Good/Outstanding cms will not need to be in a network to do funding

This was tweeted by PACEY at one of their Local events as it was confirmed by the DfE who addressed the cms
it appears they asked one cms to send the email from her LA
I wish the DfE would send a clear message to LAs now so we don't have to battle

At last we seem to have one hurdle out of the way...now the next: where we apply for funding in September?

Have you approached your LA? do so in writing...I asked weeks ago and still got no answer but I have a providers Forum on Wednesday so I shall press the point again
This is good for independent cms...another selling point to parents and one small step sorted!!

I was at Marlow today and it looks like from Sept LA will have to let good or outstanding childminders eye provide without the need for networks or extra checks from LA

In Birmingham, they have just allowed good/outstanding CMs to register for NEF. The only criteria is to be on the network and green RAGing. Before we had to be accredited on the CCF network.

Nina :)

I have been battling this for some time. The ncma network co-ordinate told me I was wrong and that I am mis-informed despite showing her the NCMA article on the matter.

Unfortunately it is still up to individual LAs on what the criteria is to join each network and mine won't budge :(

I spoke to my LA last week and yes from September they will no longer conduct visits to see if we are 'good enough'
They are not taking anymore applications until then as they will be extremely busy putting things in places they are expecting the guidelines anytime

But will it be much harder to get Good or Outstanding? :(

Belle2009...getting the message straight from the DfE directly is hardly getting misinformed?? you are not...tell them where you got the info from!!!
LAs will have no choice but to comply...feels like they want to retain their supremacy till the end

It may be harder to get good/outstanding but the DfE/Ofsted have got to get their priorities right...either they want the funding to succeed and allow cms to participate or they make things worse by making grades harder to achieve. I doubt anyone's practice has got worse since their last inspection, I think the goal posts are being moved...to what avail??

LAs have got to come up with an answer now and that is 'they will support us' equally whether in a network or not, from inspection to inspection
I think it is quite clear but they may fight to the end

Having said that we, independent cms , have to bite the bullit and accept the funding will be below our rates, look at it from a financial point of view and decide if it is worth taking on...we still have to wait for the new funding formula to be announced

Sorry could someone explain how we get the funding if we dont go through LA.
My development officer came round for a visit last week got given green rag rating but was told CRB's for me and my 2 assistants would need to be renewed
to come in line with their regulations, will cost me just under £300 pounds to get this done!
so am reconsidering funding but a couple of my parents would be over the moon if I could give them the 15hrs a week.

xx

lor...that is our next question
Even if the LAs disappear there will still be a dept dealing with funding, we need more clarification ...ask your LA as I will mine
CRB for cms is done by Ofsted until further notice so not sure where that sum comes from and how you could be charged that amount??

LAs cannot mention their regulations because the DfE is busy removing them if they do not comply...this is a true mess with LAs not understanding what is in the pipeline....get it clarified but no way you have to pay that sort of money!

Thanks for advice Simona, will get on the phone on Monday but I dont hold out much hope, they just dont seem to know whats going on!
hubbie just keeps moaning on about stelth taxes when I mention CRB costs!
xx

I'm interested in this, as I have a Good grading at the moment and have los coming up to needing their 15 hours booked, but am not accredited. The parents have all asked me if I could do this as they'd rather use me than the Nursery.

However, if the Inspection grading is to be tougher - what if I apply, with my Good, and then have my Inspection - due next year, and get lower. It could mean that my los have to go elsewhere at short notice and I have to scrabble around for new work to be able to earn enough to pay my mortgage and food bills.
Actually, in the last sentence I said "my los have to go elsewhere at short notice" - but if I was graded lower, would I be allowed to carry on for a months notice, or would I have to stop immediately?
Head aching now!

[QUOTE=Simona;1244287]Belle2009...getting the message straight from the DfE directly is hardly getting misinformed?? you are not...tell them where you got the info from!!!
LAs will have no choice but to comply...feels like they want to retain their supremacy till the end

It may be harder to get good/outstanding but the DfE/Ofsted have got to get their priorities right...either they want the funding to succeed and allow cms to participate or they make things worse by making grades harder to achieve. I doubt anyone's practice has got worse since their last inspection, I think the goal posts are being moved...to what avail??

LAs have got to come up with an answer now and that is 'they will support us' equally whether in a network or not, from inspection to inspection
I think it is quite clear but they may fight to the end

Having said that we, independent cms , have to bite the bullit and accept the funding will be below our rates, look at it from a financial point of view and decide if it is worth taking on...we still have to wait for the new funding formula to be announced[/QUOTE

I have claimed the funding for years now and feel I have a good understanding of the 'system'.

I would like to say the system is broken but I can 'honestly' say the system has never been fixed.

If I didn't have parents relying on me to claim I would tell the LA to take a running jump. I don't get paid on time, one time I had to send my partner in to the head office to personally collect a cheque to get my payment (talk about parents not paying), you get passed from pillar to post and the person who deals with it is 'not in today' they only work part time! It's a :censored: joke.
Their 'system' does things so that it provides incorrect figures and then does something else so you didn't get paid this time, oh and this only happens to childminders!! They know all about the issues, agree it's :censored: and don't care.

It may be harder to get good/outstanding - its a lot harder getting your funding correct and getting your money :angry::angry:
'they will support us' :laughing: :laughing: :laughing:
I have just been told that the funding is 3.75 per hour from 3.70 this comes well in to term time when I am already offering the service.
In all it's :censored:

But if I didn't do it and continue to do it it would be worse and the only way we will be treated better is in volume of childminders using the system, so don't just bite the bullet, load your guns (metaphorically speaking off course) AND GO HUNTING.

Sometimes I get the feeling LA want to ring fence the funding to support the budgets of local schools and this is why they 'p' us off so much.

The funding has many issues ...top is the low rate paid by LAs (that is changing with the new formula coming in)... the late payments too are unacceptable, the system is wrong because the LAs have been given a free hand for years...
Truss is aware of all this and will now act by remove that monopoly and bypassing them...LAs have apparently been 'creaming off' money from the funding and no one has done anything about it,

I am not really interested in dropping my fees for the FE but I feel it is a selling point for independent cms and a financial decision I have to make to remain in business...when it comes to it we will have to put our financial manager's hat on and think about how and how much we sell our services for???
If the grades drop and we start getting satisfactory...the DfE now wants to allow satisfactory to do the funding...then Truss will have shot herself in the foot....is that why cms are excluded from the downgrading of satisfactory to 'requires improvement'?

i asked my do about this a while ago but i had to do my level 3 and the only one they are offering here is one day a week in a surestart centre and i dont have a day a week free :angry:

This tweet from Truss dates back in February but she retweeted it this morning...I am sure she is listening to us as we were discussing the announcement about cms accessiong funding that came from Pacey local yesterday

Elizabeth Truss ‏@trussliz 6 Feb
Childminders would be able to access free entitlement funding if approved by Ofsted, without additional local authority approval needed.

The message is clear that LAs cannot impose restrictions and the funding is subject to Ofsted grading... doing the level 3 is one of the restrictions imposed by LAs amongst many others, my LA has a list of them and many duplicate what we already do for Ofsted
Up to us to decide whether to fight against our LA if drawing the funding is in the interest of 'independent' cms...I will fight then worry about the level of funding later but, after many years of exclusion, I will be able to give my families what I was prevented from doing before and advertise it

We have a long battle ahead but we must not give up now

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Simona

This tweet from Truss dates back in February but she retweeted it this morning...I am sure she is listening to us as we were discussing the announcement about cms accessiong funding that came from Pacey local yesterday

Elizabeth Truss ‏@trussliz 6 Feb
Childminders would be able to access free entitlement funding if approved by Ofsted, without additional local authority approval needed.

The message is clear that LAs cannot impose restrictions and the funding is subject to Ofsted grading... doing the level 3 is one of the restrictions imposed by LAs amongst many others, my LA has a list of them and many duplicate what we already do for Ofsted
Up to us to decide whether to fight against our LA if drawing the funding is in the interest of 'independent' cms...I will fight then worry about the level of funding later but, after many years of exclusion, I will be able to give my families what I was prevented from doing before and advertise it

We have a long battle ahead but we must not give up now

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So she is Tweeting - and seeing what we send her then!

She has never once replied and I have sent her lots of information... how rude :(

Quote:

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Originally Posted by lor

Thanks for advice Simona, will get on the phone on Monday but I dont hold out much hope, they just dont seem to know whats going on!
hubbie just keeps moaning on about stelth taxes when I mention CRB costs!
xx

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Why did you have to pay for your checks? If you complete an EY2 form off of the Ofsted website it prompts the check and doesn't cost you anything.

Doesn't help much seeing you have already paid but may do so going forward

That is unless it has changed again and I don't know about it????

Truss does not tweet very much these days mainly retweets stuff from the DfE
I tried to reply to her about the announcement but I am still blocked...but if you are not blocked you can tweet to her, she must have been reading what was being said at the Pacey local and confirmed it.

I have printed her tweet and will give it to my LA on Wed night

I have never heard of LAs charging for CRBs...is this another condition put on cms?
I have just emailed the Ofsted manager for clarification...I will keep you informed when she replies

Hi Debbie, I didnt pay for Ofsted checks but my D.O says to receive funding I must be an accredited childminder
and one of my L.A requirements is that CRB'S must be done every 3yrs so that means I would need to do myself and my sister and niece (assistants)
which I was told by another childminder cost her £90!

But from what I've read on here (my best source of information) I dont need to be accredited but need to be graded good or outstanding -I got good last time am over due now should've been seen in Jan 2013.
Bet it wont be simple when I call them to see how I go about it.

xx

lor...what you describe is the 'additional' restrictions, duplications, jumping through hoops and red tape Truss is trying to remove. I think the DfE message is clear if the LAs do not take them away the DfE will do it for them in September
it was repeated at Pacey local yesterday in Birmingham and also last Saturday at the one I attended in London

The DfE would be delighted to hear about all the barriers put in your way I am sure, as they know about mine and many others saying cms can only do funding if they get Accredited...that is what Truss is now doing by saying Ofsted will be the judge of your ability to deliver high quality and if you get Good/Outstanding you can draw funding...not perfect but a small step
Those who responded to the Childcare Commission would have flagged these up...that is what she is acting upon

I don't like Truss' reforms but on this one I am with her because the present system discriminates against non network cms... except she is mad to remove the support LAs give us in between inspections and that's what we need to fight for
Those parents who have been denied the Free Entitlement in the past can now get it via their cm regardless of network m'ship

What we need now is the backing of the representing associations to get the message to all cms as some will not have heard