Early Years in Northern Ireland

In Northern Ireland, childminders must follow the Minimum Standards for Childminding and Daycare for Children Under Age 12. When childminders are inspected by their Local Health and Social Care Trust, it is done so against this document. They are expected to have a good understanding of all parts of it and to follow it fully to ensure they are being legally compliant.

The Minimum Standards for Childminding and Daycare for Children Under Age 12 covers many aspects of a childminders business including safeguarding, ratios, assistants, record keeping, medications, first aid, assessments and learning and development.

If you would like to see the document for yourself, please follow the link below, which will take you to the government's website to view it

Minimum Standards for Childminding and Daycare for Children Under Age 12

There is also an accompanying document to provide further support to childminders:

Implementation Guidance for Childminders

**If you have any questions that aren't answered here, please get in touch and I will do my best to help you. As I've made clear in Sam's Pledges, I was a childminder in England and I've had to teach myself about the Northern Irish Education System and it's something I am still learning about!

Curriculum for Northern Ireland

When children reach the age of three, they come under the umbrella of the 'Curriculum Guidance for Pre School Education', before moving onto the Foundation Stage at school. This guidance is relevant to childminders, early years educators and supports the children's experience at home too.

This guidance has been created by the Council for Curriculums, Examinations and Assessment (CCEA), who are responsible for advising the Northern Irish government on what should be taught in schools and colleges. Here's a link to that document:

Curricular Guidance for Pre School Education

This curriculum has been designed with four purposes, which are as follows (these have been taken from the document accessed May 2025):

promoting emotional, social, physical, creative and intellectual development
developing self-esteem, self-control and positive attitudes towards others
developing language and communication skills to encourage the sharing of thoughts and feelings; and
creating confident, eager, enthusiastic, independent, curious learners with a positive and problem-solving attitude to learning

Northern Ireland's Curriculum

If you've just landed in this section, have a look here to learn more about the Curriculum for Northern Ireland. Each subject area has the following parts to it, along with some additional aspects ,if pertinent. They are described both individually and cross curricular, with lots of overlaps evident which is always the case with early years' education:

Young Children Learn and Develop Through...

Adults Promote Learning By...

Progress in Learning....

Below are the subject areas that are taught in holistic age appropriate ways, with many cross curricular links and that learning is scaffolded as the children progress through their education. These statements are summarised from the sections describing how young children learn and develop:

Personal, Social and Emotional Development

Simple Routines

Making Choices

Organising Own Play

Playing with and Helping Each Other

Respected and Nurtured Individuals

Identifying Own Needs and Feelings

Understanding Needs and Feelings of Others

Physical Development and Movement

Participating in Physical Play

Understanding Safe Practice

Responding Creatively to Stimuli (Music, Songs, Stories etc)

Social Skills (Turn Taking, Sharing etc)

Values like Trust, Fairness and Respect

Language Development

Attention and Listening Skills

Engaging in Conversation

Thinking skills

Building Confidence in the Use of Language;

Engaging in Imaginative Activities

(Dressing Up, Role-Play etc)

Early Mathematical Experiences

Experimenting With and Investigating a Wide Range of Materials; Understanding of Concepts

Hearing Mathematical Language in Conversation

Using Mathematical Language to Discuss Experiences and Findings

The Arts

Exploring and Experimenting in Sensory and

Play Based Activities

Expressing Ideas and Extending Creativity

Originality of Thought

Exploring Through a Variety of Art, Design, Music, Drama etc

The World Around Us

Exploring Immediate Indoor and Outdoor Environments

Exploring Immediate Surroundings Through Play Based Learning