Inspection costs for agencies and ICMs estimated by OFSTED

[rickysmiths]

Spot on!!!...and if you take funded children? what then...hand them back? I can see the LAs will love this arrangement

I don't think the parents will be too impressed either.

[hectors house]

I can see the childminders who already have inadequate or satisfactory (whatever it's now called) signing up to Agencies after all they have nothing to lose and their grade may get bumped up by the new childminders who get recruited by Agencies as they will be brainwashed on their childminding course that they won't get any support unless they do.

[Ripeberry]

What if you can't pay? Does it mean you have to close?

[samb]

This is getting quite scary now. I really don't want to be forced into having to join an agency over keeping my costs down but if there is a big difference plus agencies offer maybe a discount for first aid courses etc then how will we afford to run a sustainable business unless we join :-(

[dawn100]

On another matter...nurseries do not pay £35...their fee is around £220 as quoted by Dawn100

Some preschools do pay only £35, I know the figures due to being a parent rep at a preschool who were extending their hours and weren't sure how much their fee would go up by and worrying it might mean a yearly fee of £220 (they were really struggling money wise at that point and every penny mattered) I think they now pay around £50, it stuck in my head as I was shocked their yearly fee was the same as mine as a cm!!!

[Mouse]

I can see the childminders who already have inadequate or satisfactory (whatever it's now called) signing up to Agencies after all they have nothing to lose and their grade may get bumped up by the new childminders who get recruited by Agencies as they will be brainwashed on their childminding course that they won't get any support unless they do.

But will agencies want to take on inadequate or satisfactory childminders?

[Chatterbox Childcare]

I thought that the plan was for the agency to inspect the childminders and give a grade and then Ofsted would cherry pick and look at these and then grade the agency. Every childminder had their own grade

I am also interested on cost but it may look good for future minders who pay an annual fee and have courses paid for, policies written for them

[Simona]

it is all very vague and we do not know anymore apart from the estimated costs...lets keep calm and not panic ...just yet

One thing though we must not let Ofsted get away with ...or Wilshaw in particular...is his statement that 'inspecting a cm every time she has a new child is unsustainable'...
that is NOT true at all and never has been like that and if this is the reason for him endorsing agencies it is not the truth and he needs to be challenged on that

His statement was quoted in the Alliance press release this morning and I have raised 2 concerns with the CEO about HMCI statement and the fact he keeps referring to cms as institutions. ...we are far from being that


For those who missed it this the press release

'''Inspecting childminder agencies could be as much as seven times cheaper than inspecting individual childminders, Ofsted chief Sir Michael Wilshaw has revealed

In an answer to a parliamentary question put forward by shadow childcare minister Lucy Powell, Sir Michael confirmed that the total estimated cost of delivering a childminder agency inspection is £6,975, an average cost of £93 per childminder (based on estimates of 75 registered childminders per agency on average). In comparison, the cost of inspecting an individual childminder is currently said to be £708.

Sir Michael previously highlighted the high cost of inspecting individual childminders during an Education Committee evidence session in 2012, stressing a need for a change in approach. “In childminding the registration process is pretty expensive and we spend a lot of money on it, but we need to think about the future and how we inspect childminding institutions,” he said. '''
“I do not think we can carry on doing it as we are doing it at the moment: every time a youngster goes into a childminding setting, we have to inspect. That is unsustainable.”

Under the recently‑passed Children and Families Act, Ofsted will only be required to inspect childminder agencies themselves, although the inspectorate has said that inspectors will also inspect a sample of individual registered childminders

[MessybutHappy]

Folks, hold your horses! These figures are roughly what it costs now...not "this is what we'll charge you".
As far as I understand, we don't know for sure that we'll have to pay to be inspected, we certainly don't know what that charge might be.
Unless anyone can show where they've said, categorically, that there will be a charge?

[Simona]

Folks, hold your horses! These figures are roughly what it costs now...not "this is what we'll charge you".
As far as I understand, we don't know for sure that we'll have to pay to be inspected, we certainly don't know what that charge might be.
Unless anyone can show where they've said, categorically, that there will be a charge?

That is very true.....those are the estimated costs and so far no one has said we are going to be charged but...why all of a sudden are so many questions being asked on cost of Cms inspections?
We would be naïve to ignore the message behind it...after all it was Ofsted who raised the question of how much cms cost to register and inspect in 2012...no such question has been raised on cost of inspecting preschools and day nurseries...unless I have missed it?

All Ofsted needed to do is say....we cannot afford you and need to review cms registration fee but ...oh no...we have had 2 years of speculation and worry
They have not said they will categorically charge but can anyone think they won't?

[Daisy1956]

What if an agency has only a few cms on their books then the figure per cm is higher. So it could be more than an independent cm wouldn't that be funny.

[moggy]

What if an agency has only a few cms on their books then the figure per cm is higher. So it could be more than an independent cm wouldn't that be funny.

An Agency, though, will be set up as a business with many overheads and will have to take some of the costs of running as a loss in the first years, if necessary. It is not just a case of 'ofsted agency fee divided by number of CM on agency books = fee to each agency CMer'.

Agencies will be competing for our custom and competing for parent's business too so they will be carefully targeting their pricing, probably all kinds of packages will be advertised, introduction offers and all kinds. That's if any actually do start, no signs round here yet...!

[teacake2]

Simona, how do we contact Wilshaw and co and try and get him to retract his statement, I know not likely but if we all contact him and perhaps the press and our local MP then we can make him look the fool that he is?
Teacake2

[Simona]

Simona, how do we contact Wilshaw and co and try and get him to retract his statement, I know not likely but if we all contact him and perhaps the press and our local MP then we can make him look the fool that he is?
Teacake2

I am trying to find out a bit more on that statement...bear with me and I will be back

[natlou82]

I have just heard the following figures from a local childminder who attended a meeting about agencies. Apparently, some agencies are looking to charge £12 a week to childminders on their books!!!!. If you choose to be independent the charge for an ofsted inspection will be £700. No option for newly qualified childminders they will go straight onto agency model.

[Mouse]

I have just heard the following figures from a local childminder who attended a meeting about agencies. Apparently, some agencies are looking to charge £12 a week to childminders on their books!!!!. If you choose to be independent the charge for an ofsted inspection will be £700. No option for newly qualified childminders they will go straight onto agency model.

Who ran the meeting? As far as I know, no figure has yet been set for how much an independent childminder will have to pay. The figure of £700 is what is costs Ofsted to inspect a childminder - not what they are going to charge us.

It has also been confirmed by Truss on many occasions that no childminder will have to join an agency.

There seem to be lots of meetings happening where it's being reported that this or that will definitely be happening. As nothing has been officially confirmed yet, I really don't see how any of the info can be passed off as fact. It's best to keep an open mind ad wait until the real announcements are made

[Simona]

If you read Truss' press release to cms published last Friday you will find that our registration fee has been frozen at £35

She has also reaffirmed that agencies will not be compulsory...Independent CMs will get equal 'advertising'...feedback from last Tuesday meeting confirms this too.

[natlou82]

It was a Nottingham based meeting, although I'm not sure who ran it, this childminder often goes to these meetings to keep herself up to date. I'm sorry if it came across that I'm scaremongering as that isn't the case. As a newbie, I'm keen to find out as much info as I can, and it seemed like quite a lot of info was going around at this meeting. I recall from my training that their may be trials running in this area.

[Simona]

I have just heard the following figures from a local childminder who attended a meeting about agencies. Apparently, some agencies are looking to charge £12 a week to childminders on their books!!!!. If you choose to be independent the charge for an ofsted inspection will be £700. No option for newly qualified childminders they will go straight onto agency model.

If you choose to be independent the charge for an ofsted inspection will be £700. No option for newly qualified childminders they will go straight onto agency model.[/QUOTE]

I am afraid both those statements are wrong...maybe that CM attended a meeting before Truss met the 4 associations where she confirmed agencies are not 'compulsory'...then a few days later announced our fee would be frozen at £35

[natlou82]

OK, obviously I'm pleased this information is wrong, I didn't go out of my way to mislead anyone :-(