I am a qualified nurse but thinking of quitting and becoming a child-minder. Can anyone tell me the process or steps I need to take? What training / qualifications do I need and can anyone recommend a decent book / website to help?

Many thanks.

Liz

Hi

I found the details of my local authority Family Information Service on the council website and they booked me onto an child minding information session.

Then I booked onto the 'Understand how to set up a home-based childcare business' and Paediatric First Aid that everyone has to do before becoming a child minder. My council run both courses, but I think you can also do the first one online too.

I then applied online to Ofsted to become a registered child minder. You can do this whilst you are doing the course and just give them the dates when you will have completed both courses. (They won't want to come out and do your pre-registration visit until you have the certificates from these courses to show them.)

My local authority has a child minder support and offers help before and after registering.

There is a book to accompany the course called Home-based childcare by Sheila Riddell-Leech that is very useful and this website is a mine of information!:laughing:

Hope that helps :)

Excellent reply from lisbet...

Yes the first step is to contact your local authority and find out about courses.

Don't forget to let us know how you get on! :D