How to register as a childminder in UK?

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childminding registration UK

A Childminder is basically someone who looks after the children of others most probably because the guardians or the parents of the child are unable to take care of him because of their working hours. Childminder becomes your responsibility that the child under your care finds himself safe, protected, and warm. A child should feel easy and comfortable in your company. Make sure you provide good care and attention to the child. You could keep them engaged by playing with them and having fun. You can look after the babies under 5 years of age and also the children above 5 years who come from preschool. Even at times when a child has a holiday and no one is there to look after them, you can take care as a childminder.

Responsibility as the Childminder 

  1. The first and foremost duty of the childminder is to feed the children right so it is very important to feed them right so they stay healthy and fit.
  2. Hygiene is also something which is needed to take care of by the childminder for which they must change nappies of the child frequently.
  3. Preparing the bottle for a child is also an important task that needs to be taken care of.
  4. For the growth of a child mentally and physically it is important to encourage activities both indoor and outdoor. For this taking the child to the group or a park can also be a very good option.
  5. Dropping the children to the playgroup or school and taking them back on time is also important.

Child safety is something that cannot be ignored at any cost. You must make sure that your house has a safer, friendly environment and is hygienic to avoid any kind of infections. You must also be aware of all the child protection issues to avoid any mistakes. When it comes to the diet pattern, religion and other habits of the child you could consult their parents and work as per their opinion. Also making their parents aware of what their children do when they are with you is also important.

becoming a childminder

Required Working conditions as a childminder 

Working Hours 

This part of your profession needs to fit in the needs and requirements of the parents whose child you are going to take care of. Most of the childminders know what the working hours are on weekends and night shifts when generally parents are out for work and children can be left alone at home. As mentioned earlier it depends on the parents and their conditions so you need to manipulate the working hours as per their needs to be good at it.

Ambient at your place

Before your house is approved for you to practice the job as a childminder it would be checked by the concerned authorities if your home environment is safe for the child and also hygienic as per the concern of child health. If the house gets most of the checks then all goes well but in case if something is not up to the mark you need to make certain changes like setting a safety gate at your home and many others as needed.

Traveling 

For obvious reasons you need to take the child sometimes outside the home and you might also have to pick up and drop the child at a playgroup or school. In such cases, the most needed thing would be your driving license. So it might be the case that the parents request you to show your driving license or ask you to have a driving license in any emergency or for carrying out the daily activities of the child.

Skills one need to have for being the best childminders:

 When we look at the percentage of childminders in the UK then we see that there are almost 38% of them who are full time and part-time working as childminders whereas there are 24% who are self-employed. So this makes us realize that you must be the best to fit in for the job.

This makes it evident that you need to be good at verbal communication, positive attitude listening, supporting empathetic attention to details, social con-science mentoring and motivating others.

how to become a registered childminder

Qualifications for the Childminders

 Though there are no such qualifications needed for this job, a National Certificate in Child Care could be considered something very good to create an impression on parents. Few subjects you should be good at including English, Maths, Care, Childcare and development, Health and food technique.

Getting a foundation appreciation certificate in your S5 and S6 could be also very good for such a job. By doing this you would get an SCQF level 6 qualification simultaneously, a working experience which you would not find in the four walls classroom.

Other Necessities 

  1. The minimum age for a job is 18 years.
  2. You must register yourself to the Care Inspectorate that you would be taking care of a child for more than 2 hours at your home. Care inspectorate might visit you to check if everything at your home is in favour of child safety and protection. Also having a look at how you take care of a child and if everything at your place is good for the child.
  3. Protection of Vulnerable Groups (PVG) Scheme Record checks are also something considered to be very important. One should have such a profession.
  4. Disclosure Scotland criminal record checks are also very important to be checked for you and everyone at your home who is above 16 as it is a crucial factor for the safety of the child.

how to become a childminder

Helpful Resources to Have 

  • Work-based experience and qualification in such courses Scottish Vocational Qualification in Children’s Care, Learning and Development (SVQ level 2/3) could be a kick start for such professions.
  • Excellent cooking skills
  • Basic first aid knowledge a First Aid Certificate.
  • Scottish Childminding Association (SCMA) is considered to be the best among all who runs many courses of such kind in various colleges where you can avail them. But above all, working experience with children is a must.