What is a Childminder?
Childminders are childcare professionals who nurture children and provide a high quality education, usually within the childminder’s own home* for two or more hours a day. As well as benefitting from a home from home setting with age appropriate furniture and resources, children are often taken out on trips (always with stringent risk assessments and permissions in place), so they can enjoy educational experiences both in the local community or further afield.
They are qualified, insured and regulated by official organisations, such as Ofsted or agencies, and these regulatory bodies will vary depending upon which part of the UK the childminder is based within.
There are legal requirements and government issued statutory frameworks that childminders must follow in order to operate their childminding businesses. For more information on those, please see here. There are strict adult to child ratios, safeguarding protocols and compulsory record keeping. All childminders and members of their family aged 16 or over who share their home must have Disclosure and Barring Service certificates.
Childminders tend to educate and care for early years children (from birth up until they start school) and they may also offer wrap around care, which enables siblings to stay together. This means they provide care for school aged children outside of school hours, but they are not responsible for their education.
Childminders may also offer childcare for children of all ages who are home educated. They are not responsible for their education, but they are highly likely to provide educational activities and experiences during the children's time in their care. as they would with all the other children!
Childminders are independent business owners who choose their own hours and days of work, meaning some may offer great flexibility for families, often supporting requirements for early starts, evening, weekend or even overnight care (this requires additional protocols).
Childminders (in England) are able to offer 15/30 hour funded places. They can also accept tax free childcare vouchers and other employer voucher schemes too, all of which can save parents a significant amount of money!
*There are now more flexibilities in England that permit childminders to work with colleagues in group settings on non domestic premises.
What's a Nanny?
Nannies work (and sometimes live) within someone's home to provide personalised childcare and support to the family. Whilst nannies may not follow a formal curriculum, they often help children develop important skills such as language, motor skills, and social interactions. They can assist with homework, engage in educational games, read books, and organise activities that promote learning.
Nannies must have an enhanced DBS to prove they are suitable to work with children and appropriate insurance. But they are not required to register with Ofsted, they do not have inspections, they do not need formal childcare qualifications or a paediatric first aid certificate. However, many nannies choose to undertake training and register with Ofsted to formalise their credentials which also enables parents to pay them using the tax free childcare scheme, but they cannot use funding.
It's fair to say that they are 'an extra pair of hands' to help with daily life in a busy home and their roles will vary depending upon the specific needs of the family they are working for. Some may be asked to take on a child's early years education (although they are not legally required to do this), whilst others will be expected to transport the child to a childcare setting and undertake household chores, for example.
For more information on nannies, this Ofsted blog is useful.
What's a Nursery?
A nursery is usually a more formal setting where larger groups of children are cared for and educated by early years practitioners alongside children of a similar age. They spend their time in rooms that are filled with age appropriate furniture and resources, whilst also having access to enclosed outdoor spaces with suitable equipment. Some nurseries may take the children out on trips in small groups (always with stringent risk assessments and permissions in place), so they can enjoy educational experiences both in the local community or further afield.
Nursery staff are qualified, insured and regulated by official organisations, such as Ofsted, and these regulatory bodies will vary depending upon which part of the UK the nursery is based within.
There are legal requirements and government issued statutory frameworks that nursery staff must follow. For example, there are strict adult to child ratios, safeguarding protocols, compulsory record keeping and policies around the use of mobile phones and recording devices on the premises. All members of staff must have enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service certificates.
Children tend to be separated into three areas; babies, toddlers and pre-schoolers and when they reach the next milestone, they are 'moved up' to the next room after some settling in sessions to help them get used to the new environment. But this would need to be checked with an individual nursery as their policy maybe different.
Nurseries usually offer weekday care with extended working hours from around 7am until 6pm, but this may vary from nursery to nursery and exact opening times will need checking. They tend to be open all year round and only close for national holidays, like Christmas.
Each child is assigned a key worker within the room where they spend their time. Whilst they will get to know other members of staff, their key worker is mostly responsible for supporting and monitoring their key children's development. This BBC article explains more about the role of a key worker within nurseries.
