Much has been said and written about the plight of nurseries around the country with under-funding for the free entitlement and the restrictions of the code of practice. Providers have been able to join together, form protest groups and make their voices heard.
Little has been heard, however, about the challenges faced by childminders in taking part in the free entitlement scheme. This week, we talk to several about the different problems they are encountering.
Funding, as always, is one issue causing disquiet. The hourly rate is sometimes well below a childminder's usual charge. But childminders have the double disadvantage of working with 1:3 ratios for threeand four-year-olds, compared with 1:8 for group settings. Nurseries can access higher rates when providing the free hours for two-year-olds because of the higher ratios they operate, but this does not appear to apply to childminders for the older age group.
Even more unfairly, childminders cannot even provide the free entitlement unless they are part of an accredited network - and in many areas these are not available. In principle, having support and advice from a network is desirable, but is it really out of the question for a childminder who can't access a network to be able to offer free places?
All registered childminders who take children from birth to five have to work within the Early Years Foundation Stage - and Dame Clare Tickell's EYFS review has recommended that this continues.
So why is a childminder who has been rated outstanding in every area of her practice not deemed suitable to provide the 15 hours of care and education? This should be sorted out before the full two-year-old offer comes into play in 2013.