Early Years funding a few years down the line.

I've just qualified as a childminder, and I can assure you that it is illegal. The childminder can be taken to court if reported.

Also, does your friend know this person well? An unregistered childminder might have had a registration that Ofsted has then removed - ie they might actually be barred from looking after children.

Hi, thanks for replies everyone. She said its a friend of her mums (who is a district nurse) so I can imagine her mums friend is a nurse also. But I know she isn't a registered childminder, I don't even know what her name is or where she lives. But I am thinking of reporting this! Who do I report it to? And can I do it without knowing the womans name? I know the name of the child though.

You would report it to Ofsted - but you would need to know the person's name, rather than the name of the child.