Could you consider being a childminder?

When I decided to have children, the thing that worried me most wasn’t the responsibility, the sleepless nights or the poo’y nappies. It wasn’t the potty training, the tantrum taming or even the life skill teaching. It was affording childcare.

It sounds crazy, but with childcare costs seeming to increase far faster than the rate of inflation, and the fact that full time childcare costs would have in themselves equated to more than my mortgage, the cost of bringing children into the world is not something to be sniffed at!

We took a long time to plan our long term childcare arrangements, considering everything from childminders to nurseries, and even help from grandparents, but for some, like a close friend of mine, retraining as a childminder could actually be a viable option; balancing both your career and your family life.

My friend Claire had experience working within a childcare setting, but on having her own daughter, decided to set up her own childminder business, enabling her to stay with her own child, whilst supporting other families with their childcare needs. She now looks after 4 other children as well as her own, including before and after school clubs and school and nursery drop offs. She now earns more than she did in her previous full time role, with the added benefit of being able to spend every day with her own child, in a fun and educational setting created in her own home.

NCC Home Learning recently created a how to guide, outlining everything you might want to know when considering a career as a childminder. The full guide can be found here, but if you are considering a change of career, here are some factors you may want to consider:

• To be considered a professional childminder, you have to care for at least one child for more than two hours a day, but this doesn’t have to be a continuous period of time.
• There are limits to how many children a childminder can care for at any one time – up to 6 children under 8 years of age, and only one baby under the age of 1 at any given time.
• You will be classed as self employed, and will need to register with the HMRC and complete annual tax returns on your earnings and be responsible for your own accounts.
• According to the “Childminder Fees Survey 2017”, the average salary for a childminder is £18600 per annum.
• Whilst you don’t need any formal qualifications, it is recommended to have A Certificate in Child Development to make sure you are meeting the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS).
• You will need to register with Ofsead and have a full DBS check, as well as completing a full paediatric first aid course.
• There are other costs that you might not automatically think of, including Public Liability insurance, business insurances, and costs relating to health and safety and home security checks.

Fundamentally, it is important to note that your own childcare challenges shouldn’t be your main motivation for becoming a childminder, and that you should have a passion for working with young people. If you have the ability to create a safe and supportive environment for children, and the right skills to help them blossom, childminding can be a highly rewarding vocation, with the ability to have a huge influence on young people in your care.

For more information on Childminding, or for a step by step guide on how to become one, visit the NCC Home Learning website for a range of useful resources.

*This is a collaborative post*