VeggieSausage
21-08-2013, 03:31 PM
Wed, 21 Aug 2013 at 16:22
16:22
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Department for Education response: Case Reference 2013/0046922
FROM Unmonitored.ACCOUNT@education.gsi.gov.uk TO You
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Unmonitored.ACCOUNT@education.gsi.gov.uk
Dear Ms xx
Thank you for your email of 23 July, addressed to the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Education and Childcare, about childminder agencies. As I am sure you will appreciate the minister receives a large amount of correspondence and is unable to respond to each one personally. On this occasion I have been asked to reply.
The government recognises the important contribution made by childminders in providing quality childcare. Yet the number of registered childminders has almost halved between 1992 and 2011, from 106,000 to 57,500. We want more childminders to enter the profession and we think that the creation of childminder agencies, in addition to support for independent childminders, will help us achieve this.
In ‘More Affordable Childcare’, we announced that all good and outstanding childminders will automatically be eligible to receive government early education funding from September. At the moment local authorities act as gatekeepers to this funding. This change will mean that over 70% of childminders would be able to receive this funding. Less than 10% of childminders currently offer funded places. It will remain the case, however, that a childminder will have to be Ofsted-registered, either independently or with an agency, before they can access early education funding, to ensure that quality is maintained. 'More Affordable Childcare' is available here;
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/212671/More_Affordable_Childcare.pdf
The department wants to emphasise that no childminder will be forced to join an agency. Some childminders, especially those entering the profession, may want to join an agency for support in starting up their business, training and development, and accessing parents.
We welcome the input of experienced childminders, and we have completed a number of consultations aimed at parents, nurseries, local authorities, childminders, health professionals, teachers and academics. From March to May 2013 we ran a consultation on ‘proposed changes to the role of the local authority in early education and childcare’ and have recently announced next steps which build on responses to the consultation. We are also currently consulting on ‘The Regulation of Childcare’, until 30 September. Further information is available on the department’s website at here
Thank you once again for writing on this important matter.
Your correspondence has been allocated reference number 2013/0046922. If you need to respond to us, please visit: www.education.gov.uk/contactus and quote your reference number.
As part of our commitment to improving the service we provide to our customers, we are interested in hearing your views and would welcome your comments via our website at: www.education.gov.uk/pcusurvey
Yours sincerely
Caroline Walsh
Ministerial and Public Communications Division
Home - The Department for Education (http://www.education.gov.uk)
The original of this email was scanned for viruses by the Government Secure Intranet virus scanning service supplied by Vodafone in partnership with Symantec. (CCTM Certificate Number 2009/09/0052.) On leaving the GSi this email was certified virus free.
Communications via the GSi may be automatically logged, monitored and/or recorded for legal purposes.
16:22
Message starred
Department for Education response: Case Reference 2013/0046922
FROM Unmonitored.ACCOUNT@education.gsi.gov.uk TO You
Show Details
From
Unmonitored.ACCOUNT@education.gsi.gov.uk
Dear Ms xx
Thank you for your email of 23 July, addressed to the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Education and Childcare, about childminder agencies. As I am sure you will appreciate the minister receives a large amount of correspondence and is unable to respond to each one personally. On this occasion I have been asked to reply.
The government recognises the important contribution made by childminders in providing quality childcare. Yet the number of registered childminders has almost halved between 1992 and 2011, from 106,000 to 57,500. We want more childminders to enter the profession and we think that the creation of childminder agencies, in addition to support for independent childminders, will help us achieve this.
In ‘More Affordable Childcare’, we announced that all good and outstanding childminders will automatically be eligible to receive government early education funding from September. At the moment local authorities act as gatekeepers to this funding. This change will mean that over 70% of childminders would be able to receive this funding. Less than 10% of childminders currently offer funded places. It will remain the case, however, that a childminder will have to be Ofsted-registered, either independently or with an agency, before they can access early education funding, to ensure that quality is maintained. 'More Affordable Childcare' is available here;
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/212671/More_Affordable_Childcare.pdf
The department wants to emphasise that no childminder will be forced to join an agency. Some childminders, especially those entering the profession, may want to join an agency for support in starting up their business, training and development, and accessing parents.
We welcome the input of experienced childminders, and we have completed a number of consultations aimed at parents, nurseries, local authorities, childminders, health professionals, teachers and academics. From March to May 2013 we ran a consultation on ‘proposed changes to the role of the local authority in early education and childcare’ and have recently announced next steps which build on responses to the consultation. We are also currently consulting on ‘The Regulation of Childcare’, until 30 September. Further information is available on the department’s website at here
Thank you once again for writing on this important matter.
Your correspondence has been allocated reference number 2013/0046922. If you need to respond to us, please visit: www.education.gov.uk/contactus and quote your reference number.
As part of our commitment to improving the service we provide to our customers, we are interested in hearing your views and would welcome your comments via our website at: www.education.gov.uk/pcusurvey
Yours sincerely
Caroline Walsh
Ministerial and Public Communications Division
Home - The Department for Education (http://www.education.gov.uk)
The original of this email was scanned for viruses by the Government Secure Intranet virus scanning service supplied by Vodafone in partnership with Symantec. (CCTM Certificate Number 2009/09/0052.) On leaving the GSi this email was certified virus free.
Communications via the GSi may be automatically logged, monitored and/or recorded for legal purposes.