Julia Harris, who set up the Childcare Recruitment Company six months ago to supply staff to nurseries, says nanny agencies could buy into the business and operate it in their locality. 'The demand for the service from nurseries has been overwhelming and I am confident it would take off elsewhere. I have already got one nanny agency in this area interested in linking up,' she said.
She has 1,180 staff on her books and links with 83 nurseries from Blackpool to Stafford. 'I realised there was a gap in the market because most private nurseries find the supply agencies, which mainly provide teachers, too expensive.'
The company provides permanent and temporary staff, including nursery nurses and managers, holiday childcare representatives for travel companies and staff for creches, and helps au pairs to find work in the United States.
Its sister company, North West Childcare, which Ms Harris founded in 1999, helps to find home-based childcare, including nannies and mother's helps.
It was her experience running the nanny agency that alerted her to the need for a reliable source of staff for nurseries.
She said she also planned for the company to become a registered body with the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB), enabling it to carry out checks on staff.
One childcare recruitment agency to have done so already is Staffquest, which has launched a service to undertake Disclosure checks. Recruitment manager Tracy Howells said that since Checkpoint's launch six months ago there had been 'a very steady stream of organisations wanting checks done on staff, although it is still very much in its infancy'.
She added that Checkpoint is registered with the CRB as 'an umbrella body to undertake Disclosure checks on behalf of employers of staff, working with children and vulnerable adults in the care, health, education and leisure sectors'. It will administer the checks, providing appropriate documentation and will liaise with the CRB on behalf of clients.