Recommendation 9

We recommend the Government work to remove or reduce the barriers preventing childminders setting up or continuing in businesses and consider developing more incentives to grow this market. It could do this, for example, by a) Allowing childminders to work together in settings outside their own home, following the French model of maisons d’assistants maternels (MAMs). b) Working with the Department of Levelling up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) to remove barriers to childminders setting up businesses in rented properties. If this cannot be done through a voluntary process in which Registered Social Landlords and local authorities create a specific exemption for childminding businesses, then the DLUHC should consider legislation. c) Permitting parents to claim funded hours for their child if they are cared for by a registered childminder who is also a member of their extended family. An exemption for a childminder’s own children is understandable but it is unclear why grandchildren, nieces and nephews need to face the same barriers. d) Allowing Childminder Agencies to register part-time childminders and considering the balance of costs between Childminder Agency and Ofsted registration costs and fees. (Paragraph 55) Support for parents and families