Against childminder agency petition

[Tazmin68]

Hi
Sarah has put a link on the independent childminders Facebook to a link for an online petition to allow parents the right to choose childcare and childminders to remain independent and not agencies. I'm no good at putting links I don't know if someone else can as needs signatures

Deb.

Thanks Deb - here is the petition link - Against agencies governing childminders - e-petitions. Sarah / admin

[rickysmiths]

I have seen this Petition and it doesn't really make any sense.

Childminders will not have to sign up to be in an Agency anyway!!

I think it has been started by a parent who does not understand that Agencies are here to stay as an Act of Parliament has now been passed.

[sarah707]

Ok... first of all the petition is here - Against agencies governing childminders - e-petitions.

Second - I have signed it and I hope everyone who does not want agencies will sign it too.

And - yes, we know we are getting agencies. However, the right for childminders to stay independent is reliant on a number of things - partly on whether Ms Truss stays in office - because if she goes the next person might change their policy.

SO... we need to keep lobbying - quite a few of us are doing this via the Ofsted Big Conversation - #OfstedBigConversation

BUT we also need to keep reminding Govt that we want to retain our independence and get parents behind us.

I think it is brilliant that a parent is supporting us enough to start a petition on our behalf. What harm can it do to keep reminding Govt that we are here and against agencies?

the Childminding forum / Independent Childminders Facebook page are too busy supporting childminders who want to stay independent to do any campaigning - but we are happy to host this petition link

[loocyloo]

Thank you x

[kats]

They might of passed it in parliment Rickysmith but the point is that i for one will not stop letting the government know that i want to remain independent and if that means signing petitions then i'll sign one every day if i have to

[Bumble Beez]

Signed...am trying to get my local childminding group to upload onto Facebook site at the min

Sarah x

[miffy]

Thanks for the link.

Yes, we know agencies are coming no matter what we do and, yes, we've been told we can remain independent BUT we don't know yet (unless I've missed something) how much it will cost us to remain independent and, as Sarah rightly pointed out, a change of minister or government can mean all promises of continuing independence are off.

I've also signed it and will be emailing the link to all my parents and local cm's and asking them to sign too. I agree with Sarah, it does no harm to keep reminding the powers that be that we want to remain independent.

Miffy xx

[Daisy1956]

I have signed and sent the link to parents and other CMs in the area.

[AliceK]

Thank you.
Signed

xx

[Tazmin68]

What we want to see is more LA dropping the idea of agencies as there has been no interest and if there is not the uptake then it will fall flat on its face and less chance of us having to pay between £600-£900 per inspection. This is the perfect way of parents and child care providers expressing their views.

Now 1250

[Simona]

Some rather puzzling comments on this thread I feel

Why is the forum too busy to campaign against agencies when it campaigned so much against ratios ...which were not really a CMs problem?

Cms who are registered with Ofsted can remain independent...but it will be harder to do so but we have to understand the legislation we have to follow ...such as EYFS and put it into practice

We have to understand how the inspectorate and regulator....Ofsted...intends to inspect and regulate us.... by reading their 'guidance'

We have to prepare for inspections and the more we understand the regulation and legislation the better the chance to engage with the inspector...on the day no one will be there to hold our hands, answer questions or solve problems on the day

In my view it means being independently able to make our own decisions

I think that CMs must open their minds on WHO will become an agency...maybe your LA has not attempted to do so for good reasons
They will not drop the idea to set an agency for obvious reasons...one being their survival

CMs must keep an open mind to where the agencies will spring from...plenty in the political media to give you an idea of who could afford to set them up and run them

[rickysmiths]

I kind of agree with Simona. Far too much time was spent on the ratio thing when it was not a problem for us but for Day Nurseries and have the fought for us on the Agency issue? No of course not and indeed some of the chains are set to start up agencies and make money from us!!

I would rather pay £900 for my Ofsted Inspection every 3 years than a similar amount to an Agency who will prob charge a similar amount each year.

Agencies are likely to inspect me every year, may well interfere with the way I like to run my business one I have run very successfully for 20 years I do not want this to happen.

I believe our only strength now is not to join Agencies. Let them fail spectacularly. They need us and parents to join for them to be successful and for them to make money. If we don't join them then no Company will waste its time trying to run one.

We would be much better putting our time and efforts into supporting the several organisations like Pacey, Pre School Learning Alliance, UKCM local Childminding Associations etc who have childminder's interests at heart and who will be there to support us in what training we need and what we need in out businesses. We do not need Agencies to give us support. Paying to be a member of one of the Professional Organizations seems to me a much cheaper option and we are dealing with people who understand how childminders tick.

We then also have valuable Forums and and FB groups for support as well.

[bunyip]

I think there were aspects of the ratio thing that were a serious problem for many CMs, but that's by the by.

If any logic ever existed for the new rules (including agencies) being able to deliver what the Tories promised - higher quality and lower fees, simultaneously - then it all hung on the ability to care for more children, and send out more invoices each month.

Maybe it was reasonable that we collectively believed the regime would drop the rest of the edifice once the financial foundations had crumbled. Then again, maybe it was foolish of us to believe that the ConDemNation would drop an ideological policy just because the economics of it are fundamentally flawed.

Btw, I'm not at all sure that the agencies will fail. I suspect they will deliver what a lot of parents actually want: certainly enough to make money for their owners and enough for Whitehall to put a positive spin on things and hail them as a success. I can see a lot of parents being happy with them. I can also see them delivering a lot of what we independents simply cannot (even if they don't match our quality) as well as having the financial muscle to dominate the market.

[Simona]

Independent CMs will need to match the support agency CMs will get...that criteria is set by the DfE themselves for agencies and Ofsted will set the criteria for inspection

It will certainly not involve 'support' via a forum or Facebook (not on FB so unsure what it offers ).....which many cms believe is all that is required to stay independent...

Lets face reality we need more than online forums and asking questions when unsure so someone can give us the answer ...we need to be truly independent in thinking, researching, knowledge and practice